Accepted Student Presentations

Below is a list of accepted student presentations. Presentations can be viewed HERE (accessible only to registered members, beginning on 11/16). 

BIOGEOCHEMISTRY

Spatial and Temporal Variability of CO2 Flux in Galveston Bay, Texas

Larissa Marie Dias; Xinping Hu. 

Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

Are Ecosystem Functions Fully Recovered in Two 30-year-old Constructed Marshes? 

Taylor C. Ledford; Behzad Mortazavi; Corianne Tatariw; Sommer F. Starr; Erin Smyth; Lora Simpson; Abigail Griffin Wood; Julia A. Cherry 

The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487

Exploring Light Dependence of Sulfide Oxidizing Microbial Communities in SETX Coastal Marshes

Jordan Denis Snowden; Matthew Hoch

Lamar University, Beaumont, TX 77705

ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION

Oyster Resource Zones in Coastal Louisiana: Defining Oyster Resource Zones for Restoration, Fisheries, and Aquaculture

Lauren Michelle Swam¹; Megan La Peyre^1,2; Brady Couvillion³; Brian Callam⁴; Jerome La Peyre⁵

¹Agricultural Center, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803; ²Louisiana Fish and Wildlife Cooperative Research Unit, USGS

³USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA USGS; ⁴ Oyster Research Lab, Louisiana Sea Grant; ⁵School of Animal Science, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center

Evaluating Functional and Trophic Equivalence of Restored Marshes on Deer Island, MS

Emelia R. Marshall; Zachary Darnell; Patrick Biber; Kevin Dillon

School of Ocean Science and Engineering, The University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Comparing Functions of Different Habitats to Advance Oyster Reef Restoration Projects

Devin Comba; Jennifer Beseres Pollack

Marine Biology, Harte Research Institute, TAMUCC, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

Development and Sustainability of Ecosystem Services for Restored Oyster Reefs in Louisiana

Sarah Catherine LeBlanc¹; Ryann E. Rossi²; Brian J. Roberts²; Megan K. La Peyre¹

¹Louisiana State University, School of Renewable Natural Resources, Baton Rouge, LA 70803; ²Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium 

Assessment of Serpulid Reef Communities as Critical Habitat in Baffin Bay, Texas

Terence Aaron Palmer¹; Natasha Breaux¹; Benoit Lebreton²; Gael Guillou²; Jennifer Beseres Pollack¹

¹Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412; ²UMR Littoral, Environment et Societies, CNRS - University of La Rochelle, Institut du Littoral et de l‚ Environnement, 17000 La Rochelle, France

The Effects of Hurricane Harvey on Oyster Restoration

Shailee R. Modi; Marc H. Hanke

Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston Honors College, Houston, TX 77004

MANGROVES AND MARSHES

Consumption of Mangrove Plant Matter Decreases Body Condition of Salt Marsh Invertebrates

Janelle A. Goeke; Anna R. Armitage

Department of Marine Biology, Texas A&M University at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77553

Belowground Warming Alters Growth Responses of Avicennia germinans and Spartina alterniflora

Harris B. Stevens¹; William C. Vervaeke^1,2; Mark W. Hester¹

¹Department of Biology, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA 70504; ^1,2Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Lafayette, LA 70501 

Measuring abundance of fauna at a restored marsh site in southeast Louisiana

Benjamin Lee Bates; Quenton C. Fontenot; Gary J. LaFleur

Nicholls State University, Thibodaux, LA 70310

Decomposition Rates of Spartina alterniflora in Coastal Louisiana Natural and Created Marshes

Allison Olivier Benelli¹; Katelyn J. Lamb¹; Erick M. Swenson¹; Paola Lopez-Duarte²; Brian Roberts³; Michael J. Polito¹

¹Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803; ²University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC 28223; ³Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, Chauvin, LA 70344

Impacts of Mangrove Expansion on Habitat Preference and Fidelity of Saltmarsh Killifish

Simen Kaalstad

Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

PLANKTON ECOLOGY

Floods and Phytoplankton: Assessing Impacts from the 2019 Mississippi River Flooding

Andrea C. Jaegge; Jennifer M. Raabe; Beth A. Stauffer

Department of Biology, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA 70503

Phytoplankton Community Changes Through a Drought-wet Climate Transition in a South Texas Estuary

Sarah V. Douglas¹; Jianhong Xue¹; Amber K. Hardison²; Zhanfei Liu¹

¹University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, TX, 78373; ²Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester Point, VA 23062

POPULATION AND COMMUNITY ECOLOGY AND BIODIVERSITY

The Prevalence of Soniferous Fishes Globally and in the Gulf of Mexico

Audrey Looby^1,2; Kieran Cox^3,4; Santiago Bravo⁵; Rodney Rountree⁶; Francis Juanes⁶; Laura K. Reynolds⁷; Charles W. Martin¹

¹UF/IFAS Nature Coast Biological Station, University of Florida, Cedar Key, FL 32625 ²Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611; ³Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 3E6, Canada; ⁴Hakai Institute, Campbell River, BC V9W 0B7, Canada; ⁵Instituto Oceanografico, Universidade de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo 05508-120, Brasil; ⁶Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 3E6, Canada and The Fish Listener, Waquoit, MA 02536; ⁷Soil and Water Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 

