Investigate the intricate relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem function using integrated and standardized approaches. This research advances understanding of mechanistic processes, service provision, and economic valuation, providing essential insights for effective ecosystem management.
Incubation chambers: In tandem with our work with ARMS (see Research Area 4 for more details), we are working to determine the role of biodiversity in nutrient and carbon cycling, as well as rates of reef calcification. Settlement panels of different types (e.g. terra cotta tiles, cement tiles, and entire ARMS units) are placed in incubation chambers for set periods of time. By isolating these panels from the rest of the reef ecosystem and monitoring the chamber’s water chemistry, we are able to better understand the role of smaller organisms in energy cycling on a reef. In addition, these chambers allow us to detangle the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem function by shedding light on the complex and obscure interactions between various species. Understanding the differences in nutrient cycling of one settlement panel with high biodiversity vs. one with low biodiversity sheds light on important ecological questions such as how a reef is likely to respond to chronic or acute stressors such as climate change or pollution events. Importantly, these incubations are conducted both in the field, as well as in situ to provide the more complete picture.
Metagenomics and Transcriptomics: We are interested in using high-throughput sequencing technologies and bioinformatics tools to link biodiversity with ecosystem function. One way we are addressing this is through the use of metagenomics. Microbes play an extremely important role in biodiversity, and we continue to investigate the role microbes play in helping to maintain overall biodiversity and ecosystem management, and if it is possible to use metagenomics as a rapid and efficient way to determine the overall ecosystem health and functioning of a given area. On a related note, we aim to conduct research on transcriptomics of various reef organisms in order to understand how changes in overall biodiversity or ecosystem functioning may affect an individual species. In essence, we want to better understand how organisms and microbial communities respond at the molecular level to habitat degradation and environmental stressors.
/EXPLORE OUR RESEARCH PROJECTS
Driving Marine Conservation through Strategic Collaborations
Developing an effective marine eDNA monitoring tool for early warning and detection of the corallivorous crown-of-thorns (CoTS) seastar Acanthaster spp.
