Hugo Harrison

Dr. Hugo Harrison is a molecular ecologist with an interest in coral reefs, notably movement ecology of coral reef organisms. His main research is focused on understanding patterns of larval connectivity in coral reef fish, and its relevance to the design and effectiveness of marine protected areas.

Dr. Harrison received his doctoral degree cum laude in Marine Biology from James Cook University in Australia and the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etude in France in 2014. As part of his thesis, Dr. Harrison and colleagues were the first to apply a forensic DNA profiling approach to track the dispersal pathways of fish larvae throughout a network of marine reserves on Australia’s Great Barrier Reefs. Their study provides the first conclusive evidence that larval supply from marine reserves generates important recruitment subsidies to both fished and protected areas.

His expertise lies in combining field-based research with advances in molecular genetics to investigate dispersal and connectivity in coral reef seascapes, which are fundamental to the persistence and effective management of reef ecosystems globally. In 2016, he was awarded a prestigious ARC Discovery Research Fellowship (DECRA) to identify “Critical regions and network connectivity of coral reef ecosystems”.

He now leads a diverse research portfolio on 'Adaptive Seascapes' to investigate coral reefs' adaptive potential to climate change. His research interests span genomics and population genetics, biophysical and metapopulation modelling, as well as species life-history and ecosystem dynamics.