Assessing Biotic Integrity of Tidal Streams Along the Lower Texas Coast

Alexis J Neffinger; Jennifer Pollack; Terry Palmer; Natasha Breaux

Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi/Harte Research Institute, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

Spatial Variation in Size of Stranded Common Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus)

Matthew R. Hodanbosi¹; Ruth H. Carmichael^1,2

¹Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Dauphin Island, AL 36528; ²Department of Marine Sciences, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36688

Examining Potential Drivers of Gulf Ribbed Mussel Distribution in Southeast Louisiana

Jordan Logarbo^1,2; Ryann Rossi^2,3; Megan La Peyre^1,4; Brian J. Roberts²

¹School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70803; ²Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, Chauvin, LA 70344; ³Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Gulf Breeze, FL 32561; ⁴U.S. Geological Survey, Louisiana Fish and Wildlife Cooperative Research Unit, Baton Rouge, LA 70803 

Mismatches in Plant Sampling Biases Between Observations and Vouchered Specimens 

Jordan A. Rodriguez; Barnabas H. Daru

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

SUBMERGED AQUATIC VEGETATION

Image Analysis of Epiphyte-Seagrass Dynamics on Thalassia testudinum from different environmental conditions

Chi Huang; Carissa Pinon; Mehrube Mehrebeoglu; Ed Proffitt; Kirk Cammarata

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

Halodule wrightii and Sediment Biogeochemistry Response to Ray Bioturbation

Mackenzie J. Rothfus; Jane Caffrey

Center for Environmental Diagnostics and Bioremediation, University of West Florida, Pensacola, FL 32514

Nekton Trophic Structure in Turtlegrass Ecosystems cross the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Christian Todd Hayes¹; Kevin S. Dillon¹; M. Z. Darnell¹; D. Lee Smee²; Charles W. Martin³; Margaret O. Hall⁴; Bradley T. Furman⁴; Kelly M. Darnell¹

¹Division of Coastal Sciences, School of Ocean Science and Engineering, The University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS 39564; ²Dauphin Island Sea Lab, University of South Alabama, Dauphin Island, AL 36528; ³Nature Coast Biological Station, University of Florida, Cedar Key, FL 32625; ⁴Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission-Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, St. Petersburg, FL 33701

Next Generation Systematics and Biogeography of the Aquatic Plant Clade Alismatales

Keilana Cherae Borja; Barnabus Daru

Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

WATER QUALITY, CONTAMINANTS, AND STRESSORS

Temporal Dynamics of Multiple Stressor Effects on Crassostrea virginica in Galveston Bay

Anika Agrawal; Laura J. Jurgens

Texas A&M University at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77553

Mercury and Selenium Concentrations in Northern Gulf of Mexico Bottlenose Dolphins

Meaghan A. McCormack¹; Brian P. Jackson²; Jessica Dutton¹

¹Department of Biology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666; ²Department of Earth Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755

Mercury Concentrations in Sharks from the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Jacob Ryan Ketchum¹; Bethany M. Deacy²; Kesley J. Gibson³; Gregory W. Stunz³; Jessica Dutton¹

¹Department of Biology, Texas State University, Aquatic Station, San Marcos, TX 78666; ²Riverside Technology, Inc., National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Panama City, FL 32408; ³Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX 78412

Tissue-Specific Mercury Concentrations in Immature Bull Sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) from Sabine Lake

Michaela Livingston¹; Jonathan Davis²; Jessica Dutton¹

¹Department of Biology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666; ²Texas Parks and Wildlife Department - Coastal Fisheries Division, Port Arthur, TX 77640

Analysis of Microplastic Pollution on Three Texas State Park Beaches

Maureen Hayden; Mary K. Wicksten

Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843 

The use of Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA as an Indicator of Human Pollution in Tampa Bay

Shannon Noel Twyman; Bridgette Froeschke

Biology Department, The University of Tampa, Tampa, FL 33607 

Occurrence of Vibrio sp. in Tampa Bay and it’s Relation to Zooplankton 

Margaret Loren Baker; Rebecca Waggett; Bridgette Froeschke

University of Tampa, Biology Department, Tampa, FL 33606

PFAS Compounds in Galveston Bay Following the Deer Park ITC Fire

Rayna Michelle Nolen¹; Patricia Faulkner¹; Karl Kaiser¹; Antonietta Quigg²; David Hala¹

¹Marine Biology, Texas A&M University at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77554; ²Marine and Coastal Environmental Science, Texas A&M University at Galveston, Galveston, TX 77554

Detecting Microplastics in Marine Snows using Microscope Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy

Hannah Lynn Niland¹; Xiangtao Jiang¹; Anja Engel²; Zhanfei Liu¹

¹University of Texas at Austin, Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, TX 78373; ²GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Kiel, Germany

Evaluating Organic Contaminants Associated with Nurdles along Beaches of South Texas

Xiangtao Jiang; Jace Tunnell; Zhanfei Liu

The University of Texas at Austin‚ Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, TX 78373