Biography
Research Area(s):
Our research is grounded in the conservation and management of natural resources while drawing on fundamental ecological theory to understand species distributions, interactions, and ecosystem processes in riverine ecosystems. Using freshwater mussels and fishes as primary study organisms, we investigate how ecological processes operating across spatial and temporal scales shape patterns of biodiversity, community structure, and ecosystem function. Our work focuses on (1) understanding patterns of taxonomic and functional diversity across environmental and temporal gradients and (2) examining how interactions among organisms—including mussel–fish associations and other biotic interactions—influence, and are influenced by, the structure and functioning of freshwater ecosystems.
Education
- Postdoc: University of Georgia
- Ph.D., Biology, University of Alabama, 2023
- M.S., Biology, Arkansas State University, 2018
- B.S., Biology, Missouri Valley University, 2016
Publication Highlights
- Sánchez González, I., A. W. Park, and K. A. Capps. 2026. Trait-based drivers of host specificity in freshwater mussel–fish parasitic interactions. Ecology and Evolution 16 (8), e74097.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.74097Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- Sánchez González, I., I. A. Brunetz, S. J. Wenger, and K. A. Capps. 2026. Publicly available data reveal information gaps in freshwater mussel–fish interactions and co-occurrence critical to biodiversity conservation. Freshwater Biology 71 (6), e70259. https://doi.org/10.1111/fwb.70259
- Zieritz, A., J. I. Brian, R. Sousa, D. C. Aldridge, C. L. Atkinson, K. Douda, I. Sánchez González, et al. 2025. A global meta-analysis of ecological functions and regulating ecosystem services of freshwater bivalves. Limnology and Oceanography 70 (10), 2982–2997. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.70190
- Sánchez González, I., G. W. Hopper, J. R. Bucholz, J. D. Lozier, and C. L. Atkinson. 2025. A functional morphological classification for North American freshwater mussels: associations between morphology and environmental parameters across spatial scales. Biological Reviews 100 (5), 2150–2166. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70040
- Hopper, G. W., J. R. Bucholz, T. P. DuBose, K. J. Fogelman, S. M. Keogh, M. E. Kubala, M. B. Lodato, I. Sánchez González, et al. 2023. A trait dataset for freshwater mussels of the United States of America. Scientific Data 10 (1), 745. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02635-9
- Sánchez González, I., G. W. Hopper, J. R. Bucholz, M. E. Kubala, J. D. Lozier, and C. L. Atkinson. 2023. Niche specialization and community niche space increase with species richness in filter-feeder assemblages. Ecosphere 14 (5), e4495. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4495