Students

Catalina Aguilar-Hurtado

JCU PhD Student
Contact: catalina.aguilarhurtado@my.jcu.edu.au

Catalina was born and grew up in Cali, Colombia. She completed her BSc in Biology at University of los Andes and did her research on Caribbean octocoral systematics. Shortly after, she did some internship at research stations in South America and in 2008 joined a master program at the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa, Japan. During these two years she studied the systematics of an octocoral family (Melithaeidae) and sampled corals throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago. In 2011 she began her PhD studies at JCU within the School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences under the supervision of Dr David Miller. Her PhD research focuses on the coral transtriptomic analysis under different environment conditions, including the effects of elevated CO₂ on the coral immune system.

Kristen Anderson

JCU PhD Student
Contact: kristen.anderson2@my.jcu.edu.au

Kristen completed her BSc in Canada studying biology. Her love of the ocean took her to Honduras where she volunteered at a marine research assistant at the Utila Centre for Marine Ecology. Kristen came to James Cook University to undertake a semester of course work being awarded a Graduate Certificate of Science in Marine Biology. Under the supervision of Morgan Pratchett, she completed her Honours year receiving her BSc Honours with first class distinction, studying summer growth rates of corals at Lord Howe Island. She is continuing her research with a PhD at the Centre of Excellence, studying the growth of branching corals along the GBR to assess for changes in growth and determining the key environmental drivers of these habitat forming species.

Adrian Arias

JCU PhD Student
Contact: adrian.arias@my.jcu.edu.au

Adrian grew up in and around saltwater in Costa Rica. He gained his undergraduate degree in Biology with emphasis on sustainable development; later completed a master’s degree in Natural Resource Management at JCU. After some years in Costa Rica he worked with a wide range of marine issues such as fisheries, tourism, coastal reforestation, science communication and marine spatial planning. Back again in JCU Adrian is a member of Program 6, supervised by Prof. Bob Pressey. His project examines marine conservation planning in Costa Rica and will focus on marine protected area design and, compliance and enforcement.

Shelley Anthony

JCU PhD Student
Contact: shelleya@gbrmpa.gov.au

Shelley is originally from the U.S.A., and most recently lived in Hawaii before emigrating to Australia in 2000. Her PhD project involves the environmental, microbial, and physiological cause(s) of tissue sloughing and its role in coral disease. She is supervised by Bette Willis at the JCU node of the Centre, as well as David Bourne from AIMS, and Kirsten Michalek-Wagner from ReefHQ Aquarium. Shelley enjoys salsa dancing, house renovation projects, and relaxing at the beach with her husband and 1-year old son.

Jennifer Atherton

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jennifer.atherton@my.jcu.edu.au

Jen grew up in the north west of England, but travelled to the east coast to study for her BSc (Hons) Aquatic Zoology degree at the University of Hull. After completing her undergraduate degree, Jen travelled out to Tanzania, Africa, to volunteer as a Research Assistant on a conservation project based in the Mafia Island Marine Park. She moved over to Australia in March 2011 to study for a PhD under the supervision of Prof. Mark McCormick, Prof. Geoff Jones and Dr. Ashley Frisch. Her research focuses on the effect of the threat of predation risk on offspring, through maternal effects, in damselfishes.

Stephen Ban

JCU PhD Student
Contact: stephen.ban@my.jcu.edu.au

Stephen’s marine biology background encompasses a broad range of scales, taxa, and ecosystems, ranging from test-tube phytoplankton to coral reefs to ocean-basin pinnipeds (and aquarium belugas). He completed his undergraduate degree at McGill University in Montreal and went on to do a one-year diploma in Geographic Information Systems at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and a master’s degree at the University of British Columbia with the Marine Mammal Research Unit. His current research interests include spatial ecology, multiple stressor impacts, the role of expert opinion in data-poor environments, and modelling the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems. Under the supervision of Professor Bob Pressey, Professor Sean Connolly, and Dr Nicholas Graham, his thesis looks at the issue of multiple stressors on the Great Barrier Reef from a number of angles, including a metaanalysis of the coral reef literature and using expert elicitation to inform Bayesian belief networks.

Andrew Bauman

JCU PhD Student
Contact: andrew.bauman@my.jcu.edu.au

Coming from Ohio (USA), Andrew’s interest in marine biology came at an early age running away from the pounding surf on the beaches of North Carolina. Nevertheless, he developed a keen interest in tropical coral reef ecology after a summer internship in Palau. He completed his BSc at the University of South Carolina before joining the United States Peace Corps and moving to Micronesia. Little did he know that he would be living abroad the next 14 years in places such as Micronesia, Australia, United Arab Emirates and SE Asia. Andrew is currently writing up his PhD at the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University in Australia. His current research interests focus on the ecology and dynamics of coral reef communities in marginal reef environments, specifically reef communities in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. He is most interested in the reproductive and recruitment processes of scleractinian corals, and how these processes will likely be impacted by climate change.

Dorothea Bender

UQ PhD student
Contact: d.bender@uq.edu.au

Dorothea is originally from Germany, where she completed her MSc in Biology at the University of Bremen. She has always been interested in the marine environment and also physiological processes, such as photosynthesis. The research for her masters thesis was conducted at Heron Island Research Station under the supervision of Guillermo Diaz-Pulido and Sophie Dove from UQ as well as her German supervisor Prof. Kai Bischof (University of Bremen). The research concentrated on coral-algal competition and the effect of different macroalgae on coral recovering from disturbance. Dorothea is currently a PhD student at the Coral Reef Ecosystems Lab at UQ investigating the effect of elevated sea surface temperature and ocean acidification on coral reef algae (supervisors: Sophie Dove and Guillermo Diaz-Pulido). She includes various growth forms and taxa her experiments, looking at turf algal communities as well as macroalgal responses to the changed environmental conditions.

Sandra Binning

ANU PhD Student
Contact: sandra.binning@anu.edu.au

Sandra was born and raised in Montreal, Canada, where activities involving skiing and snow were far more common than surf and sun. Nevertheless, she developed an interest in tropical ecology early on, and completed her BSc Honours degree in biology at McGill University studying seagrass communities in Barbados. Craving a study system with slightly more personality, Sandra switched her interests to freshwater fish, completing her MSc at McGill exploring intraspecific variation and ecomorphology in East African cichlids. Having cemented her love of fish, Sandra dreamed of returning to the marine realm, and moved halfway across the world to Australia to do it! Under the supervision of Dr. Chris Fulton at ANU, Sandra’s PhD will use techniques in ecomorphology and physiology to explore intraspecific phenotypic variation in coral reef fishes in response to environmental gradients.

Chico Birrell

UQ PhD Student
Contact: chico.birrell@uq.edu.au

Chico first experienced coral reefs as a “beche de mer” collector from Cairns in 1993. As an Ecological Science undergraduate at the University of Edinburgh he became involved in initiatives for conservation of coral reefs in Central America. Following work in the tourism and dive industry in Spain, Portugal and Morocco he moved to Townsville and undertook an MSc to investigate the impacts of macroalgae on coral reproduction at James Cook University. Since 2003 Chico has worked as an independent marine consultant, a dive instructor and biologist on the Great Barrier Reef and in the Coral Sea for Undersea Explorer, as a research assistant at James Cook University, as a benthic ecologist for the Australian Institute of Marine Science in Western Australia (Scott Reef, Ningaloo Reef and Kimberley Region), as a translator and interpreter (Portuguese, Spanish), as a scientific commercial diver and for coral health and fecundity monitoring projects as a consultant in Western Australia.. In 2011 Chico joined ARC Laureate Prof. Peter Mumby at the University of Queensland, for a PhD to explore the ecology and dynamics of macroalgae and provide insights for conservation measures to boost coral reef resilience. He also dedicates spare time to the Australian Coral Reef Society (www.australiancoralreefsociety.org)

Teressa Bobeszko

JCU PhD Student
Contact: teressa.bobeszko@my.jcu.edu.au

Teressa grew up in Brisbane and completed both her undergraduate and BSc Hon degree in marine biology at the University of Queensland. Currently, Teressa is a PhD student within the School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences at James Cook University. Under the supervision of Dr Bill Leggat and Professor David Yellowlees her PhD research focuses on the effects of increased atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations on the inorganic carbon supply in the coral-Symbiodinium symbiosis. In her spare time Teressa enjoys camping, spending time at the beach, dancing and painting.

Melissa Bos

JCU PhD Student
Contact: melissa.bos@my.jcu.edu.au

Melissa graduated with a BSc in Chemistry and Marine Science from the University of Miami, Florida, USA. After working as an environmental consultant, she went back to school to pursue her passion for coral reef conservation. Melissa obtained a MSc from the University of Hawaii at Manoa studying the physical chemistry of coral reef nutrient uptake. During her masters degree she was also adjunct faculty at Hawaii Pacific University and a lecturer for the Institute for Cultural Ecology in Fiji. As a Coral Reef Management Fellow for the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Melissa had a leadership role in designing and implementing coral reef conservation strategies for the State of Hawaii. After the fellowship, Melissa was the Hawaii and Pacific Islands Coordinator for NOAA’s Alliance for Coastal Technologies where she built collaborative partnerships between the technology industry, scientists, and marine resource managers. Combining her experience working with traditional fishing communities and global business leaders (and numerous stakeholders in between), Melissa is pursuing a PhD in socioeconomic values of coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef and Main Hawaiian Islands and innovative conservation finance instruments to manage reefs. Melissa is jointly supervised by Natalie Stoeckl (School of Business) and Bob Pressey (ARC Centre of Excellence Program 6).

