NSU Currents Fall 2014 Newsletter - Volume XXV, Issue 2

14 AarinConradAllen : “Diet of the Antilleanmanatee ( Trichechus manatus manatus ) in Belize.” Committee: James Thomas, Ph.D., chair; Curtis M. Burney, Ph.D.; Robert Bonde, Ph.D.; and Cathy Beck, Ph.D. Thesis. April 29, 2014. Kimberly Atwater-Finnegan : “A mitogenomics view of the genetic status and population history of the basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus .” Committee: Mahmood Shivji, Ph.D., chair; J. V. Lopez, Ph.D.; and George Duncan, Ph.D. Thesis. July 22, 2014. Cornelius Benjamin : “The lethal and sublethal effects of anthropogenic inputs, such as PAH’s, PCB’s and heavy metals, on coastal plankton (calanoid copepods, crab zoea, and shrimp megalopes).” Committee: Donald McCorquodale, Ph.D., chair, and Steffen Schmidt, Ph.D. Capstone. April 24, 2014. Charlotte Berry : “Conch population demographics and habitat association near Port Everglades inlet, Florida.” Committee: Brian K. Walker, Ph.D., chair; David S. Gilliam, Ph.D.; and Rob Hill, Ph.D. Thesis. April 23, 2014. Caitlin Brice : “The status of Amazonian manatees ( Trichechus inunguis ) and their habitats in eastern Ecuador.” Committee: Caryn Self-Sullivan, Ph.D., chair; Roger Reep, Ph.D.; and Donald McCorquodale, Ph.D. Thesis. April 25, 2014. Alexandra Campbell : “Prokaryotic diversity of the Broward and Hollywood wastewater outfalls, associated reef tracts, and inlets.” Committee: J. V. Lopez, Ph.D., chair; Donald McCorquodale, Ph.D.; and Christopher Sinigalliano, Ph.D. Thesis. April 23, 2014. Eric Carlson : “A comparison of loggerhead ( Caretta caretta ) sea turtle nesting seasons as affected by the North Atlantic Oscillations, El Nino Southern Oscillation, and Pacific Decadal Oscillation phenomena.” Committee: Curtis M. Burney, Ph.D., chair, and Derek Burkholder, Ph.D. Capstone. March 26, 2014. Cayla Dean : “Biophysical interactions contributing to mixing of oil in the Straits of Florida: Turbulent mixing due to dial vertical migrations of zooplankton.” Committee: Alexander Soloviev, Ph.D., chair; Tamara Frank, Ph.D.; and Amy Hirons, Ph.D. Thesis. July 25, 2014. Allison Durland Donahou : “Loggerhead sea turtle ( Caretta caretta ) hatchling disorientation in Broward Country, Florida.” Curtis M. Burney, Ph.D., chair; Donald McCorquodale, Ph.D.; David Kerstetter, Ph.D.; and Lou Fisher, M.S. Thesis. July 28, 2014. Christina Gabriel : “Evaluating the role of seagrass beds.” Committee: Amy Hirons, Ph.D., chair; Richard Spieler, Ph.D.; and David Kerstetter, Ph.D. Thesis. July 28, 2014. Teagan Gray : “Global population structure, genetic diversity, and demographics of the dusky shark ( Carcharinus obscurus ) based on nuclear microsatellite DNA analysis, and geographic sourcing of shark fins from commercial markets.” Committee: Mahmood Shivji, Ph.D., chair; George Duncan, Ph.D.; and Brad Wetherbee, Ph.D. Thesis. July 25, 2014. Victoria Klima : “Factors affecting the continued decline of Alewife and Blueback herring, Alosa pseudoharengus and A. aestivalis , in the benobscot river, main and the effectiveness of conservation efforts.” Committee: Donald McCorquodale, Ph.D., chair, and David Kerstetter, Ph.D. Capstone. March 25, 2014. Nicholas Ledra : “Delineationof watermasses in the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and Mediterranean Sea using stable isotope ratios.” Committee: Amy Hirons, Ph.D., chair; Curtis M. Burney, Ph.D.; and Jason Gershman, Ph.D. Capstone. April 25, 2014. Alexandra Lee : “Evolutionary perspectives on chemical defense in nudibranch gastropods ( Mollusca: Opisthobranchia ).” Committee: Michael Ghiselin, Ph.D., chair, and Charles Messing, Ph.D. Capstone. July 24, 2014. Shawn Martin : “An evaluation of inclusion criteria for highly migratory species in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.” Committee: David Kerstetter, Ph.D., chair; James Thomas, Ph.D.; and Donald McCorquodale, Ph.D. Thesis. April 24, 2014. John McDermond : “Reproduction, distribution, and population environment of Porites divaricata in the Florida Keys: Rodriguez Key.” Committee: Joshua Feingold, Ph.D., chair; Kevin Helmle, Ph.D.; Nicole Fogarty, Ph.D.; and Susan Colley, M.S. Thesis. July 22, 2014. Travis Allan Moore : “Trophic dynamics and feeding ecology of the Southeast Florida coastal pelagic fish community.” Committee: David Kerstetter, Ph.D., chair; Amy Hirons, Ph.D.; and Robert E. Hueter, Ph.D. Thesis. March 31, 2014. Rebecca Mulheron : “Microbial community assemblages found with sponge orange band disease in Xestospongia muta (Large barrel sponge).” Committee: Jose Lopez, Ph.D., chair; David Gilliam, Ph.D.; and Aurelien Tartar, Ph.D. Thesis. July 31, 2014. Recent M.S. Graduate Student Defenses The following graduate degree defenses have taken place during the second half of the academic year 2013–2014.