My recent work as a postdoctoral scientist at the University of Florida (UF)/IFAS Nature Coast Biological Station integrated and synthesized responses of estuarine fisheries populations, benthic organisms, and primary producers to changes in water quality in the northern Gulf of Mexico. This work is part of a large collaboration with investigators from the UF Center for Coastal Solutions, UF/IFAS Nature Coast Biological Station, Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Commission, and Florida Sea Grant. See Recent Publications.
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Recovery of megaherbivore populations after decades or centuries of low abundance is occurring in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems due to long-term conservation efforts. Recovery of green turtles (Chelonia mydas), marine megaherbivores that consume seagrasses, is resulting in dramatic ecosystem-wide changes as seagrass meadows are returned to a natural grazed state. My research uses an ecosystem-based approach to evaluate the grazing dynamics and foraging behavior of green turtles in tropical and temperate seagrass ecosystems, and the impacts of increased grazing pressure on the productivity and function of seagrass communities. This work has advanced our understanding of the ecological role of marine megaherbivores in plant systems, and has provided tools to assess the sustainability of increased grazing pressure and its effects on ecosystem function. This work continues to be a result of an interdisciplinary collaboration with the UF Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research, National Park Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission, Bermuda Zoological Society, and University of the Virgin Islands. See Recent Publications.
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Conducting species status assessments that integrate measures of abundance and population demographics is critical to effective management of natural resources in a changing world. As a 2021 Scientists in Parks Fellow with the Ecological Society of America, I collaborated with the National Park Service (NPS) at Buck Island Reef National Monument (BUIS) in the U.S. Virgin Islands to assess abundance and reproductive success of the critically endangered hawksbill turtle nesting population. This study provided a foundation for future modeling of demographic parameters and vital rates for hawksbill populations in the park and Caribbean-wide. I also drafted condition assessments for the park's sea turtle populations (nesting and foraging) and seagrass ecosystems, as part of the NPS Natural Resource Condition Assessment Program. See Recent Publications.
Incorporating status assessments into recovery plans is also integral to effective resource management. As a recent postdoctoral associate with NPS (Dry Tortugas) and the UF Department of Biology, I drafted the Coral Reef Restoration Plan / Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement and the Sea Turtle Management Plan for Dry Tortugas National Park. See Recent Publications. |
Sargassum is a free-floating marine algae that provides developmental habitat for a variety of marine organisms, including several commercial fishery species, endemics, and endangered species. Pelagic Sargassum formations may also offer a thermal advantage to associated fauna, potentially increasing growth rates and productivity. As visiting scientists on the Greenpeace Pole to Pole Expedition to the Sargasso Sea, both myself and colleague, Nerine Constant, evaluated the thermal properties of pelagic Sargassum formations to determine whether they provide a warmer environment than open water. Creating detailed thermal profiles of Sargassum formations will improve our understanding of the importance of their thermal micro-climates, and provide a foundation for modeling the impacts of climate change on the viability of this habitat for associated fauna. See Recent Publications.
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