Researchers
Students
Alumni
ManagementJessica Stella
PhD candidate
James Cook University
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
James Cook University Townsville
Queensland 4811 Australia
Phone: 61 7 4781 4000
Email: info@coralcoe.org.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.
New research reveals marine heatwaves are a much bigger threat to coral reefs than previously thought, with effects that go beyond coral bleaching. In the study, scientists show for the first time th
The world’s largest coordinated study of coral reefs identifies just where and how to save coral reefs across the Indo-Pacific.More than 80 scientists, including an Australian team from the ARC
A group of Australian scientists has created the world’s first computer model that can accurately predict the movements of baby coral trout across the Great Barrier Reef.The study confirms the i
Being a fussy eater is a problem for reef fish who seek refuge from climate change on deeper reefs. But, scientists discovered, the coral that these fussy fish eat can support them.The study was l
Abstract: Coral reef restoration is gaining momentum globally in response to the threat of climate change and associated coral bleaching. In Australia, as part of the Reef Restoration and Adaptatio
Abstract:Developing global environmental policies, and implementing these at a local level has proven extremely challenging. I will present research using ethnographic techniques and multi-level
Abstract: Recurrent bleaching events since the early 1980’s have led to enduring ecosystems changes throughout the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea and the increasing frequency and intensity of
Abstract: Conservation relies largely on the ability to influence behaviours and ensure rule adherence. Yet, noncompliance in conservation contexts is common. For instance, poaching regularly neg
AbstractProjected near-future ocean CO2 levels alter behaviours that affect survival, such as predator escape and foraging, in marine invertebrates. However, the mechanisms responsible for these e
Abstract:The long-standing paradigm that ecology and evolution play out on different timescales is increasingly challenged by recent studies that show real-time interaction of the two. Similarly t
Abstract: The declining condition of many habitats in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area means marine park managers have to take a different approach to management. Managers can no longer rely
Abstract: Photosymbiosis is the main driver of reef development because it enhances calcification rates, thereby allowing corals to grow in oligotrophic environments. The reefal systems of the Palae
Partner Research Institutions
ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
James Cook University Townsville
Queensland 4811 Australia
Phone: 61 7 4781 4000
Email: info@coralcoe.org.au