Lucas, Matthew Q.

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Integrated studies in coral reef ecology: Genetics, octocoral predation, and remote sensing
(2016) Lucas, Matthew Q.; Weil, Ernesto F.; College of Arts and Sciences - Sciences; Schizas, Nikolaos V.; Nadathur, Govind; Department of Marine Sciences; Smith, Matthew C.
This dissertation consists of three peer-reviewed publications that are integrated by their collective contribution to several different scales of information (molecular, community, and landscape) that are important in coral reef ecology. At the molecular level, (1) Symbiodinium diversity in a reef-building coral between shallow and mesophotic depths among different islands in the Northern Caribbean, (2) at the community level, we studied the predation by Cyphoma gibbosum on the octocoral community among La Parguera’s reefs, (3) and at the landscape level we examined the influence of the water column on spectral diversity and its implications for monitoring shallow water marine communities using remote sensing. In Chapter 5, I provide a few concluding comments regarding active and practical conservation goals on the basis that coral reef resilience and sustainable ecosystem services are dependendent on maintaining high biodiversity.