Students & Postdocs: research interests

I am interested in predicting effects of increased climate variability on the abundance and spatial population structure of coastal marine fishes. My doctoral research may take the form of incorporating spatially-explicit demographic traits, dispersal capabilities, and selection pressures into the prediction of population connectivity patterns and range dynamics. The following are some of the general research questions I aspire to address with my work:
In what way will changes in the periodicity and magnitude of upwelling events on intra-annual to inter-decadal timescales affect the fitness of species groups with similar life histories? How will artificial selection pressures imposed by fishing interact with climate change to direct trends in life-history evolution? What trends in community composition may occur with these changing selection pressures? How will changes in timing and duration of seasonal productivity cycles affect propagule survivorship? Will spatial management goals be confounded?

I was fortunate to grow up with access to a wealth of outdoor environments – deciduous forests, streams, sandy beaches, and wetlands – generating my interest in the natural world. I benefitted from teachers whose enthusiasm for biology inspired me. I received my BS in Evolution and Ecology from The Ohio State University in 2008. As an undergraduate I studied the diversity and biogeography of deep-ocean sea anemones with Dr. Meg Daly, whom I credit for sparking my interest in marine science. Alongside researcher Kristin Stanford, I had the opportunity to study the endangered Lake Erie water snake (Nerodia sipedon insularum) at Stone Laboratory, gaining valuable experience in field ecology and conservation biology. Following graduation I was a student fellow at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, working with Dr. Scott Gallager on benthic community structure at Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and allowing me to communicate closely with members of the commercial fishing community.

I am currently a PhD student in the Joint Doctoral Program in Ecology at the University of California, Davis and San Diego State University (advised at SDSU by Dr. Kevin Hovel). Broadly, I am interested in the community ecology of nearshore marine ecosystems. My doctoral research will seek to understand how seagrasses and their associated communities respond to anthropogenic stressors. More specifically, I am interested in the potential for alternative stable states in seagrass ecosystems. Seagrasses are unique as the only group of true marine angiosperms. They are a foundational species, supporting diverse communities by increasing primary productivity and provisioning complex habitat structure. Seagrass ecosystems are fascinating in their own right, but also provide invaluable services to humans, including sediment stabilization, nutrient cycling, removal of water contaminants, support of fisheries, and carbon sequestration. However, seagrasses are in decline worldwide due to human activities. My research will increase the understanding of seagrass community dynamics, ecosystem thresholds, disturbance feedbacks, and ecosystem responses to perturbations (e.g., stability and resiliency). I will use a combination of field work, laboratory experiments, and mathematical modeling to answer my research questions.