Lisa Boström-Einarsson

JCU PhD Student
Contact: lisa.bostromeinarsso@my.jcu.edu.au

Lisa fled the cold waters of Sweden in favour of tropical dive destinations in Central America and South-East Asia where she worked as a dive instructor for four years. Having seen first hand the beauty and vulnerability of marine ecosystems, she pursued a BSc Honours Degree at JCU in marine biology. Lisa is now continuing on with a PhD at JCU investigating ecological effects of habitat degradation. In particular her project focuses on how on competitive hierarchies between reef fishes are affected by decreasing habitat quality. She is supervised by Professors Geoff Jones, Phil Munday and Dr. Mary Bonin.

Simon Brandl

JCU PhD student
Contact: simon.brandl@my.jcu.edu.au

Simon is originally from Munich, Germany. Although he completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Innsbruck, in the centre of the Alps and far away from the ocean, marine biology has always been his main interest. After finishing his Bachelor thesis on the ecology of clingfishes (f. Gobiesocidae) in the Northern Adriatic Sea he came to Australia and enrolled for the MAppSc in Marine Biology at JCU in February 2011. Having completed a research project with David Bellwood where he investigated pair-formation in the herbivorous rabbitfish Siganus doliatus, he is now doing a PhD focusing on fine-scale differences in the functional performances of herbivorous coral reef fishes and their influence on coral reef ecosystems. The project is supervised by David Bellwood.

Tom Brewer

JCU PhD Student
Contact: tom.brewer@my.jcu.edu.au

Tom works on understanding interaction between social and ecological systems to improve human welfare. Within this broad research theme are two dominant research strands. First, for his Ph. D. under the supervision of Assoc. Professor Cinner, he is working towards understanding social phenomena that drive the exploitation and management of ecological systems. He conducts this research in Solomon Islands using coral reefs as his model ecological system. Second, he is interested in both the theory and application of understanding the links between human welfare (including health and well-being) and ecosystem states across different spatial, temporal and socio-political scales. He hopes that a better understanding of the links will help target investments toward conserving dimensions of natural systems that we derive the greatest benefit from. His papers and résumé can be found at: http://jamescook.academia.edu/TomBrewer

Ian Butler

UQ PhD Student
Contact: ian.butler@uqconnect.edu.au

Ian grew up in Canada, the United States and Australia. He received his BSc in Marine Biology from James Cook University in 1990. He received his MSc in Marine Biology from James Cook University in 1996, working on lethal wounding in Crown-of-Thorns starfish with Hugh Sweatman and John Lucas. He spent the next nine years variously working as a Fisheries Biologist in Cambodia, Papua New Guinea and the USA as well as a software developer with WildTangent and Microsoft. The next 7 years were spent as an at-home dad and that job continues. Having missed Marine Biology a great deal, in 2011 Ian returned as a remote student to start a PhD at The University of Queensland with John Pandolfi and Jian-xin Zhao. The focus of his project is the historical ecology of the terrigenoclastic coral reefs around Hervey Bay, Queensland Australia.

Jordan Casey

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jordan.casey@my.jcu.edu.au

Jordan grew up in Charleston, South Carolina. She completed a Bachelor of Science with Honors in Ecology & Biodiversity and Spanish from Sewanee: The University of the South, studying the effects of exurbanization on avifauna and macroinvertebrates as well as ecofeminism in Latin America. After university, Jordan conducted research on seabird colonies in the Farallones, islands off the coast of California, and the Galápagos Islands. Currently, she is a PhD candidate under the supervision of Sean Connolly, Howard Choat, and Tracy Ainsworth. Her project focuses on the role of territorial grazer behaviour and community structure on coral reef trophic dynamics. She is interested in how energy flows through coral reefs and how overfishing impacts food web structure from the perspective of key ecosystem components: microbes, epilithic algal matrix, Acroporids, damselfish, and predators.

Paulina Cetina Heredia

JCU PhD Student
Contact: paulina.cetinaheredia@my.jcu.edu.au

Paulina studied Oceanography at the Autonomous University of Baja California and obtained a masters degree in Physical Oceanography from CICESE, Ensenada, Mexico. Her masters research project on the Circulation Dynamics along the Mexican Caribbean took her exploring Reef Systems and motivated her to further investigate this ecosystem. She pursued coming to Australia to study the Great Barrier Reef and got the opportunity to enroll for a PhD at JCU with a scholarship given by the Mexican Government. As an oceanographer Paulina is curious of various marine science aspects and developed an interdisciplinary project that deals with larval transport in reef systems. She works under the supervision of Dr. Sean Connolly, Dr. Peter Ridd and Dr. Richard Brinkman. She uses a hydrodynamic model to simulate circulation along the GBR and will be implementing coral and reef fish larval life traits and behaviour to accurately model their transport. Apart studying marine science she enjoys sharing good time with friends, being at sea, dancing and reading a book before falling sleep.

Karen Chong-Seng

JCU PhD Student
Contact: karen.chongseng@my.jcu.edu.au

Karen comes from the Seychelles and did her BSc (Hons) in Marine Biology at JCU. Her honours thesis investigated coral reef fishes and their consumption of coral disease. She is now returning to her home country for her PhD project to try and understand the ecological processes aiding and abetting the recovery of Seychelles coral reefs after being hit by the 98 bleaching. She is supervised by Dr. Morgan Pratchett, Dr. Nick Graham and Prof. David Bellwood.

Melissa Cowlishaw

JCU PhD Student
Contact: melissa.cowlishaw@my.jcu.edu.au

Mel grew up in Brisbane and completed her BSc hons in marine biology at the Centre for Marine Studies, at the University of Queensland and moved to Townsville to undertake a PhD at James Cook University under the supervision of Dr Geoff Jones and Dr Mark McCormick. Her PhD investigates the interrelationships between individual living space, habitat quality and abundance in coral reef fishes, with most of her research being carried out at the Lizard Island Research Station. When she’s not out on the reef Mel enjoys surfing (when there’s waves around), outdoor adventures and surf lifesaving.

Peter Cowman

JCU PhD Student
Contact: peter.cowman@my.jcu.edu.au

Peter is originally from Ireland were he completed a BSc (Hon) degree in Marine Science at the National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG). During his 4th year he studied the use of molecular tools to identify interspecific variation in marine sponges. He enrolled in the Masters of Applied Science program at JCU Townsville in 2007 and promptly upgraded to the Graduate Diploma in Research Methods. For a minor project he used molecular methods and fossil data to date the evolutionary origins of wrasses (Family Labridae). His current PhD research investigates the origins of trophic novelty in coral reef fish families and the underlying patterns in trophic evolution on coral reefs

Chris Cvitanovic

ANU PhD Student
Contact: christopher.cvitanovic@anu.edu.au

Chris grew up in Canberra but escaped the cold in 2004 to complete his Bachelor of Science with Honours in Marine Biology at James Cook University. At the end of his Honours Chris took a full time position with the Australian Government as the Science Manager for the Commonwealth Marine Protected Areas program. After three years working in management Chris is returning to Science, undertaking a PhD looking at the ecological energetics of butterflyfishes under the supervision of Dr. Chris Fulton (ANU) and Dr. Morgan Pratchett (JCU). Using study sites along Australia’s east coast including Lizard Island and Lord Howe Island, Chris will also investigate how energy acquisition and expenditure within butterflyfishes varies under different environmental conditions.

Ayax Diaz-Ruiz

UQ PhD Student
Contact: a.diaz-ruiz@cms.uq.edu.au

Born and educated in Mexico, Ayax finished his honours project in coral-associated crabs (genus Trapezia) in the Sea of Cortez by 1999 and then switched into Information Technology for his Master’s project, where he explored the use of mobile internet technology in ecological studies. Keen on returning to work on the effect of climate change on invertebrates associated to Pocillopora damicornis, he has been working under the supervision of Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, Greg Skilleter and John Pandolfi at UQ to analyse the effects of bleaching in the biodiversity of invertebrate fauna associated to pocilloporid corals. Additional objectives of his work are also studying food webs within this particular symbiosis (coral-invertebrates) and tracking recovery of biodiversity after stressful periods within coral colonies. He looks forward to increase his knowledge of ecosystem functioning in any model system as part of his career development. In his free time, he likes to relax practicing some T’ai Chi Ch’uan.

Christopher Doropoulos

UQ PhD Student
Contact: christopher.doropoulos@uqconnect.edu.au

Christopher completed his BSc (Honours) in 2007 studying trophic connectivity in temperate marine ecology at Edith Cowan University, WA. In 2008, he was employed as a Research Assistant and spent a fair amount of time at Ningaloo Reef investigating patterns of herbivory in coral reef ecosystems. This time as an RA sparked an interest to further investigate coral-algal interactions, directing him towards a PhD researching the effects of climate change on the early life history of corals, with a focus on algal interactions. Christopher is supervised by Dr Selina Ward (UQ) and Dr Guillermo Diaz-Pulido (UQ).

