Prospective Students
     
 
I am considering applications from accomplished, motivated, and independent potential graduate students who are interested in studying the ecology of coastal communities.
  
     
 
Coastal wetlands support a diverse and unique assemblage of plants, invertebrates, shorebirds, fish, and mammals, and are exciting places to conduct experimental field research. Recent storm impacts on the Gulf Coast have placed renewed emphasis on the importance of conserving and restoring coastal wetlands. Potential areas of study include (but are not limited to):
  
     
  • I have some support for a graduate student to examine the effects of housing developments on wetlands owned by TAMUG. The scope of this project is broad, and could focus on a wide range of topics. Possible questions include: What are the effects of housing developments on marsh functions (e.g., productivity, trophic structure, nutrient retention)? Does building proximity or construction noise pollution impact migrating shorebird foraging behaviors? Do the effects of increased nutrient input differ between established and restored marsh plant stands? How does increased boat traffic alter the development of seagrass beds?
  • How does salt marsh restoration impact adjacent habitats such as subtidal seagrass beds? And, conversely, how does seagrass restoration impact plant communities at higher elevations?
  • How does bioturbation from burrowing organisms influence trophic interactions and the restoration of plant assemblages in salt marsh communities?
  • What are the indirect effects of coral reef predators on herbivory and on the composition and diversity of adjacent seagrass beds?
  • How does nutrient enrichment change the trophic structure and the refuge value of the plant structure in seagrass and salt marsh epifaunal communities?
 
Contact me at armitaga@tamug.edu or 409.740.4842 to discuss these potential projects or if you have a research idea you’d like to explore.
  
     
 
The Department of Marine Biology at TAMUG is currently developing a graduate program. It may be available to accept applications as early as fall 2008. Contact Dr. Armitage for an update and more information. In the meantime, I have a graduate appointment at College Station in the department of Ecosystem Science and Management (formerly Rangeland Ecology and Management). Click here for information on applying to the ESSM graduate program. General TAMU graduate application info is at the Office of Graduate Studies. Students enrolled in the ESSM program take one or two semesters of classes in College Station but do all of their research based in my laboratory in Galveston. Class schedules are flexible, and some are web-based to accommodate students’ research activities.