Pictured (from left): Dr. McAllister, Dr. Don Cloutman (Burdett, KS), Xenia Esparza, Cecilia Phan, Estefani Garcia, and Jośe Fuentes.
Dr. Chris McAllister and four NTCC Independent Research Students, Xenia Esparza, Estefani Garcia, Jośe Fuentes, and Cecilia Phan traveled over Spring Break (Mar. 13-17, 2026) to Black Rock, Arkansas, to conduct research on fish parasites.
They discovered several new species of myxosporeans and monogeneans from various fishes from the Black River (Lawrence County), Big Creek (Fulton County), and Spring Mill Creek (Independence County). Dwight Ferguson, a commercial fisherman, collected big river fishes for the group from the Black River and the students used a backpack electrofisher at the other two watersheds.
This marks the six consecutive year that Dr. Mac and his students have made the outing to Black Rock. Several publications have resulted from this research. For more information about biology research opportunities at NTCC, contact Dr. McAllister at (903) 434-8286.
