About
11
Publications
31,081
Reads
How we measure 'reads'
A 'read' is counted each time someone views a publication summary (such as the title, abstract, and list of authors), clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the full-text. Learn more
1,665
Citations
Introduction
My research focuses on understanding how biophysical oceanographic dynamics affect the distribution, connectivity, and fitness of marine organisms and subsequently the structure of
marine communities.
Currently, my two core projects are (1) evaluating various physical and biological factors as potential structuring forces for cryptic coral-associated reef communities over spatial and temporal scales, and (2) managing the Hawai‘i Monitoring and Reporting Collaborative’s coral reef database and utilizing these data to investigate correlations between spatial variation in ecological indicators and oceanographic parameters as well as anthropogenic inputs to inform management actions as part of the Sustainable Hawai‘i Initiative.
Current institution
Publications
Publications (11)
Early detection of nuisance species is crucial for managing threatened ecosystems and preventing widespread establishment. Environmental DNA (eDNA) data can increase the sensitivity of biomonitoring programs, often at minimal cost and effort. However, eDNA analyses are prone to errors that can complicate their use in management frameworks. To addre...
Herbivore management is an important tool for resilience-based approaches to coral reef conservation, and evidence-based science is needed to enact successful management. We synthesized data from multiple monitoring programs in Hawai‘i to measure herbivore biomass and benthic condition over a 10-year period preceding any major coral bleaching. We a...
Many marine animals have a biphasic life cycle in which demersal adults spawn pelagic larvae with high dispersal potential. An understanding of the spatial and temporal patterns of larval dispersal is critical for describing connectivity and local retention. Existing tools in oceanography, genetics, and ecology can each reveal only part of the over...
Novel methodologies now make it possible to track the complete geographical movements of seafood species from reproduction to human consumption. Doing so will better inform consumers and assist resource managers in matching fisheries and conservation policies with natural borders and pathways, including stock boundaries, networks of marine protecte...
Protection mutualists display territorial behaviors, which also act as protective services for their host species. These territorial behaviors may inhibit the ability of other organisms to use the habitat provided by the host species. Coral guard crabs (Trapeziidae) and snapping shrimps (Alpheidae) form a guild of protection mutualists that aggress...
To combat the climate crisis, we need rapid, unprecedented social change. Scientists can play a lead role by signaling to society that we recognize the critical importance of redesigning our business-as-usual approach to research conferences. Traditional research conferences have high CO 2 emissions as well as significant financial and travel time...
The extent to which populations persist under environmental stress depends on the reproductive output of individuals that survive the stress. In coral systems, corals bleach in response to stress from elevated water temperature. However, little is known of the extent to which thermal stress impairs the reproductive capacity of the survivors over th...
Coral colonies regularly suffer tissue damage from natural and anthropogenic sources. The resultant wounds can decrease colony fitness and act as sources of infection or algal overgrowth. By systematically breaking branches on 54 Pocillopora meandrina colonies and following in situ tissue regeneration (April–August 2017), variation in the wound rec...
Most of the diversity on coral reefs is in the cryptofauna, the hidden organisms that inhabit the interstitial spaces of corals and other habitat-forming benthos. However, little is known about the patterns and drivers of diversity in cryptofauna. We investigated how the cryptofaunal community associated with the branching coral Pocillopora meandri...
Climate change can increase the risk of conditions that exceed human thermoregulatory capacity. Although numerous studies report increased mortality associated with extreme heat events, quantifying the global risk of heat-related mortality remains challenging due to a lack of comparable data on heat-related deaths. Here we conducted a global analys...
