PhD Candidate

ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies
Room 007,  DB067
James Cook University
Townsville  QLD 4811  Australia
Office: 0747815584/Mobile: 0435396042
Email: lauren.nadler@my.jcu.edu.au
Personal Website
Google Scholar Profile

 

Lauren grew up in New York, and developed her love of the ocean from a fortuitous trip to the local aquarium at age five. This interest led her to the Boston University Marine Program, through which she spent a semester at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole. After earning her BA in marine science in 2007, Lauren travelled for three years, earning her dive master SCUBA qualification and working with marine species ranging from scallops to sea turtles around the world. In 2011, she earned her Master of Research degree from the University of Glasgow (Scotland), where her dissertation examined the relationship between coral morphology and damselfish shoal composition in the Red Sea. Finally, Lauren landed in Australia in 2013, when she started her PhD at James Cook University, with Mark McCormick, Phil Munday and Paolo Domenici (CNR-IAMC, Italy). Her research focuses on behavioural and physiological effects of shoaling in coral reef fishes.

Project Title:

Behavioural and physiological effects of shoaling in a coral reef fish

 

Project Description:

Animals must rapidly perceive, process and react to sensory information from their ambient environment in order to survive. For this reason, many species partake in cooperative group behaviors to enhance their survival, as having “many-eyes” increases an individual’s chances of being informed of important stimuli. Fish shoals (social groups of fishes) are a classic example of a prolific, cooperative group behavior found in nature. Shoaling provides benefits to a range of processes, including foraging, reproduction, social learning, predator avoidance and energetic demand. These benefits may vary depending on shoal composition and environmental conditions, but these effects remain poorly understood. To better understand the costs and benefits of shoal membership, this thesis examined how factors external to and within the shoal affect the energy use by group members.

Supervisors:

Professor Mark I. McCormick (Principal supervisor), Professor Philip L. Munday (Co-supervisor), Dr. Paolo Domenici (Co-supervisor)

Publications: 

Palacios MM, Killen SS, Nadler LE, White JR and McCormick MI. (2016) Top predators negate the effect of mesopredators on prey physiology. Journal of Animal Ecology. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12523

 

Snyder S, Nadler LE, Bayley JS, Svendsen MBS, Johansen JL, Domenici P and Steffensen JF (2016) Effects of closed v. intermittent-flow respirometry on hypoxia tolerance in the shiner perch Cymatogaster aggregata. Journal of Fish Biology. 88: 252-264. DOI: 10.1111/jfb.12837

 

Nadler LE, McNeill DC, Alwany MA and Bailey DM (2014) Effect of habitat characteristics on the distribution and abundance of damselfish within a Red Sea reef. Environmental Biology of Fishes. 97: 1265-1277. DOI: 10.1007/s10641-013-0212-9

 

Schacter CR, Albright LB, Dubofsky EA, Fitzsimmons JN, Focht R, Nadler LE, Sandercock M, Taylor L, Walfoort D, Whitten T, Williams LJ and Rosenthal GG (2013) Risk-sensitive resource defense in a territorial reef fish.  Environmental Biology of Fishes.  97: 813-819. DOI: 10.1007/s10641-013-0181-z

 

Conference Presentations:

Nadler LE, Killen SS , Domenici P, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2015) Go with the flow: Flow rate modulates metabolism and escape response in fish shoals on coral reefs. Society for Experimental Biology annual conference. Prague, Czech Republic.

 

Nadler LE, Killen SS , Domenici P, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2015) Go with the flow: Flow rate modulates metabolism and escape response in fish shoals on coral reefs. 89th Annual Australian Coral Reef Society Conference. Daydream Island, QLD, Australia

 

Nadler LE, Killen SS , Domenici P, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2015) Go with the flow: Flow rate modulates metabolism and escape response in fish shoals on coral reefs. 34th International Ethological Conference. Cairns, QLD, Australia.

 

Nadler LE, Domenici P, Johansen JL, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2014) Fish with friends: Effect of familiarity on schooling behaviour in coral reef fish. Society for Experimental Biology annual conference. Manchester University, Manchester, England.

 

Nadler LE, Domenici P, Johansen JL, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2014) Fish with friends: Effect of familiarity on schooling behaviour in coral reef fish. Poster presented at the International Society for Behavioral Ecology annual conference. Hunter College, New York, NY, USA. (poster)

 

Nadler LE, Domenici P, Johansen JL, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2014) Fish with friends: Effect of familiarity on schooling behaviour in coral reef fish. 51st Annual Conference of the Animal Behavior Society. Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.

 

Nadler LE, Domenici P, Johansen JL, Munday PL and McCormick MI. (2014) Fish with friends: Effect of familiarity on schooling behaviour in coral reef fish. 88th Annual Australian Coral Reef Society Conference. Brisbane, QLD, Australia.

 

Nadler LE, Albalat A, Edrada-Ebel R and Neil D. (2011) Metabolomics of different tissues from the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus: A first approach to determine uses for fishery waste and biomarkers of environmental health in a crustacean. 9th International Conference and Workshop on Lobster Biology & Management. Bergen, Norway. (poster)

 

Nadler LE, Albalat A, Edrada-Ebel R and Neil D. (2011) Metabolomics of different tissues from the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus: A first approach to determine uses for fishery waste and biomarkers of environmental health in a crustacean. Marine Alliance for Science and Technology Annual Science Meeting. Oban, Scotland, UK. (poster)

 

Nadler LE, Albalat A, Edrada-Ebel R and Neil D. (2011) Metabolomics of different tissues from the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus: A first approach to determine uses for fishery waste and biomarkers of environmental health in a crustacean. NERC/SOFI Workshop on -omics technologies for marine models. Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. (poster)

 

Nadler LE, Moore MS, and Kunz TH. (2006) Ecological influences on rabies infections in the big brown bat, Eptesicus fuscus. Boston University Undergraduate Research Symposium. Boston University. Boston, MA, USA. (poster)

 

Public Outreach: 

Nadler, LE. (2014) Fish schools: Not all seats in the class are equal. Naked Scientists. Popular science article.

 

Nadler LE, Doo S, Madin EMP and Watson SA. (2016) Science-Based Policy Plan for Australia’s Coral Reefs. Australian Coral Reef Society submission. Policy document.

 

Councillor and social media coordinator for the Australian Coral Reef Society (2014-2016).

 

Society for Experimental Biology Young Scientist Award – Finalist, July 2016

 

Society for Experimental Biology Young Scientist Award – Finalist, July 2015

 

Australian Coral Reef Society – Student Presentation Award, August 2014

 

Boston University – UROP Student Research Award, May 2006

 

Grants: 

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) Science for Management Award, April 2014, $1000AU 

 

Lizard Island Reef Research Foundation Doctoral Fellowship, April 2014 – March 2016, $20,000AU

 

Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship, January 2013 – July 2016, $75,000AU

 

Australian Postgraduate Research Scholarship, January 2013 – July 2016, $96,000AU

 

Gilchrist Educational Trust Expedition Grant, May 2011, £500GBP

 

Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) Fieldwork Grant, March 2011, £500GBP

 

Blodwen Lloyd-Binns/Glasgow Natural History Society Grant, January 2011, £800GBP

 

Boston University Dean’s List, September 2004 – May 2007