Pepito (Sonny) Fernandez

ANU PhD Student
Contact: sonny.fernandez@gmail.com

Sonny is an Associate Professor at the University of the Philippines in the Visayas (UPV), teaching political science and general education courses to undergraduates. He has a bachelors degree in political science from the University of the Philippines and a masters degree in geography at McGill University, Canada. His interest on governance and co-management issues in tropical coastal areas peaked in the late 1990s after a stint as a long-term exchange scientist to the College of Fisheries, Kagoshima University, Japan. He began his PhD studies at the Department of Human Geography-Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University in July 2004. He is finalizing the writeup of his PhD thesis on the politics of marine protected area management across scale in northern Iloilo Province, Philippines.

Renata Ferrari Legorreta

UQ PhD Student
Contact: renata.ferraril@gmail.com

The emphasis of Renata’s research is to produce data that can be used for management and conservation of coral reefs. Her PhD had an extensive fieldwork component (12 continuous months), which produced a unique data set, combining high frequency sampling over a prolonged experimental period. These data is being incorporated into coral population models and will enable management recommendations to be made for Glover’s Reef Atoll Marine Reserve, Belize. Renata’s research includes a wide range of questions that aim to identify patterns that influence coral reef resilience, from primary productivity to herbivory and reef structural complexity. Renata investigates the effects of seaweed competition on coral growth rate and survival, the significance of this question lies in its relevance for predicting the response of coral reefs to the phase shifts modern reefs are facing. Renata also studies the influence of herbivory and season on the spatial and temporal change of macroalgal patch dynamics. A third component of her research studies how herbivory varies with reef structural complexity, and ascertain how small-scale changes in substrate complexity (e.g. after cyclone strikes) lead to changes in grazing and its consequences for coral reef resilience. These aspects of her research will be put together into simulation models of tropical ecosystems to predict the recovery of reef corals following large-scale disturbances. The data from the models will enable the adequate level of management and protection of coral reefs, building the ecosystems’ resilience and allowing their maximum recovery in the shortest period possible. For example, what is the ideal reef complexity for herbivores or what is the size threshold that coral colonies need to reach in order to be able to survive seasonal seaweed blooms.

Rebecca Fox

JCU PhD Student
Contact: rebecca.fox@my.jcu.edu.au

Originally from the UK, Becky completed her BSc(Hons) in Marine Biology at James Cook University (JCU) in 2006. Her Honours research project focused on quantifying the impact of herbivorous fishes on an inshore reef of the Great Barrier Reef. Becky is now undertaking her PhD at JCU under the supervision of David Bellwood, where she is examining aspects of the ecology of one particular family of herbivorous reef fishes, the rabbitfishes (f: Siganidae). Her research aims to expand our knowledge of the trophic ecology, habitat associations and movement patterns of individual species of siganid, with a view to better understanding their functional impact on reef ecosystem processes.

Christopher Goatley

JCU PhD Student
Contact: christopher.goatley@my.jcu.edu.au

Christopher is from the UK where he undertook a BSc (Honours) degree in marine biology at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. Since completion of this degree he stayed in Newcastle upon Tyne for a short period helping the university to coordinate field trips for visiting school groups and then worked as a freelance scuba instructor in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. He is currently enrolled at JCU Townsville and is conducting a research project on the trophic ecomorphology of reef fish assemblages, supervised by Prof David Bellwood.

Erin Graham

JCU PhD Student
Contact: erin.graham@my.jcu.edu.au

Originally from Colorado, USA, Erin completed a BSc(Hons) in Marine Biology at James Cook University in 2007. She is currently enrolled in a PhD under the supervision of Bette Willis, Andrew Baird, and Sean Connolly. Her research focuses on factors affecting the dispersal potential of coral larvae, including energetics, settlement competence, and survival.

Georgina Gurney

JCU PhD Student
Contact: georgina.gurney@my.jcu.edu.au

Georgina is from Tasmania, where she completed her BSc in Marine, Freshwater and Antarctic Science. Preferring tropical rather than Antarctic waters for diving, she headed north to do her Honours research in the Philippines, where she used bio-physical simulation modelling to explore potential reef futures under multiple management and climatic scenarios. Georgina’s experiences in the Philippines inspired her to pursue a PhD in understanding the human dimensions of marine resource management. Currently supervised by Bob Pressey, Natalie Ban, Josh Cinner and Nadine Marshall, her research focuses on how social factors can be incorporated into several stages of systematic conservation planning with two key aims. First, she is investigating how to explicitly integrate fisheries livelihood objectives into spatial prioritization procedures to enable MPA designs to be better aligned with the needs of local stakeholders. Second, to inform the selection of contextually appropriate conservation actions, she will explore the social impacts of MPA management, and the relative role of multiple-scale factors in influencing stakeholders’ engagement in collective MPA management.

Mélanie Hamel

JCU PhD Student
Contact: melanie.hamel@my.jcu.edu.au

Mel grew up in a fishing town situated between limestone cliffs in upper Normandy in France. She undertook her MSc (Ecology) at Paris 11 University and did her research project at Charles Darwin University, where she examined the diving behaviour of nesting Olive Ridley Turtles in northern Australia. The extraordinary diversity of people, landscapes and species in the Pacific led her to spend more than four years in the region to expand her knowledge and gain experience in conservation science. She worked on various research projects in terrestrial and marine science in Australia for the School for Environmental Research (Charles Darwin University), in New Zealand for the Leigh Marine Laboratory (Auckland University), and in New Caledonia for the French Research Institute for Development (IRD) before she felt ready for the next step. Mel is currently undertaking a PhD under the supervision of Prof. Bob Pressey (JCU) and Dr. Serge Andrefouet (IRD). She will be evaluating, for Solomon Islands, the potential of coral reef habitat maps to serve as proxies for information on socio-economic variables and biodiversity, for use in conservation planning.

Hugo Harrison

JCU PhD Student
Contact: hugo.harrison@my.jcu.edu.au

Originally from central France, Hugo grew up more in tune with the mountains and rocks than oceans and reefs. Nevertheless, Hugo developed an interest in marine sciences whilst doing a BSc Hon degree in Evolutionary and Ecological Genetics at the University of Edinburgh. In 2006, he joined Dr Stephen Simpson on an expedition to the Arabian Sea that would spark a passion for coral reef ecology. Hugo pursued this interest in Townsville where he undertook a Graduate Certificate of Science in Marine Ecology at James Cook University in 2007 and went on to do a PhD under the supervision of Prof. Geoffrey Jones, Prof. Garry Russ, Dr. Lynne van Herwerden and Dr. Serge Planes (France). His research explores concepts of population connectivity and larval dispersal that will develop our understanding of fish and fisheries ecology as well as the effectiveness of marine reserves in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Hugo has kept ties with his French roots through a co-tutelle agreement since 2009 between James Cook University and the University of Perpignan (France).

Christina Hicks

JCU PhD Student
Contact: christina.hicks@my.jcu.edu.au

Christina is an interdisciplinary social scientist working to develop sustainable, equitable, and efficient approaches to managing coastal resources. Supervised by Terry Hughes, Josh Cinner, Natalie Stoeckl and Bob Pressey her research integrates theory and methods from economics, psychology, political science, and fisheries science to examine the way people’s values relate to and change, depending on their social context. Originally from both Kenya and the UK, Christina grew up mostly in Africa. She has degrees in environmental chemistry and tropical coastal management and has worked for Tim McClanahan evaluating fisheries management, and Nick Polunin and analyzing interdisciplinarity in the environmental sciences. Christina works directly with managers and NGOs to improve our understanding of how people are likely to develop and/or respond to resource management initiatives.

Jess Hopf

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jess.hopf@gmail.com

Jess grew up exploring the intertidal rock-pools characteristic of the chilly Melbourne coast. It was here that her passion for marine science was born. After a working holiday teaching chemistry and physics in Vanuatu she decided to fulfill her childhood dreams by moving to Townville to complete her BSc (Hons) in marine biology at JCU. Her honours work focused on how we could utilise jellyfish statoliths (gravity sensing structures) to explore the ecology of jellyfish medusae. Adopting a less gelatinous career path, Jess is now working on her PhD in marine ecological modelling. Her current work focuses on using a metapopulation framework to assess the implications of marine reserve networks for the commercially and recreationally important coral trout. She is under the supervision of Prof. Sean Connolly, Prof. Geoff Jones, and Dr. David Williamson.

Vera Horigue

JCU PhD Student
Contact: vera.horigue@my.jcu.edu.au

Vera was majoring in Theatre Arts in high school on the slopes of Mt. Makiling, when she suddenly decided to become a Marine Biologist instead. She has a B.Sc. in Biology from the University of the Philippines (UP), and did an honours project on roundscads. An Erasmus Mundus Studentship made it possible for her to earn a joint M.Sc. degree in Water and Coastal Management from Universidad de Cadiz in Spain and University of Plymouth in the UK. Since then she focused on research and management of marine protected areas (MPAs). As a research assistant for various NGOs and the UP Marine Science Institute (MSI), she was able to see how rich her country is in terms of natural resources and how much it is also exploited because of high resource dependence. Vera is supervised by Prof. Bob Pressey, Dr. Simon Foale and Dr. Porfirio Aliño of the MSI. Her research aims to examine governance systems and processes that contribute to effective local government coordination and collaboration when scaling up to form MPA networks in the Philippines.

