9403733 Branstrator This award is under the International Junior Investigator and Postdoctoral Fellows Program, which enables U.S. scientists and engineers to conduct three to twelve months of research abroad at research centers of proven excellence. The program's awards provide opportunities for joint research, and the use of unique or complementary facilities, expertise and experimental conditions abroad. This award will support a nine-month postdoctoral research visit by Dr. Donn K. Branstrator to work with Dr. F. W. B. Bugenyi at the Fisheries Research Institute (FIRI) in Jinja, Uganda. This study of the role of Caridina Nilotica, a freshwater prawn in fishery transformation and ecosystem change in Lake Victoria, East Africa will produce a data set that will greatly benefit major scientific efforts studying ecosystem changes and how these changes are documented in the sedimentary record. Results from this project will be used to interpret recent limnological changes in Lake Victoria and the relationship between water column processes and the sediment record with respect to Caridina. In addition, the understanding of lake ecology which this research will provide, will help implement effective strategies for sustainable use of these lakes and maintenance of their socio-economic value. ***
