Dr Mariana Fuentes

Super Science Fellow

ARC Super Science Fellow, James Cook University (2010-2013) Research Interests Publications online Select Publications Full Curriculum Vitae Contact details http://marianafuentes.com/

Research Interests

My broad scientific interest lies in informing the conservation and management of threatened marine mega-fauna in a changing climate. For this I use a range of approaches including spatial risk assessments and systematic conservation and management planning. Most of my research to date has focused on using ecological and biological data to improve the management of marine mega-fauna, especially sea turtles, as climate change progresses. My work draws together a wide range of disciplines (including ecology, biology, geology, conservation policy, and climate modelling) and I often work closely with various stakeholders on interdisciplinary research topics and management issues. Increasingly my research is moving beyond the case study approach towards a 'big picture', where I aim to provide decision support tools to aid managers to prioritize their efforts and make informed decisions about the conservation of marine mega-fauna in the face of climate change. During my PhD, I investigated the vulnerability of the northern Great Barrier Reef (nGBR) green turtle population to climate change. One of the outcomes was the development of a systematic and comprehensive framework to assess how multiple climatic processes will affect sea turtle nesting grounds at a population scale. This framework was the first to asses systematically how sea turtle nesting grounds will be affected by multiple climatic processes and provided a new direction for future research I recently started as an ARC Super Science postdoctoral fellow in Program 6 (Conservation Planning for a Sustainable Future) where I aim to develop systematic priorities for the management of marine mega-fauna to increase their resilience to climate change.

Publications online

Select Publications

• Fuentes MMPB, Cleguer  C, Liebsch N, Bedford G, Amber D, Hankin C, Maccarthy P, Shimada T, Whap T, Marsh H (in press) Adapting dugong catching techniques to different cultural and environmental settings. Marine Mammal Science.
• Fuentes MMPB, Fish M, Maynard J (in press) Management strategies to mitigate the impacts of climate change on sea turtle’s terrestrial reproductive phase. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change. DOI 10.1007/s11027-011-9308-8
• Fuentes MMPB, Bateman B, Hamann M (in press). Relationship between tropical cyclones and distribution of sea turtle nesting grounds. Biogeography. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2699.2011.02541.x
• Fuentes MMPB, Limpus CJ, Hamann M (2011). Vulnerability of sea turtle nesting grounds to climate change. Global Change Biology, 17, 140-153.
• Fuentes MMPB, Cinner JE (2010) Using expert opinion to prioritize impacts of climate change on sea turtles' nesting grounds. Journal of Environmental Management, 91, 2511-2518
• Fuentes MMPB, Abbs D (2010) Effects of projected changes in tropical cyclone frequency on sea turtles. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 412, 283-292.
• Fuentes MMPB, Hamann M and Limpus CJ (2010). Past, current and future thermal profiles for green turtle nesting grounds: implications from climate change. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 383, 56-64.
• Fuentes MMPB, Limpus CJ, Hamann M, Dawson J (2010). Potential impacts of projected sea level rise to sea turtle rookeries. Aquatic conservation: marine and freshwater ecosystems, 20, 132-139. 
• Fuentes MMPB, Dawson J, Smithers S, Limpus CJ, Hamann M (2010). Sedimentological characteristics of key sea turtle rookeries: potential implications under projected climate change. Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 6, 464-473.
• Fuentes MMPB, Hamann M (2009). A rebuttal to the claim natural beaches confer fitness benefits to nesting marine turtles. Biology letters, 5, 266-267.
• Cinner JE, Fuentes MMPB, Randriamahazo H (2009). Exploring social resilience in Madagascar’s marine protected areas. Ecology and Society 14 (1), 41.
• Fuentes MMPB, Maynard JA, Guinea M, Bell IP, Werdell PJ, Hamann M (2009). Proxy indicators of sand temperature help project impacts of global warming on sea turtles. Endangered Species Research Journal 9, 33-40.
• Fuentes MMPB, Lawler IR, Gyuris E (2006). Dietary preferences of juvenile green turtles (Chelonia mydas) on a tropical reef flat at green island, Queensland, Australia. Wildlife Research 32, 671-678. I

Contact details

email: Mariana.Fuentes@jcu.edu.au
Phone: 61 7 4781 5270