Matthew Jankowski

JCU PhD Student
Contact: matthew.jankowski@my.jcu.edu.au

Matt was originally born in Melbourne Australia, but left before he was one and grew up in Cambridge in the UK. He started scuba diving around the age of 15 which is when he developed his interest in the marine sciences. Matt did his undergraduate studies at Newcastle University in the UK and always had an interest in tropical marine biology, in particular coral reefs. He then undertook a master of applied science degree in marine biology at JCU in Townsville where he learnt more about coral reefs and tropical marine biology in general. In his last semester he did a research project under the supervision of Geoff Jones looking at the effects of depth and aspect on coral reef fish distributions on reefs in Kimbe Bay, PNG. Matt is now a research student studying the effects of depth on the distribution, habitat use and specialisation of coral reef fishes. He is supervised by Professor Geoff Jones and Dr Nick Graham and has carried out work on both the GBR and the reefs of Kimbe Bay, PNG.

Fraser Januchowski-Hartley

JCU PhD Student
Contact: Fraser.Hartley@my.jcu.edu.au

Born in Edinburgh, Fraser grew up in the UK and Malawi. Having completed both his BSc (Hons) in Marine Biology and an MSc in Tropical Coastal Management at Newcastle University, he departed for Papau New Guinea. During his three years working for the Wildlife Conservation Society in PNG, he helped establish a network of locally managed marine protected areas in New Ireland, a sustainable coral farming project on Andra Island and learned to chew betelnut without turning green. Supervised by Nick Graham, Joshua Cinner and Garry Russ, his PhD will see him return to some of the communities he has previously worked with in PNG; investigating the effects of traditional fishing and marine management on fish behaviour, and how changes in this impinge on fishery and conservation goals.

Young Koo Jin

JCU PhD Student
Contact: youngkoo.jin@my.jcu.edu.au

Young grew up in Kyoto, Japan. He undertook his Bsc and Honours in Marine Biology and Ecology with a supervisor, Sandie Degnan at the University of Queensland in Australia. His Honours research investigated transcriptional responses of heat shock family genes to heat stress in the intertidal abalone, Haliotis asinina in an ecological context. Following the completion of Honours, he went back to Japan and took molecular genetics jobs at Drosophila Genetic Resource Center, Center for Ecological Research (Kyoto University) and the Laboratory of Marine and Biological Function (Kyoto University), all based in Kyoto. Experiences during his career have shaped his passion for evolutionary patterns at the genetic level and interest in ecological genetics. He is currently undertaking his PhD at James Cook University under the supervision of Dr. Petra Lundgren (Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority), Dr. Madeleine van Oppen (Australian Institute of Marine Science), Dr. Andrew Negri (AIMS) and Prof. Bette Willis (JCU). His PhD project aims to find multiple genetic markers that correlate with environmental gradients in coral populations and validate the association between the markers and phenotypic response. Identification of genetic loci for stress tolerance will allow spatial vulnerability mapping and will assist in implementing a range of conservation strategies, including better informed preservation and restoration efforts.

Jacob Johansen

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jacob.johansen@my.jcu.edu.au

Jacob is originally from Denmark where he gained his Bachelor at Copenhagen University studying fish ecophysiology. Jacob decided to escape the cold and move to Australia in 2005 where he gained his Masters of Science at James Cook University, Queensland, Australia in 2007. In his masters project Jacob examined the effects of swimming ability and refuging behaviour on coral reef fish ecology and distribution. Jacob was awarded a PhD scholarship by JCU in September 2007 and is currently studying the resilience of planktivorous coral reef fishes to environmental disturbance such as global climate change and terrestrial run-off. He is interested in the ability of reef fishes to tolerate adverse or extreme environmental conditions on coral reefs.

Charlotte Johansson

JCU PhD Student
Contact: charlotte.johansson@my.jcu.edu.au

Charlotte grew up in Sweden where she undertook her MSc at Stockholm University. Since the completion of her degree, Charlotte has been working for the Australian Institute of Marine Science examining the effects of the re-zoning of the Great Barrier Reef on fish populations. She is currently undertaking a PhD under the supervision of Prof David Bellwood (JCU) and Dr. Martial Depczynski (AIMS). The project is focusing on identifying herbivorous key processes that contribute to coral reef resilience on Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia.

Michael Kramer

JCU PhD student
Contact: michael.kramer@my.jcu.edu.au

Born and raised in New Zealand, Michael developed his passion for the marine world through exploration of the rocky coastline and diving the reefs in the Bay of Plenty. He completed his BSc (Hons) at JCU in 2011, during which he investigated the invertebrate fauna of the epilithic algal matrix, and their fish predators, on Orpheus Island. Following the completion of Honours, he then progressed onto a PhD at the beginning of 2012 under the supervision of Prof. David Bellwood and Dr. Orpha Bellwood. His research is investigating the different communities of invertebrates (particularly crustaceans) and cryptic fish in different reef habitats throughout the GBR. Additionally, he intends to examine the strength of the trophic relationship between the benthic crustaceans and the fish that feed on them, and how these interactions are maintained under different environmental conditions.

Joleah Lamb

JCU PhD Student
Contact: joleah.lamb@jcu.edu.au

Joleah completed a BS in Neurobiology at the University of Oregon in the USA. As an undergraduate, she assisted in the investigation of Drosophila central nervous system development for cancer research at the Oregon Institute of Neuroscience and Molecular Biology. Her interest in disease research led her to the Oregon Center for Clinical Investigations where she coordinated clinical pharmaceutical studies for the treatment of neurological diseases and disorders. In 2011, she was awarded an AIMS@JCU research scholarship to undertake her PhD under the supervision of Prof. Bette Willis and Prof. Garry Russ from JCU, and Dr. Britta Schaffelke with AIMS. Due to the growing demand for coastal and reef-based recreation, tourism, port development and gas/minerals exploration, many industries are focusing more and more on the world’s remaining natural marine areas for expansion. However, the influence of these industries on coral disease has not been examined. Joleah’s research focuses primarily on identifying and mitigating the effects of reef-based industries on coral health and disease in Australia and the Indo-Pacific.

Angela Lawton

UQ PhD Student
Contact: a.lawton@cms.uq.edu.au

Angela grew up in Boston, and moved to Wisconsin to complete a BA in Science and BMusic in Education. During her time at Lawrence, she participated in the Lawrence University Coral Reef Semester, spending a month in the Cayman Islands learning about the biology and ecology of the Cayman Islands. This experience inspired her to return to Grand Cayman to complete her honours on the ecology of the reefs of Grand Cayman and eventually to start her PhD in Ove Hoegh-Gulberg’s lab studying the metabolic relationship of the coral host and the symbiotic dinoflagellate using microsensors.

Susannah Leahy

JCU PhD Student
Contact: susannah.leahy@gmail.com

Susannah grew up in the United States and France. She pursued training as an ecologist while completing her undergraduate degree at the George Washington University, and was all set to begin working in terrestrial systems. However, she was sidetracked into marine ecology by a research experience with NOAA as a Hollings Scholar, and has never looked back. Following a Shapiro research fellowship at James Cook University, she decided to stay on, completing a Masters of Applied Science degree in marine biology. She has now begun a PhD in which she will investigate the effectiveness of small, community-based marine reserves in the Philippines at protecting the range of habitats required by fishery species that change habitat with ontogeny. Her work is being completed under the supervision of Prof. Garry Russ, Dr. Rene Abesamis, and Prof. Michael Kingsford. Outside of her university life, Susannah is an avid kayaker and enjoys sunrises, sunsets, and long walks anywhere but the beach.

Anne Leitch

JCU PhD Student
Contact: anne.leitch@csiro.au

Anne Leitch has a background in marine ecology but these days spends more time as a social scientist. During her PhD, Anne will work with two communities adjacent to, and dependent on, the Great Barrier Reef to develop an integrated assessment of their adaptive capacity and planned response options to climate change. Anne has a BSc (Hons) from University of Sydney and Masters in Communication from QUT.

Mauro Lepore

UQ PhD Student
Contact: mauro.lepore@uqconnect.edu.au

Mauro is interested in the long term dynamics of coral reefs in areas particularly affected by human development. Under the supervision of John Pandolfi and Jian-xin Zhao, Mauro is doing a PhD in the Marine Palaeo Ecology Lab at the University of Queensland. His PhD investigates what coral reefs where like before and after European settlement in Queensland (Australia) in order to evaluate the role of human impacts in coral reefs decline. In particular, Mauro is studying the case of the Keppel Islands, southern Great Barrier Reef. Mauro believes that science gave him the opportunity to meet people from all over the world and gain invaluable knowledge and experiences.

Mei-Fang Lin

JCU PhD Student
Contact: meifang.lin@my.jcu.edu.au

Mei-Fang is originally from Taiwan. She completed her BSc in Natural Science Education in National Taitung University in 2006 and MSc in Marine Biology in National Taiwan University in 2008. After working at Academia Sinica for three years, she moved to Townsville to start her PhD in the School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences, JCU. Her PhD research focuses on using genomic approaches to understand coral evolution.

Alicia Lloyd (nee Crawley)

UTS PhD Student
Contact: alicia2lloyd@gmail.com

Alicia grew up in Sydney but decided that James Cook University in Townsville would be the best place to study, with the Great Barrier Reef on their doorstep. After completing her degree in Marine Biology and Chemistry, Alicia moved to Brisbane and received first class honours at The University of Queensland for her research on coral photobiology and ocean acidification on Orpheus Island. For her PhD, Alicia completed most of her field work on Heron Island and Lizard Island and she is now writing her thesis back in her home town at the University of Technology, Sydney. Currently, Alicia is taking a break to have her first child, due at the end of August 2012.

