R. J. DAVID WELLS
EMAIL: wellsr@tamug.edu
POSITION: Associate Professor
EDUCATION: Ph.D. Louisiana State University (2007), M.S. Texas A&M University (2002), B.S. Oregon State University (1998)
RESEARCH INTERESTS: Biology and ecology of bony fishes, sharks, and rays. Research focus on life history,
habitat use, movement, and feeding ecology of marine species throughout sub-tropical
and temperate ecosystems.
JOHN MOHAN
EMAIL: jmohan@tamu.edu
POSITION: Postdoctoral Research Associate
EDUCATION: PhD. University of Texas (2015), M.S. East Carolina University (2009), B.S. Penn State University (2006)
RESEARCH INTERESTS: My research addresses questions in fish ecology related to migration patterns, habitat use, and feeding dynamics by utilizing natural chemical tags. Fish otoliths provide information on the types of environments fish experience and tissue stable isotopes reveal recent dietary histories. Combining natural tags provides a multi-proxy approach for linking migration and environmental exposure histories to trophic ecology in ecologically and economically important species. My current post-doc research combines non-lethal natural tags (scale and blood chemistry) with acoustic and satellite tagging technology to relate migrations patterns with feeding dynamics and physiology of recreational species.
CIRRUCULUM VITAE (pdf)
TOM TINHAN
EMAIL: t.tinhan@gmail.com
POSITION: Ph.D. student
EDUCATION: M.S., California State University, Long Beach (2013)
B.S. University of Hawai'i at Manoa (2009)
RESEARCH INTERESTS: My dissertation research focuses on the movement patterns of bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) across the western Gulf of Mexico, and identifying environmental predictors of these movements over multiple temporal and spatial scales. I am also interested in the management implications and trophic dynamics of reproductive aggregations in marine predators.
CIRRUCULUM VITAE (pdf)
TRAVIS RICHARDS
EMAIL: travis.richards3@gmail.com
POSITION: Ph.D. student
EDUCATION: M.S. Florida State University (2014), B.S. Eckerd College (2007)
RESEARCH INTERESTS: My research interests focus on marine community dynamics and food web ecology with an emphasis on predator-prey relationships, niche partitioning, spatial and temporal variation in food web structure, and the role that animal movement and migration plays in forming trophic linkages between spatially separated habitats. For my PhD research, I’ll be examining how vertically migrating fishes and invertebrates potentially act as trophic links between epipelagic (0-200 m), mesopelagic (200-1,000 m) and bathypelagic (>1,000 m) assemblages.
CIRRUCULUM VITAE (pdf)
JEFF PLUMLEE
EMAIL: jplumlee@tamu.edu
POSITION: M.S. Student
EDUCATION: B.S. Marine Fisheries, Texas A&M University (2015)
RESEARCH INTERESTS: My research interests focus around community structure of marine ecosystems and how they are affected by trophic dynamics. My thesis will focus on two main topics. First, describing the community structure of fishes utilizing artificial reefs along the Texas coast by directly estimating abundance and biomass using vertical longlines and traps, as well as indirectly using active acoustics. Second, relating the community structure of these fishes to their trophic structure by utilizing fatty acid and bulk stable isotope (carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur) biomarkers. Conclusions derived from this research will aid fisheries managers in better understanding the function of artificial reef structures to fish communities and the role of these reefs in the food webs in the northwest Gulf of Mexico.
CIRRUCULUM VITAE (pdf)
PREVIOUS GRADUATE STUDENTS
KAYLAN DANCE
EMAIL: kaylanbradley@aggienetwork.com
EDUCATION: M.S. Texas A&M University (2017), B.S. Texas A&M University (2012)
THESIS: Feeding ecology of gray triggerfish and red snapper at artificial reefs in the northwest Gulf of Mexico
VERONICA QUESNELL
EMAIL: quesnel3@neo.tamu.edu
EDUCATION: M.S. Texas A&M University (2017), B.S. Michigan State University (2012)
THESIS: Nursery origin and connectivity of swordfish in the North Pacific Ocean
NATALIE SPEAR
EMAIL: nspear@gmail.com
EDUCATION: M.S. Texas A&M University (2017), B.S. University of California, Berkeley (2005)
THESIS: Age and growth validation of the common thresher shark in the northeastern Pacific Ocean
TYLER HARRINGTON
EMAIL: bimmerracer@hotmail.com
EDUCATION:M.S. Texas A&M University (2014)
NON-THESIS RESARCH: Diets of Atlantic Sharpnose shark and Bonnethead in the northern Gulf of Mexico
Wells Shark Biology and Fisheries Lab // Texas A&M University // Department of Marine Biology // 1001 Texas Clipper Rd. // Galveston, TX 77553