Sarah Douglas, Ph.D.

“Extreme climate events influence particulate organic matter quality, quantity, and composition in the Mission-Aransas Estuary”

Advisor: Zhanfei Liu

August 2022

Hunter Bailey, M.S.

“Nutritional ecology of a marine teleost: maternal maturation diets affect egg and larval composition of Southern Flounder”

Advisor: Lee Fuiman

December 2021

Ian Rambo, Ph.D.

"Novel Microbes and Viruses with Roles in Biogeochemical Cycling and Eukaryogenesis in Marine Systems"

Advisor: Brett Baker

December 2021

Miranda Madrid, M.S.

“Detecting and responding to change in the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve: Insights into the System-wide Monitoring Program”

Advisor: Edward Buskey

August 2021

Angelina Dichiera, Ph.D.

“Carbonic anhydrase function and evolution in the respiratory gas exchange system of marine fish”

Advisor: Andrew Esbaugh

May 2021

 Zhenxin Hou, Ph.D.

"Transgenerational Transfer of Dietary Nutrients and Its Consequences for Offspring Physiology”

Advisor: Lee Fuiman

August 2021

Victoria Congdon, Ph.D.

“Assessing seagrass ecosystem status and condition: Multi-scale applications of a long-term monitoring program”

Advisor: Ken Dunton

August 2021

Derek Bolser, Ph.D.

“From Somatic Growth to Community Structure of Marine Fishes: Explaining Variation with Physical Drivers and Methodological Biases at Multiple Scales”

Advisor: Brad Erisman

May 2021

Yida Gao, Ph.D.

“Insights into Cell Loss Processes of Toxic Dinoflagellate Karenia brevis”

Advisor: Deana Erdner

December 2020

Charles Tang, Ph.D.

“The Environmental Influences on the Growth and Grazing of Marine Protists”

Advisor: Ed Buskey

December 2020

Arley Muth, Ph.D.

“Salinity and pH variations in the nearshore Arctic Ocean: Implications for benthic species physiology and biodiversity”

Advisor: Ken Dunton

August 2020

Xin Xu, Ph.D.

"Nitrogen and Organic Matter Cycling at the Sediment-Water Interface in Tidal Freshwater Zones of two South Texas Rivers”

Advisor: Jim McClelland & Amber Hardison

August 2020

Hengchen Wei, Ph.D.

“Nitrogen transport and transformation in tidal freshwater zones”

Advisor: Jim McClelland & Amber Hardison

August 2020

Alexis Khursigara, Ph.D.

“The sublethal effects of crude oil exposure on red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus)” 

Advisor: Andrew Esbaugh

August 2020

Jenelle Estrada, M.S.

“What defines an edge? Quantifying edge effects across multiple trophic levels”

Advisor: Deana Erdner

August 2020

Leighann Martin, M.S.

“Recovery from catch-and-release angling in Gulf of Mexico fishes” Advisor: Andrew Esbaugh

August 2020

Christopher Biggs, Ph.D.

“Relationships between the Behavioral Dynamics of Fish Spawning Aggregations and Reproductive Resilience”

Advisor: Brad Erisman, August 2019

Craig Connolly, Ph.D.

“Dissolved organic matter in Arctic watersheds and coastal waters”

Advisor: Jim McClelland, June 2019

Kiley Seitz, Ph.D.

“Uncovering Asgard archaea and their metabolic roles in diverse sedimentary environments”

Advisor: Brett Baker, May 2019

John O’Connor, M.S.

“Characterization of riverine DOM using thermal slicing pyrolysis GC-MS: implications for anthropogenic influence and organic matter lability”

Advisor: Zhanfei Liu, May 2019

Christina Bonsell, Ph.D.

“Factors that influence the distribution of the Arctic endemic kelp, Laminaria solidungula (J. Agardh 1868)”

Advisor: Ken Dunton, May 2019

Aubrey Koch Converse, Ph.D.

“Functions and signaling mechanisms of the membrane androgen receptor ZIP9 in Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) and zebrafish (Danio rerio) ovaries”

Advisor: Peter Thomas, December 2018.

Kaijun Lu, Ph.D.

“Biogeochemical processes of dissolved organic nitrogen”

Advisor: Zhanfei Liu, August 2018

Meaghan Cuddy, M.S.

“Patterns in Isoscapes and N:P stoichioscapes of the dominant seagrasses (Halodule wrightii and Thalassia testudinum) in the western Gulf of Mexico”

Advisor: Ken Dunton, May 2018

Emily Anderson, M.S.

“Summer diatom blooms in the eastern North Pacific gyre investigated with a long endurance autonomous vehicle”

Advisor: Tracy Villareal, December 2017

Hoang Minh “Thomas” Nguyen, M.S.

“Spatial and Temporal Variations in Benthic Bivalve’s Stable Isotopic Compositions in the Chukchi Sea, Arctic Ocean”

Advisors: Bryan Black and Ken Dunton, December 2017

Corinne Burns, M.S.

“Fatty Acid Composition of the Maternal Diet Affects Egg and Larval Quality of Southern Flounder, Paralichthys lethostigma”

Advisor: Lee Fuiman, December 2017

 Erin Reed, M.S.

"Relationships Between Climate, Growth, and Fisheries Production in a Commercially Exploited Marine Fish”

Advisor: Brad Erisman. May 2017

Jason Jenkins, M.S.