Adrian Lutz

JCU PhD Student
Contact: adrian.lutz@my.jcu.edu.au

Adrian grew up in Switzerland and completed his MSc in biology at the University of Basel. He first came to Townsville in 2005 to work with Madeleine van Oppen for his thesis on the genetic connectivity of Seriatopora hystrix. He returned to Switzerland to finish his degree and worked for the Institute of Zoology of the University of Basel. Thanks to an AIMS@JCU scholarship he’s back in Townsville working with Madeleine van Oppen, David Miller and Walt Dunlap. His PhD investigates the potential antioxidant role of Coenzyme Q and Plastoquinone in coral symbiosis.

Rafael Magris

JCU PhD student
Contact: rafael.magris@my.jcu.edu.au

Rafael studied Oceanography at the Federal University of Espirito Santo, Brazil. In 2008, he concluded his master research project in the same university. His project was focused on zooplankton variability at different temporal scales. Since 2007, he has worked at the Brazilian Ministry of Environment. His main activities included the developement of conservation measures for threatened marine species and the proposition of new marine protected area for Brazilian marine ecosystems. His PhD examinates the incorporation of biological process and dynamic threats into a conservation planning approach for the most biologically important coral reef area in the southern Atlantic Ocean

Hannah Markham

UQ PhD Student
Contact: h.markham@uq.edu.au

Hannah completed her undergraduate BSc (Hons) at the University of Swansea, UK where her dissertation was on the Anthropogenic Impacts on the Coral Reefs of Roatan, Honduras. She then went on to live in the field in Madagascar for 2 ½ years where she ran the research component of a small volunteer-based NGO conducting a baseline assessment of the tropical marine habitats and developed a number of new survey methodologies. Following her return to the UK she then took two masters courses, the first in Aquatic Biology and Resource Management at the University of Exeter in 2007 that led to field research on Cousin Island, Seychelles investigating the drivers for the lack of reef recovery following the 1998 bleaching event. Later in 2008 she completed her second course in Tropical Coastal Management at the University of Newcastle, which involved a research project on coral immunity at JCU in Townsville. Her PhD now expands her passion for benthic ecology into a historical dimension by reconstructing past reef assemblages to investigate the effect of anthropogenic stressors on the inshore reefs of the GBR in the wet tropics.

Alyssa Marshell

UQ PhD Student
Contact: a.marshell@uq.edu.au

Alyssa was lucky to spend her teenage years growing up on the gorgeous northern New South Wales coast, where she snorkelled regularly and learnt to dive as part of the high school curriculum there. She completed her Bachelor of Science degree majoring in marine biology at James Cook University in Townsville before heading off to explore the world working in the dive and tourism industries. Alyssa eventually ended up at the University of Guam Marine Lab in Guam, Micronesia where she completed her Masters of Science degree investigating unicornfish movement patterns and population dynamics under the supervision of Dr Jennifer McIlwain, and worked as a Graduate Research Assistant with the Government of Guam Coral Reef Monitoring Group. Alyssa is currently a PhD candidate investigating the ecological roles of herbivorous surgeonfish on coral reefs, under the supervision of Professor Peter Mumby, Dr Alastair Harborne and Dr Ian Tibbetts.

Robert Mason

UQ PhD Student
Contact: Robert.mason1@uq.net.au

Robert grew up in Sydney and completed a Bachelor of Science (Honours) at Macquarie University, with a focus on ecology, genetics and bioclimatic modelling. A period of volunteering in ecological restoration at Lord Howe Island illuminated to him the threats faced by coral reefs (mass bleaching occurred soon after he had visited the Island), and this led him to UQ to start a PhD in 2011. His project examines the physiology of coral stress caused by high temperature and irradiance, with the aim of improving remote methods of predicting coral bleaching through better physiological knowledge. He is supervised by A/Prof. Sophie Dove, Prof. Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, Dr. William Skirving and Dr. Bronte Tilbrook. Between his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, he worked as a molecular biologist at The Australian Museum in Sydney.

Dominique McCowan

JCU PhD Student
Contact: dmmccowa@gmail.com

Dominique grew up in southern Indiana, where she observed fossilized Devonian reefs. She went to a local college while working full-time and graduated with a BS in Biology with a minor in Geology and an AA in Chemistry. During her undergraduate studies, she was part of a field biology club, through which she experienced coral reef ecology and the ocean (for her first time when she was 18). She did research on mosquitoes and West Nile Virus for three years during her undergraduate course work, so Dominique is absolutely ecstatic about working with corals. She came to Townsville as soon as they accepted her for postgraduate work, and has completed her graduate diploma in marine biology. She is now undertaking her PhD, which focuses on the ecological and evolutionary vulnerabilities of scleractinian corals to mass bleaching events. Her supervisors are Dr. Morgan Pratchett, Dr. Andrew Baird, and Dr. Terry Hughes. In her free time, Dominique likes to be in or near water or doing something artistic.

Ian McLeod

JCU PhD Student
Contact: ianmcleodnz@gmail.com

Originally from New Zealand, Ian completed his BSc and MSc through the University of Auckland. Ian has worked in 18 countries, including every continent. His previous roles include: Ranger on a small conservation island in NZ, filmmaker in Africa, personal trainer in London, head chef on a super yacht based out of Spain, environmental consultant, contract diver, pollution response officer, research officer in Antarctica, and English teacher in a small village on the foothills of the Himalayas.
Realising that little more consistency in his CV would be a good idea, Ian moved to Townsville to concentrate on building a career in research commencing with a PhD through James Cook University in April 2010. Ian’s research focuses on the impacts of sea surface temperatures on the early life history stages of coral reef fish and
the consequences on these impacts on the connectivity of reef fish populations. Specifically it addresses: What are the relationships between natural temperature gradients (spatial and temporal) and the early life history traits of coral reef fishes? What are the effects of ocean warming on the early grown, survival and body condition of juvenile reef fish at equatorial regions, where they may already be living at or beyond their thermal optima? What are the interacting impacts of temperature and variable food supply on the performance of reef fish larvae. This research is supervised by Professors Geoffrey Jones, Mark McCormick and Philip Munday from JCU along with Dr Timothy Clark from AIMS.

Rachael Middlebrook

UQ PhD Student
Contact: r.middlebrook@uq.edu.au

Rachael grew up in Sydney and completed a Bachelor of Marine Science at Macquarie University. In between Sydney and Brisbane, Rachael spent time in Fiji researching traditional fisheries and reef management in Fijian communities before moving to Brisbane to complete an Honours degree at the Centre for Marine studies, University of Queensland. Rachael began her PhD at CMS in 2007 under the supervision of Dr Sophie Dove, Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, Dr Ken Anthony and Dr Bill Leggat (JCU). Her research focuses on determining thermal threshold dynamics and variability in reef building corals between reefs and at sub-reef scales. Information provided by this research will be utilized by NOAA towards predicting coral bleaching and mortality and subsequent impacts on coral reef environments. In her spare time Rachael enjoys surfing and painting.

Morana Mihaljević

UQ PhD student
Contact: m.mihaljevic@uq.edu.au

Since originally from Croatia, Morana’s interest and love towards marine life (especially benthic invertebrates, e.g. echinoids, corals) stated on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Morana started studying biology at the University of Zagreb and then continued at the University of Zurich where she completed her BSc in Biology and MSc in Palaeontology. She is currently enrolled as a PhD student at the University of Queensland under the supervision of Prof. John Pandolfi. Morana is studying the evolution of coral reefs in the South China Sea throughout the last 35 MY.

Gabrielle Miller

JCU PhD Student
Contact: gabrielle.miller1@my.jcu.edu.au

Gabrielle grew up close to the beach in Melbourne, where she would spend her summers harassing creatures in rock pools. Her love of the marine environment was cemented during a field trip in high school to Orpheus Island. Since then she has worked towards a career in marine biology, completing her BSc(Hons) in zoology and marine and freshwater biology at Monash University before moving to JCU to complete a PhD under the supervision of Dr Philip Munday and Dr Mark McCormick. Gabrielle’s PhD project investigates the combined effects of ocean acidification and temperature on the life history of a common coral reef fish, Amphiprion melanopus. Specially, she will be examining the effects on growth, development, swimming performance and metabolism of juveniles and the reproductive output of adults exposed to decreased pH and increased temperatures.

Amin Mohamed Esmail

JCU PhD student
Contact: amin.mohamedesmail@my.jcu.edu.au

Amin was born in Egypt where he completed his BSc in Zoology (excellent degree with honors) in 2006. He worked as a teaching assistant at Faculty of Science, Benha University, Egypt. As he developed a great interest in coral reef research, he did a Masters project on coral health and disease in the Egyptian Red Sea. This project provided baseline information on coral disease, coral bleaching, and other health issues that affect coral reefs in this region. Amin has been awarded a PhD scholarship from the Egyptian government. He is now a PhD student at David Miller’s lab, the ARC center of Excellence for coral reef studies, James Cook University. Amin’s PhD is supervised by Prof David Miller and Prof Bette Willis. His research focuses on studying the impact of newly discovered coral associated alveolates on coral health. Yet, the nature of these associations is unknown so it is unclear whether they have positive or negative impact on coral health.

