Kelp Forest Ecologist
Research program
Following change from coast to cell.
Community Ecology
Scientific diving, long-term surveys, field experiments, and environmental sensors reveal how species interactions and climate reshape coastal communities.
01 · Reef
Molecular Ecology
eDNA, targeted assays, metabarcoding, and metagenomics illuminate cryptic biodiversity and the functional potential of reef microbiomes.
03 · Microbe
My research moves deliberately across levels of organization—from reef communities and field experiments to molecules, microbes, and predictive models.
Chemical Ecology
Natural-products chemistry, nontargeted metabolomics, and bioassays uncover how organisms alter the chemical landscape around them.
02 · Molecule
Restoration & Prediction
Experiments and statistical models identify the mechanisms that limit kelp recovery and help guide restoration under a changing climate.
04 · Recovery
Inside the research
Questions, tools, and ecological connections.
Each part of my research program addresses a different layer of coastal change. Together, they connect physical conditions, species interactions, reef chemistry, microbial processes, and ecosystem recovery.
01 · Community ecology
Why do kelp forests shift to turf-dominated reefs?
The larger goal: determine which processes initiate ecological change, which feedbacks reinforce it, and whether altered reefs remain capable of returning to kelp forest.
I examine how ocean warming, physical disturbance, herbivory, invasive species, and competition interact to reorganize temperate reefs. Long-term surveys reveal where and when communities change, while field experiments help identify the mechanisms responsible.
Scientific diving
Environmental Sensors
Field Experiments
Long-term Field Surveys
Modeling
02 · Chemical ecology
How does chemistry mediate competition and recovery?
Organisms constantly release and transform chemicals, yet these interactions remain largely invisible in most ecological studies. I use natural-products chemistry and nontargeted metabolomics to characterize molecules found in seawater, algal tissues, and chemical exudates.
Laboratory bioassays then test whether these complex chemical mixtures influence survival, performance, or competitive interactions. Bioassay-guided fractionation helps move from ecological pattern toward the molecules responsible.
LC-MS/MS
Metabolomics
Fractionation
Solid Phase Extraction
Bioassays
03 · Molecular ecology
What biological diversity is hidden from view?
I use environmental DNA to detect species, document cryptic diversity, and examine communities that are difficult to observe directly. Targeted assays answer focused questions about individual taxa, while metabarcoding and long-read sequencing reveal broader patterns of diversity.
Metagenomics and other long-range sequencing add a functional dimension, allowing me to ask how reef microbial communities—and their biochemical capabilities—change as kelp forests decline.
eDNA
qPCR & ddPCR
Metabarcoding
Metagenmoics
Pac-Bio
04 · Restoration & Prediction
Where can restoration overcome ecological barriers?
Successful restoration requires more than adding kelp to the ocean. I combine experiments, habitat information, environmental data, and statistical models to identify sites where kelp can establish, survive, and persist.
This work connects fundamental ecology to management: diagnosing barriers to recovery, evaluating the tolerance of kelp populations, and translating ecological evidence into practical restoration decisions
Thermal Tolerence
Habitat Suitability
Field Validation
Predictive Modeling
Restoration Trials