Researchers
Students
Alumni
ManagementLaura Velasquez Jimenez
PhD candidate
James Cook University
laura.velasquezjimenez@my.jcu.edu.au
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
Laura was born in Bogota, Colombia where she completed her undergraduate degree in ecology at Javeriana University in 2013. For her undergraduate thesis, Laura worked with population structure and dynamics of barnacles in Malpelo Island. After finishing her undergraduate degree, Laura worked with international cooperation in environmental governance. In 2016, Laura moved to Australia to do a Master of Marine Biology and Ecology at JCU. For her minor project, under the supervision of Mark McCormick and Maria del Mar Palacios, Laura evaluated the effect of mesopredator release on the behaviour of Pseudochromis fuscus.
Laura is currently completing a PhD under the supervision of Mark McCormick (JCU), Geoffrey Jones (JCU) and Sophie Nedelec (University of Exeter). She aims to assess the effect of anthropogenic noise on the behaviour and physiology of coral reef fish and evaluate their potential for habituation. Laura will conduct a series of lab and field experiments, exposing fish to anthropogenic noise and recording the behavioural and physiological responses of individuals.
Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (Coral CoE) Professor Terry Hughes was recently awarded an honorary Doctor in Science from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. Pr
Scientists say coral reefs on a tiny island in the South Pacific have shown incredible resilience and recovery from a recent but very severe disturbance: a volcanic eruption that created a new island.
A flotilla of Vietnamese fishing boats with crews suffering in harsh conditions is stripping Pacific coral reefs of seafood as the poaching escalates to become an international human rights and securi
In a study published today, scientists report that the long-term success of clownfish depends more on living in a good neighbourhood than it does on good genes. The natural home of the clownfish is
Abstract: I will talk about what we have learned from studying symbioses in algae and corals. Origin of the photosynthetic organelle in algae led to the major rewiring of host metabolic pathw
Abstract: Because coastal fisheries have been a major provider of food and economic growth in modern human history, the inherent characteristics of fish populations have been studied by researchers f
Abstract Climate change is the fastest-growing global threat to the world's natural and cultural heritage. No systematic approach to assess climate vulnerability of protected areas and their communit
Abstract: This presentation will provide an updated prognosis of the overgrazing collapse of kelp beds driven by the range-extending sea urchin (Centrostephanus rodgersii) and outline antidotes cur
Abstract: Disturbances are fundamental to structuring many ecosystems, yet climate-driven alterations to disturbance regimes may prevent recovery in many biomes. Coral reefs of the Great Barrier Reef
Abstract: Outbreaks of the corallivorous Crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS; Acanthaster cf. solaris) have been responsible for 40% of the decline in coral cover on the GBR over the last 35 years. With
Abstract: Complex interdependencies between social and ecological dynamics underpin many important environmental problems. To account for these complex dynamics, over the past several years my collea
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
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