Kirsty Nash

JCU PhD Student
Contact: kirsty.nash@my.jcu.edu.au

Kirsty is originally from the UK, where she studied Oceanography with Marine Biology (BSc Hons). She moved to Townsville in 2002 and completed a MAppSci in Tropical Marine Ecology at James Cook University. She spent a number of years doing field research and teaching field techniques in association with the Marine Park Authority in the Seychelles, and teaching college level courses in marine biology and oceanography in the Caribbean. In 2009 she returned to Australia, completing a Masters of Education at Charles Sturt University, and began working as a research assistant at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University. She recently began a PhD looking at the scales at which fish are functioning on the reef and how this contributes to resilience. Kirsty is supervised by Nick Graham and David Bellwood.

Jessica Nowicki

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jessica.nowicki@my.jcu.edu.au

Having been born and raised in Wisconsin, USA, Jess hadn’t become enlightened (i.e., seen the ocean) until she was 17, during a vacation to North Carolina. With much bewilderment, she realized there was more meaning to life than Miller Light beer and ridiculously good cheese.By exchanging her cheese head for fins; she embarked upon her journey toward becoming a marine biologist. From 2008-2010, she focused her research on the effects of ocean acidification and increased sea surface temperatures on the behaviour of marine invertebrates and fishes. Today, she has shifted her PhD research direction towards examining the extent to which anthropogenically-appreciated social bonding traits such as “trust”, cooperation, monogamy and parental care exist among fishes. Furthermore, she aims to elucidate whether such bonding traits operate according to the same psychobiological mechanisms by which they operate in higher vertebrates, namely the oxytocinergic system. Using scientific rigour, she hopes to make a career of building a scientific and public appreciation for the extent to which lower evolved vertebrates can socially bond in ways appreciated among higher taxa, such as humans. Her PhD supervisors are Dr. Stefan Walker and Prof. Morgan Pratchett from ARC CoE for Coral reef Studies; and Dr. Lauren O’Connell, from Harvard University.

Daisie Ogawa

JCU PhD Student
Contact: daisie.ogawa@jcu.edu.au

Daisie’s interest in the molecular biology of corals began during a corals reef class she attended while on a study abroad at the University of Queensland during her undergrad. After completing a double major in Biology (BSc) and Marine Science (BSc) at her home university, the University of Georgia (Athens, GA, USA), she came to JCU to join Dr. Bill Leggat’s lab in the Biochemistry department. Her PhD project has focused on the effects of increased CO₂ and temperature on the members of the Acropora aspera holobiont (animal host, endosymbiotic algae, Symbiodinium, and the microbial community), especially in relation to transcriptomic responses of the host and photophysiology of the Symbiodinum. Her hobbies include hiking, reading books about the zombie apocalypse, and sitting quietly.

Allison Paley

JCU PhD Student
Contact: allison.paley@my.jcu.edu.au

Allison is originally from the east coast of the States where a shared love for playing in rock pools on the coastlines of Maine Islands and ballet led her to study a dual BSc/BA in Aquatic Biology and Dance at the University of California, Santa Barbara. After a study-abroad stint in Australia, she transferred to James Cook University (JCU) and pursued her interest in coral reef ecology, later graduating with a BSc in Marine Biology (although she still dances at every opportunity). Now finishing her PhD through JCU and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, Allison’s research focuses on understanding the influence of coral fluorescent proteins in mitigating coral stress. She is co-supervised by Professor Bette Willis (JCU) and Drs. Line Bay and Madeleine van Oppen of the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS). After completing her PhD in 2012 Allison is looking forward to a career in science communication and education (and perhaps even finding a way to bring dance into the marine world).

Chiara Pisapia

JCU PhD Student
Contact: chiara.pisapia@my.jcu.edu.au

Chiara is originally from Rome, Italy where she completed both her Undergraduate and Postgraduate degree in Marine Science. She always dreamed about doing research on coral reefs and after working in Indonesia she moved to Townsville in 2009 to start a Master of Applied Science in Marine Biology. In 2012 Chiara started her PhD in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and AIMS@JCU, she is interested in understanding intraspecific variation in the ability of corals to withstand disturbances. Her PhD is entitled: Drivers of colony-level variation in condition and resilience for reef-building corals.

F. Joseph Pollock

JCU PhD Student
Contact: frederic.pollock@my.jcu.edu.au

Joe grew up in Charleston, West Virginia (USA) among the majestic hills and valleys of America’s Appalachian Mountains and more than 1000 kilometers from the nearest coral reef. He was first drawn to marine research as an NSF-funded undergraduate fellow at Mote Marine Laboratory where he helped to develop a restoration plan for Florida’s ailing Atlantic bay scallop populations. After graduating summa cum laude in Biology from the University of Kentucky, Joe expanded his interests in marine science through short-term fellowships at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (Panama) and the Hawaii Institute of Marine Science (USA). Armed with new expertise in genetics and molecular biology, Joe was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to travel to Australia where he developed the first quantitative PCR assay to detect a known coral pathogen. Joe was granted a joint MSc for this work through the College of Charleston (USA), the Australian Institute of Marine Science, and James Cook University, but his passion for coral disease research and two excellent supervisors, Dr. David Bourne and Prof. Bette Willis, lured him back to Australia to continue this work. As an AIMS@JCU PhD student, Joe is currently employing the latest techniques in microbiology, genetics, histopathology, and disease ecology to untangle the interplay between the complex coral host, dynamic ocean environment, and poorly understood pathogens that leads to coral disease on Indo-Pacific reefs. For more information, please visit FJPollock.com.

Davina Poulos

JCU PhD Student
Contact: Davina.poulos@my.jcu.edu.au

Davina grew up in Sydney, Australia, where she completed her BSc in Marine Biology at the University of Technology, Sydney, and gained first class Honours researching the distribution and biodiversity value of an uncommon temperate soft coral species. During her studies, Davina gained further experience assisting with state-wide surveys for the NSW Marine Parks Authority and conducting volunteer work for NSW Fisheries. Seeking warm tropical waters, she commenced a PhD at James Cook University in 2012 where she is researching prior residency effects in fish communities, supervised by Prof. Mark McCormick. She hopes to discover how prior residents influence the establishment and persistence of individuals entering a local community and what affect this has on the dynamics of fish communities, particularly in light of our changing environment.

Martina De Freitas Prazeres

UQ PhD Student
Contact: m.prazeres@uq.edu.au

Martina is originally from Brazil, and completed her BSc in Marine Biology at the Universidade Federal Fluminense, where she studied the anthropogenic impacts on the coral reefs from Bahia and Pernambuco (Northeast region) using benthic foraminifera as bioindicators. Afterwards, she finished her MSc in Biological Oceanography in 2009 expanding her work to offshore coral communities located in the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago. For her PhD, she is interested in applying symbiont-bearing foraminifera as bioindicators to detect changes through time and space along the Great Barrier Reef, and how we can use them to identify changes driven by climate change and local impacts in coral reef ecosystems.

Paola Rachello Dolmen

UQ PhD Student
Contact: paola.rachellodolmen@uqconnect.edu.au

Paola was born in Bogota (Colombia) and raised by Italian parents. She completed her Bachelor degree (2003) in Biology at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (Bogota). In 2005 she moved to Amsterdam, Netherland to follow a Master Degree in Biological Science at the University of Amsterdam (2007 completed). During the Masters studies she conducted two extensive research projects. One project examined the relation between coral species traits and environmental conditions in an Indonesian reef complex. The second project focused on the phylogenetic relationships of marine sponge morphotypes (Cliona celata) using mitochondrial and nuclear markers. In May 2009, she and her partner Alberto moved to Brisbane and in June she started her PhD at Centre for Marine Studies (UQ) under the supervision of John M. Pandolfi and Winston F. Ponder. She is studying the historical ecology of marine gastropods communities from Moreton Bay Marine Park.

Catalina Reyes-Nivia

UQ PhD Student
Contact: catalina.reyes@uq.edu.au

Catalina is from Colombia where she completed her BSc (Honors) in Biology at the Universidad del Valle. Her research focused on the predation on living coral by parrotfishes in the Tayrona Natural Park, Colombian Caribbean. After that she worked as a research assistant in the Coral Reef Monitoring Program in Colombia (SIMAC) for over 6 years. Then she moved to the Netherlands and completed her MSc at the University of Amsterdam looking at the species barriers in the coral genus Madracis using molecular techniques. Soon after that she moved to Australia and joined the Coral Reef Ecosystems Lab, at the University of Queensland where she is completing a PhD under the supervision of Ass/Prof Sophie Dove and Dr Guillermo Diaz-Pulido. Catalina’s project assesses the effects of ocean acidification and warming scenarios on the dissolution/microbioerosion of corals and coralline algae.

Alma Ridep-Morris

JCU MSc Student
Contact: alma.ridepmorris@my.jcu.edu.au

Alma is a Pacific Islander from the beautiful islands of Palau, and she gained her BSc from the Australian National University in Canberra, and she went back to Palau to work as the Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Program Manager for the Bureau of Marine Resources, Ministry of Resources and Development for the past few years. She is currently doing her Master of Science by Research at James Cook University, and hopefully if funding permits, she wants to pursue her PhD in the near future. Alma is doing her Masters on the dynamics of coral disease (particularly on Black Band Disease) outbreak in Nikko Bay, Palau. Her supervisors are Professor Bette Willis and Professor Geoff Jones from JCU.