"How Do Drying and Rewetting Events Affect Nutrient Fluxes and Bacteria Dynamics From Subtropical Estuarine Sediments?”

Advisor: Zhanfei Liu. May 2017

Nicholas Reyna, M.S.

“Influence of major storm events on the quantity and composition of particulate organic matter in a subtropical estuary, Texas”

Advisors: Zhanfei Liu & Amber Hardison. December 2016

Xana Hermosillo, M.S.

"Estimating Trichodesmium spp. contribution to chlorophyll and biogenic iron in the Gulf of Mexico using an in-situ imaging system"

Advisor: Tracy Villareal. December 2016

Yesid Lozano-Duque, M.S.

"Development and validation of PCR-RFLP assay for identification of gamierdiscus species in the greater Caribbean region"

Advisor: Deana Erdner. August 2016

Matthew Dzaugis, M.S.

“Importance of a northern Gulf of Mexico spring transition as inferred from marine fish biochronologies”

Advisor: Bryan Black. May 2016

Matt Seeley, M.S.

“Habitat use and trophic structure in Atlantic tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) inferred from geochemical proxies in scales”

Advisor: Bryan Black. May 2016

Meredith Evans, M.S.

“Evaluation of petroleum hydrocarbon weathering on coastal Louisiana beaches and salt marshes following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill using ramped pyrolysis – gas chromatography – mass spectrometry”

Advisor: Zhanfei Liu. May 2016

Shuting Liu, Ph.D.

“Hydrolysis and decomposition of small peptides in marine environments”

Advisor: Zhanfei Liu. May 2016

Claire Griffin, Ph.D.

“Dissolved organic matter in major rivers across the Pan-Arctic from remote sensing”

Advisor: Jim McClelland. May 2016

Gene Oh, M.S.

"The Effect of Crude Oil and Chemical Dispersant on Sinking Rates of Gulf of Mexico Diatoms"

Advisor: Tracy Villareal. December 2015

Carrie Harris, M.S.

"Hydrological and ecological observations along the eastern Beaufort Sea coast of Alaska"

Advisor: Ken Dunton. December 2015

Matt Khosh, Ph.D.

"Seasonal dynamics of organic matter and inorganic nitrogen in surface waters of Alaskan Arctic streams and rivers"

Advisor: Jim McClelland. November 2015

Moises Bernal, Ph.D. 

"Hybridization and divergent selection shaped the evolutionary history of sympatric sister-species of grunts (genus:Haemulon)"

Advisor: Deana Erdner. November 2015

Kathryn Ondricek, M.S.

"Modulation by hypoxia of membrane steroid receptor expression and functions in ovaries of Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulates)"

Advisor: Peter Thomas. November 2015

Stephanie Smith, M.S.

"Tracing organic matter pathways in marine food webs using fatty acids and compound specific stable isotope analysis"

Advisor: James McClelland. August 2015

Elizabeth Brown, M.S. 

"Defining the metabolic compensation pathways employed during low-level hypercapnia in red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus)."

Advisor: Andrew Esbaugh. August 2015

John Mohan,  Ph.D. 

"Linking fish migration and hypoxia exposure to trophic ecology using natural chemical tags"

Advisor: Ben Walther. August 2015

Jordann Kailey Young, M.S. 

"Abundance, biomass and caloric content of Chukchi Sea bivalves and influence of bivalve caloric distribution on Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) abundance and distribution in the northeastern Chukchi Sea"

Advisor: Ken Dunton. April 2015

Sara Susan Wilson M.S.

"Patterns in seagrass coverage and community composition along the Texas coast: A three-year trend analysis" 

Advisor: Ken Dunton. April 2015

Tracy E. Harvey M.S.

"The effects of crude oil, chemical dispersant, and UV radiation on copepod nauplii from the Gulf of Mexico" 

Advisor: Ed Buskey. April 2015

Kelly Darnell, Ph.D. 

"Understanding factors that control seagrass reproductive success in sub-tropical ecosystems"

Advisor: Ken Dunton. July 2014

Lisa Havel,  Ph.D. 

"Habitat selection: How sensory systems influence settlement patterns in larval red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus)" 

Advisor: Lee Fuiman. July 2014

Amanda Fitzgerald, M.S.

“Bisphenol-A, and Three Related Alkylphenols Exert Rapid Estrogenic Actions on Zebrafish (Daniorerio) Oocytes to Maintain Meiotic Arrest”

Advisor: Peter Thomas. December 2014

Kimberly M. Bittler, M.S.

"The Ecology of Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus) Megalopae in the Mission-Aransas Estuary, Texas: Salinity, Settlement, and Transport"

Advisor: Ed Buskey. December 2013

Wenxian Tan, Ph.D.

"Elucidating the signal cascades induced by progestins that mediate sperm hypermotility in Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) and southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma)" 

Advisor: Peter Thomas. December 2013  

Nathan McTigue, Ph.D. 

"Trophodynamics of the benthic food webs in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, Alaska" 

Advisor: Ken Dunton. November 2013

Kellie Hoppe, M.S.

"The sinking rate and transparent exopolymer particle (TEP) production of Hemiaulus hauckii" 

Advisor: Tracy Villareal. August 2013 

Aubrey Lashaway, M.S.  

"Water Quality and Eukaryotic Plankton Dynamics in the Mission-Aransas Estuary, Texas from 2011-2012" 

Advisor: Deana Erdner. August 2013