Marine Biology & Aquaculture


Tom Lloyd

Tom Lloyd

Alys Young

Alys Young

William Arlidge

William Arlidge

Anna Wilson

Anna Wilson

Kelly Condon

Kelly Condon

Takahiro Shimada

Takahiro Shimada

Peter Doll

Peter Doll

Jan Strugnell

Jan Strugnell

Biodiversity of the reef-building corals of Ningaloo Reef and the Indian Ocean (Old ID 27907)
Peter Cowman - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
01 Feb 2023 - 31 Dec 2024
Document the species richness of the coral fauna of Ningaloo with a focus on identifying species endemic to the region or vulnerable to threats due to low abundance or limited distributions.
Biodiversity of the reef-building corals of Ningaloo Reef and the Indian Ocean (Old ID 27907)
Tom Bridge - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
01 Feb 2023 - 31 Dec 2024
Document the species richness of the coral fauna of Ningaloo with a focus on identifying species endemic to the region or vulnerable to threats due to low abundance or limited distributions.
Can the epaulette shark 'outwalk' climate change
Naomi Gardiner - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
20 Apr 2024 - 20 Apr 2025
By simulating various ocean warming conditions within aquarium settings, I have been using cross-disciplinary tools in physiology, genetics, and biomechanics as a proverbial crystal ball to understanding how geographically distinct populations of epaulette sharks will respond to both chronic and acute ocean warming. My project aims to examine the mechanistic underpinnings of physiological performance through epigenetics as it relates to metabolism, and how genes are up/down regulated to influence these performance biomarkers under future warming scenarios across the Great Barrier Reef. If we can gain a fundamental understanding of the performance mechanisms that contribute to resilience and susceptibility of shark and ray species to climate change stressors, we can utilize findings of this research on the epaulette shark as a comparative baseline for other similar species to allow for enhanced conservation measures.
NESP 4.24 - Towards assessing the values of reefs in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria
In this project, existing data and knowledge on reefs in the Gulf of Carpentaria Marine Park and surrounding waters will be compiled and anaysed with the aim of identifying knowledge gaps and providing recommendations for future research priorities. The Gulf of Carpentaria Marine Park, adjacent to the Wellesley Islands, was only recently declared, in 2013. The marine park has National Park and Special Purpose (Trawl) zones that support commercial prawn fisheries, and it is culturally important for the Lardil, Yangkaal, Kaiadlit, and Gangalidda people who have responsibilities for sea country there. The marine park is due for renewal by 2028. The coral reefs in this area were only recently discovered, in the early 2000s, and they remain poorly studies. Only a few reefs have been assessed ecologically, and even then, only briefly. The main source of ecological data is from a citizen science program, Reef Life Survey, where volunteer divers are trained to conduct visual surveys. Using this data, and through meetings/workshops with relevant scientific, management, industry and Indigenous authorities, we will examine what is known about the reefs in this area and their values.
Water flow ecology: How reef structure and water flow shape the world of fishes (Old ID 27855)
David Bellwood - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
01 Apr 2023 - 31 Mar 2026
This project aims to understand how coral reef fishes interact with their whole environment. Currently, we have some understanding of how fishes interact with the 3D reef, but not the water which flows around it. I will explore how water flow changes around a complex reef and how fishes use this flow. This project will quantify water flow on a biologically relevant scale, a scale which is often overlooked. It will provide a crucial stepping stone to further ecological research on coral reefs.
Spatially integrated Portfolio Approach to support a portfolio of livelihoods. (Old ID 27105)
The Integrated Livelihoods Approach (ILA) provides an approach to diagnose and help navigate interrelated and cumulative impacts, trade-offs and co-benefits of interacting livelihood activities occurring in spatially defined coastal areas. Participatory and interdisciplinary research, integrated governance, negotiation, trust-building, ongoing conflict management, and cross-sectoral and political engagement are central to the ILA. This project will establish the mechanisms for achieving the strengthened networks, integrated governance and policy, and improved planning required to implement an ILA in Western Province, Solomon Islands, with the potential to scale-up to other locations.
Barratta Creek Biodiversity Fund (Old ID 20785)
Nathan Waltham - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
01 Feb 2013 - 30 Jun 2017
Barratta Creek is one of the better condition creeks remaining on the Burdekin floodplain but its health is declining, due to the pressures of surrounding development and invasive weeks. This project will study the benefits to the health of the creek of controlling aquatic weeds that infest the system and improving water quality through the establishment of artificial wetlands to treat runoff from cane farms.
Tackling long-term food allergy among children to recurrent tropical allergens (Old ID 21737)
Ludwig Lopata - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
01 Jul 2014 - 31 Dec 2019
The aim of this research is to study the reactivity of allergens found in commonly consumed tropical foods by Australian children, for the development of improved allergy point-of-care diagnostic platforms for paediatric allergy in the tropics.
Coral Reef Health in the Coral Sea Marine Park (Old ID 24771)
Tom Bridge - Marine Biology & Aquaculture
05 Mar 2018 - 05 Jul 2020
A number of coral reefs occur in the Australian Marine Parks estate, particularly within the Coral Sea Marine Park (CSMP). In 2016 and 2017, coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and CSMP were impacted by a mass global coral bleaching event. Regular surveys of coral bleaching and associated reef health in the CSMP are needed to inform future marine park management over the next three years to either enable comparisons against historical baselines where bleaching has previously occurred, or set new baselines for areas that aren’t bleached but may be in the future.
GBRF EOI Island Monitoring (Old ID 27698)
The more than 1000 islands and cays in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) World Heritage Area (GBRMPA spatial data, 2019) support a diverse range of ecological, cultural and economic values. Many are threatened by climate change, but monitoring and management is difficult as many cays are remote and difficult to access. This project will develop and implement an efficient drone-based hierarchical monitoring protocol based on the recognition and use of ‘natural ground control points’ that will enable more rapid and resource efficient capture of reef island status to inform management decisions.
Reseracher: Ludwig Lopata (Professor, Personal Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2014
Start Date: 01 Jan 2014
Reseracher: Ludwig Lopata (Professor, Personal Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2012
Reseracher: Ludwig Lopata (Professor, Personal Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2009
Reseracher: Ludwig Lopata (Professor, Personal Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2008
Start Date: 01 Jan 2008
Reseracher: Simon Das (Research Fellow - Grouper Nutrition)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2025
End Date: 01 Jan 2025
Start Date: 02 Mar 2026
Reseracher: Gemma Galbraith (AIMS@JCU Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Reef Connectivity)
Start Date: 19 Mar 2026
Start Date: 14 Jan 2026