Justin Rizzari

JCU PhD Student
Contact: justin.rizzari@my.jcu.edu.au

Justin grew up in Texas along the Gulf Coast of Mexico where his interests in the ocean began at an early age when he began surfing and fishing. After trips to the Caribbean and Central America he began to gain a keen interest in tropical marine life. He graduated from Texas A & M in Corpus Christi with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science with a concentration on marine and coastal resources. Participating in a research program in tropical marine ecology in the Caribbean and working at a coral lab in the Red Sea solidified his desire to study the marine environment, specifically coral reef associated ecosystems. He then moved to Townsville in 2011 to start a Master of Applied Science at JCU, and studied the effect of reef shark behaviour across different levels of management zones. His current PhD focuses on the effects of predators on coral reef trophic ecology, which is conducted under the supervision of Prof. Mark McCormick, Dr. Ashley Frisch, Dr. Andrew Hoey and Dr. Mark Meekan.

Jan Robinson

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jan.robinson@my.jcu.edu.au

Jan left the UK on a short expedition almost 15 years ago and still hasn’t found his way back. This may have something to do with the fact that beer tastes better in warm climates. Having completed a BSc in Marine Biology at University College of Swansea, Wales, and then a master’s degree in Applied Marine Science at the University of Plymouth, Jan joined the Royal Geographical Society Shoals of Capricorn programme and went to Seychelles. The allure of tropical seas proved irresistible and he went on to become the manager of the Fisheries Research Unit of the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA). In 10-years working at SFA, Jan developed research interests focusing on a broad spectrum of tropical fish, ranging from rabbitfish to tunas. His research included studies on the effects of fishing on reef fish spawning aggregations, the impacts of climate change on small-island developing state economies, and the effects of coral bleaching on reef fisheries. He also held numerous responsibilities with regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs) and is currently vice-chair of the Scientific Committee of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). Jan joined ARC to study for a PhD in April 2012. Under the wise guidance of Nick Graham, Josh Cinner and Glenn Almany, Jan will be focusing on how the social behaviour of reef fish influences their vulnerability to fishing.

Dominique Roche

ANU PhD Student
Contact: dominique.roche@anu.edu.au

Dom is from Montreal, Canada, where he completed a BSc in biology at McGill University. Determined to work on marine fishes, he spent part of his undergraduate years in Barbados at the Bellairs Research Institute studying the home range size and time-budget of small piscivores. Later, he completed his MSc in a joint program between McGill and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama under the supervision of Drs. Brian Leung and Mark Torchin. Here, he went from predators to parasites comparing the effects of parasites on competing species of native and introduced cichlid fishes in the Panama Canal watershed. Currently, he is completing his PhD the ANU and his research examines how unsteady water motion from waves influences locomotion and predator-prey interactions in coral reef fishes.

Liza Roger

UWA PhD Student
Contact: rogerl01@student.uwa.edu.au

Liza completed the two first years of her BSc in France, where she originally comes from, and her final year in Perth at the University of Western Australia. Liza acquired great hands-on experience while working for the Australian Institute of Marine Science (WA branch) for 3 years. She completed her Honours in 2010, comparing the shell structure of two tropical sea butterflies (pteropods) from 1963 to 2009 and the potential implications of declining aragonite saturation. Liza is currently continuing her research with a PhD at the Centre of Excellence, studying calcification and chemical composition of pteropod shells (trace elements, isotopes) for the better understanding and monitoring of the effects of Global Climate Change and Ocean Acidification on shelled pteropods.

Catalina Castro Sanguino

UQ PhD Student
Contact:c.castrosanguino@uq.edu.au

I was born in Bogotá, Colombia very far from the coast and I didn’t see the Ocean until I was 9 years old and fall in love with it. In 2003 I became a Marine Biologist and since then I have had special interest in coral reef ecosystems dynamics and its management. The effects of climate change over the resilience of these submarine environments and both the ecological and biological processes taken there drew my attention at a very early stage of my career. In 2010 I finished my masters at the Molecular Marine Biology Lab. (BIOMMAR), Universidad de los Andes, in Colombia. In my masters I explored the role of Caribbean parrotfishes as key components for the population dynamics of free-living pools of Symbiodinium. Currently, as a PhD student I am interested in understanding the contribution of herbivorous fishes and habitat complexity on the ecology of the calcified green algae Halimeda, a key ecological component of Pacific coral reefs.

Jessie Short

UWA PhD Student
Contact:shortj02@student.uwa.edu.au

Jessie grew up in Nova Scotia, Canada, where she fell in love with the ocean. She attended Dalhousie University in Halifax, where she completed a combined honours degree in marine biology and oceanography under the supervision of Dr. Anna Metaxas. After hearing tales of the wild and wonderfully untouched Ningaloo Reef, Jessie moved to Western Australia in 2011 to begin her PhD under the supervision of Prof. Malcolm McCulloch and Prof. Gary Kendrick. She is interested in how climate change will affect calcification rates of important WA reef-building species such as corals and coralline algae. She is also investigating how interactions between algal taxa will change as the ocean becomes more acidic.

Brigitte Sommer

UQ PhD Student
Contact: b.sommer@uq.edu.au

Brigitte’s research focuses on ecological dynamics and conservation of subtropical benthic reef communities of Eastern Australia in a changing climate. She quantitatively examines changes of coral and benthic communities and of their functional characteristics along a latitudinal gradient of eight degrees (24°48’S to 32°48’S) south of the Great Barrier Reef. Her research integrates aspects of ecology, statistical modelling and systematic conservation planning to provide insights into (1) spatial ecological dynamics of high-latitude coral and benthic communities along environmental gradients, (2) the mechanisms that drive their community assembly, and (3) whether existing reserve networks will fulfil conservation objectives under projected future change. Understanding the processes that govern community assembly of high-latitude reefs will prove critical to conserving them in the face of future change. Brigitte’s PhD research is supervised by Professor John Pandolfi (UQ), Dr. Maria Beger (UQ), Professor Peter Harrison (Southern Cross University) and Dr. Russ Babcock (CSIRO).

Jessica Stella

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jessica.stella@my.jcu.edu.au

Jessica grew up near Boston in the USA and became passionate about marine science after she began diving in the chilly waters of the Eastern US. She spent a year living in Bermuda undertaking a double internship as an aquarist for the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo and conducting seagrass and coral baseline surveys as part of the BREAM Programme with the Bermuda Zoological Society. She also volunteered with the Bermuda Turtle Project tagging and collecting DNA from juvenile green turtles. She then moved to Townsville to complete a BSc (Honours) at JCU in 2008 and began her PhD under the supervision of Prof. Geoffrey Jones, Dr. Morgan Pratchett and Dr. Philip Munday from JCU, and collaborations with Dr. Pat Hutchings of the Australian Museum and Dr. Elvira Poloczanska of CSIRO. Her research aims to expand our taxonomic knowledge of reef invertebrate species, examine the level of habitat specialisation exhibited by many coral associated invertebrates and also to determine ! the effects that climate change may have on invertebrate biodiversity.

Chun Hong Tan

JCU PhD Student
Contact: chunhong.tan@my.jcu.edu.au

Chun Hong (James) was born and bred in Penang, the “Pearl of the Orient” off the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia. His interest in corals and everything-underwater began when he was doing his Bachelor’s degree in Marine Biology some 8 years ago. Throughout the duration of the degree, he developed a passion in studying the biology of corals, which led him to a Master’s degree, also in Marine Biology, where he studied the gametogenesis cycle of hard corals in South China Sea in the past 3 years. James is still pursuing his passion in corals and is currently doing his Ph.D. under the supervision of Dr. Andrew Baird, Dr. Line Bay and Dr. Morgan Pratchett; exploring the correlation between environmental cues and growth and reproduction, as well as investigating the effects of stress on trade-off between these vital functions. When not working on his research project, he enjoys underwater photography, diving and socializing.

Brett Taylor

JCU PhD Student
Contact: brettmtaylor@gmail.com

Originally from the United States, Brett came to Australia from Micronesia where he spent seven years at the University of Guam Marine Laboratory working mostly in the Mariana and Caroline islands. His research interests are primarily age-based demography, community ecology and movement patterns of coral reef fishes and how these relate to fisheries management. He is currently a PhD candidate investigating life histories and patterns of community structure of exploited Indo-Pacific parrotfishes at multiple spatial scales under the supervision of Professors Howard Choat and Garry Russ.

Loic Thibaut

JCU and Pierre & Marie Curie PhD Student
Contact: loic.thibaut@my.jcu.edu.au

Loic was born and raised in France. After completing a Master degree in theoretical computer science at the University of Nancy, he worked as an IT for more than 10 years, mainly overseas. He developed a strong interest in marine ecology while working in Africa on a European Union funded fisheries management project and decided to go back to university. Today he is a PhD student at JCU and University Pierre & Marie Curie, supervised by Prof. Terry Hughes, A.Prof. Sean Connolly and Prof. Rene Galzin. His research focuses on modelling approaches to reef fish assemblages resilience using data from long term monitoring programs.

Melanie Trapon

JCU PhD Student
Contact: melanie.trapon@my.jcu.edu.au

Melanie grew up in France where her interests for marine animals started when she began scuba diving at 12 years old in the Mediterranean Sea. Subsequently, she graduated from the University of La Rochelle with a Bachelor of Science specialised in Marine Biology, and then decided it was time to ‘migrate’ to the tropics and study coral reefs. She spent two years in Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean where she went to uni and wrote her thesis on artificial coral reefs. She then moved to Townsville in 2008 to start a Master by Applied Science at JCU, and studied the effects of a crown-of-thorn outbreak on coral population in Moorea, French Polynesia. She enrolled in the Master by Research program in 2009 and upgraded into the PhD program in 2010 under the supervision of Dr. Morgan Pratchett and Dr. Andrew Baird. Her PhD project focuses on variation in population dynamics of reef-building corals along the Great Barrier Reef latitudinal gradient. Specifically, she will compare juvenile corals growth and mortality rates at different latitudes of the GBR to understand how these post-settlement processes contribute to the abundance and distribution patterns of adult corals.

Greg Torda

JCU PhD Student

Contact: Gergely.torda@my.jcu.edu.au

Greg is originally from Hungary, and came to Australia in January 2009 to start a PhD on ecological connectivity in corals, leaving behind a junior researcher position with the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. He completed his Master’s degree in Zoology at the Szent Istvan University, Hungary, and did a 2-year postgradual research and coursework program on marine ecology at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. Greg’s early research was on behavioural ecology of birds and marine mammals. Later, specialized on GIS applications, his research focused on landscape ecology, including studies on habitat connectivity, and the development and application of ecologically scaled landscape indices. His PhD study aims to obtain estimates of ecological connectivity and its temporal stochasticity for two common pocilloporid coral species on the GBR, Seriatopora hystrix and Pocillopora damicornis, by genetically characterizing new recruits at a number of locations in the Palm and Lizard Islands, and comparing these with the genetic characteristics of adult populations at a wider range of populations.

Lubna Ukani

JCU PhD Student
Contact: lubna.ukani@my.jcu.edu.au

Lubna was born and brought up in Bombay, India. She completed her BSc Honors degree in Biology at the University of Houston in the United States where she developed an interest for molecular genetics. Before moving to Australia she worked for 2 years with the Department of Molecular & Human Genetics at the Baylor college of Medicine in Houston, Texas. As a research assistant she was investigating genetic control of normal development and the mechanisms of pathogenesis involved in human neurodegenerative disease using Drosophila as a model system. Lubna then decided to pursue her interest for molecular genetics in marine organisms at James Cook University where she is currently a PhD student as a part of the Coral Genomics Group, supervised by Prof. David Miller. Her research focuses on the Characterization of DNA Methylation Systems in Acropora and other Lower Animals during development.

Martin van de Meer

JCU PhD student
Contact: martinhvandermeer@gmail.com

Martin was born in South Africa spending most of his childhood hiking, fishing and snorkelling along the east coast of the country. After completing a BSc (Hons) in Zoology from The University of the Witwatersrand, he spent the next few years searching for new and exciting projects. Whilst backpacking through Australia, he was offered a MSc (research) at James Cook University looking at the extinction risk of endemic species living on the edge at Elizabeth/Middleton Reefs and Lord Howe/Norfolk Islands. This interesting work saw him upgrade at the end of 2010 to a PhD with full scholarship and tuition waiver under the supervision of Lynne van Herwerden, Geoffrey Jones, Jean-Paul Hobbs and Morgan Pratchett. He has been awarded multiple grants and collaborates widely with various Marine Park managers, Universities and government organisations.

Jeroen van de Water

JCU PhD Student
Contact: jeroen.vandewater@my.jcu.edu.au

My background: Since I was a little boy I have always been interested in animals/nature and I was always attracted to the water. It was no surprise that I decided to study Biology and I finished my BSc cum laude at Utrecht University, The Netherlands in 2005. However, my interest shifted towards the molecular cell biology and I continued my education with a MSc in Biomolecular Sciences (graduated cum laude in 2007) at Utrecht University. In the following 2.5 years, I worked as a pre-doctoral research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School in Boston, United States of America on the development of stem cell-based brain cancer therapies. But after spending so many years being locked up in the lab, I wanted to do something more exciting and in the field where my heart truly lies: Marine Biology. Current situation: James Cook University gave me that opportunity by providing me with a scholarship and I joined JCU in July 2010. Currently, I am doing my PhD with Bette Willis and Bill Leggat from JCU, and Madeleine van Oppen and David Bourne from AIMS. My research focuses on the immune system of scleractinian corals and the effect that environmental and physiological factors have on the ability of corals to fight disease. Thesis title: Molecular mechanisms of immunity in scleractinian corals and the influence of environmental factors on coral immuno-competence

Peter Waldie

JCU PhD Student
Contact: peter.waldie@my.jcu.edu.au

Peter became interested in coral reef ecology when he realised it held the opportunity for perpetual tropical holidaying. He is a keen diver, spearo and fisherman. He completed his BMarSt (Honours) at The University of Queensland in 2009, investigating the role of cleaner wrasse on client fish assemblages at Lizard Island. Since then he has endeavoured to spend as much time as possible in the water. In 2012, Peter commenced his PhD candidature under the supervision of Glenn Almany, Josh Cinner, Richard Hamilton and John Pandolfi. His work is focused on commercially important grouper spawning aggregations in Papua New Guinea – investigating relevant biological spatial scales for management (e.g. larval dispersal and home range). He is particularly interested in integrating contemporary management programs into existing customary marine tenure systems.

Patricia Warner

JCU PhD Student
Contact: patricia.warner@my.jcu.edu.au

Patricia grew up fishing and diving on the east coast of Florida (USA), where she was born and raised in Stuart. After completing a dual BSc in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies at Tulane University in New Orleans, she spent a year teaching field marine science in the Florida Keys. She later worked for an environmental consultant, involved in a diverse range of marine projects from sea turtle nesting surveys to plankton community studies. In February 2007, Patricia started postgraduate coursework at James Cook University and was soon wooed into the world of corals. She began research with Professor Bette Willis in September, and will officially commence her PhD in 2008. Patricia’s current work under the supervision of Prof. Willis and Dr. Madeleine van Oppen (AIMS) employs molecular techniques to investigate the reproductive ecology and population connectivity of the brooding coral Seriatopora hystrix.

Justin Q. Welsh

JCU PhD Student
Contact: justin.q.welsh@gmail.com

Justin was born in Canada, and after spending a significant amount of time diving in the Caribbean, he move to Australia to pursue a career in marine biology at James Cook University. After completing his BSc Honours degree in 2010, he started working on his PhD under the supervision of Prof. David Bellwood. Justin’s work focuses on the spatial ecology of coral reef fishes, with the majority of his research aimed at understanding the implications of the spatial biology of herbivorous fishes. Justin uses both passive and active acoustic telemetry to tack individual fish and evaluate their home ranging behaviour, as well as the ecological implications of their movements on coral reefs. In his spare time, he enjoys living an active lifestyle, spending a great deal of time rock-climbing, hiking and swimming.

Amelia Wenger

JCU PhD Student
Contact: amelia.wenger@my.jcu.edu.au

Amelia grew up in Washington, D.C., far away from coral reefs. She completed her B.A. in Biology and French at Barnard College of Columbia University in New York. After commuting three hours each day to the Coney Island Aquarium, Amelia decided it was time for a move closer to marine life. She moved to Australia in 2008 and completed a graduate diploma in research methods at JCU. Amelia is now completing her PhD under the supervision of Dr. Geoffrey Jones, Dr. Mark McCormick and Dr. Frederieke Kroon (CSIRO). Her work focuses on the direct effects of suspended sediment on early life history stages of coral reef fish, with a particular interest in establishing sediment thresholds. Amelia also works part time for the Catchment to Reef Research Group in the Centre for Tropical Water and Aquatic Ecosystem Research. Her work there involves monitoring the frequency and the extent of flood plumes in the GBR in order to determine sites that are at risk to water quality changes. In her free time Amelia plays soccer, rock climbs, and swims.

Wiebke Wessels

JCU PhD Student
Contact: wiebke.wessels@my.jcu.edu.au

Wiebke was born and raised in Hannover, Germany. Very early she decided that she wants to work as a marine biologist. For her undergraduate studies, Wiebke therefore moved to Bremen to study Biology with a focus on Marine Biology. She conducted the research for her Bachelor Thesis on the oxygen consumption rates in gill tissue of the Ocean quahog Arctica islandica under hypoxia at the Alfred-Wegener-Institute in Bremerhaven. While studying in France for a year duing high school, she learnt to enjoy living abroad. So after graduating from the University of Bremen, Wiebke took the chance to complete the first year of her Master Studies in Marine Biology at the Ocean University of China in Qingdao. Following her year in China, Wiebke continued her studies at the University of Bremen and started her Master Thesis on gene expression patterns in the Ocean quahog Arctica islandica under hypoxia/anoxia and reoxygenation at the Institute of Clinical Molecular Biology in Kiel.
During her volunteer work for coral spawning, she became aware of and interested in the different developmental strategies of corals at the GBR. In 2012 Wiebke started her PhD under the supervision of Dr David Miller focussing on transcriptomic analysis of hard and soft coral developement.

Erika Woolsey

JCU PhD Student
Contact: erika.woolsey@my.jcu.edu.au

Erika grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and attended Duke University in North Carolina, where she studied biology and art history. She studied abroad in Australia and Bermuda, where she developed her interest in coral reefs. Erika received her Masters of Applied Science from the University of Sydney under the supervision of Prof. Maria Byrne and is now conducting her PhD at James Cook University under the supervision of Dr. Andrew Baird and Dr. Sally Keith. She is interested in how climate change will affect patterns of coral biogeography. Specifically, she wants to know how temperature and life history influence latitudinal distribution of corals on the Great Barrier Reef and whether thermal tolerance of early life stages varies between thermally distinct regions.