Deep Sea Macroalgal Meadows 2004 Explorers
Brian Greene
Undergraduate Student
University of Hawaii-Manoa
Zoology Department
Brian is currently pursuing a B.S. in Zoology from the University of Hawaii. He began SCUBA diving at age 11 at his home of Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands. His research interests lie in coral reef assemblages throughout the Indo-Pacific, particularly in the deep reef at depths of 200-500 ft. Brian has conducted over 4000 open-circuit dives, and has recently logged 500 hours on the Cis-Lunar MK-5P closed-circuit rebreather. Brian's other interest is underwater film-making and he is currently completing a documentary about the diversity of marine habitats in the Marshall Islands. Brian is helping with the identification of fish that may be found in association with deep water algae in Hawaii.
Kimberly Ikemoto
Undergraduate and Laboratory Technician
Botany Department and Kewalo Marine Laboratory
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Kimberly Ikemoto is a recent graduate of the University of Hawaii-Manoa, receiving her B.S. in Biology in 2004. She previously worked in Dr. Robert Kinzie's lab at the Hawaii Institute for Marine Biology studying zooxanthellae and aiptasia before entering Dr. Celia Smith's UHM lab to work as a field assistant on K. Peyton's Avrainvillea amadelpha and Halophila hawaiiana project. Ikemoto continues to study A. amadelpha and H. hawaiiana and has begun working on biofouling research at Kewalo Marine Laboratory under Dr. C. Smith and Dr. Michael Hadfield. Other research interests include Smaragdia bryanae, a marine snail that grazes on H. hawaiiana.
Sadie Mossman
Biology Teacher
King Kekaulike High School
Sadie is a Biology Teacher at King Kekaulike High School in Pukalani, Maui. She participated in the deep water algae Teacher-at-Sea program, and spent 24 hours on the research vessel assisting with on-going science and learning about operations aboard the research vessel.
Kimberly A. Peyton
Graduate Student and Co-PI
Botany Department
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Kimberly A. Peyton is currently working on her Ph.D. at the University of Hawaii-Manoa after completing her M.S. at the Florida Institute of Technology. Her previous studies have focused on aquaculture (Turks and Caicos Islands) as well as invertebrate embryos and their symbiotic algae (Indian River Lagoon, FL). Her dissertation work focuses on the impacts of invasive algae on soft sediment communities (mainly native seagrass beds) in Hawaii. Other interests include the ecology of seagrasses found in Guam. Kim is a highly trained research diver, with certifications in advanced EANx, technical decompression diving, EANx gas blending, and the Inspiration rebreather.
Pakki A. Reath
Invertebrate Researcher
Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology
Pakki Reath is a research assistant at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and UHM Botany Department, and received her B.S. from Hawaii Pacific University. She will enter the graduate program at Humboldt State University starting fall semester 2005. Pakki has previously worked in the Malacology Department, the Zoo-Archeology Department, and the Invertebrate Zoology Department of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum (1998-2003), doing cataloging and database work, field collections and surveys, and species lists of taxonomically identified invertebrates for technical reports under the direction of invertebrate experts within the Bishop Museum. She is currently working in a molecular ecology lab, which involves her interests in the molecular ecology, systematics, and biogeography of marine invertebrates. Pakki is in charge of invertebrate identification and sorting, and helps to keep everyone in good spirits.
Cecelia M. Romero
Biology/Environmental Science Teacher
Henry Perrine Baldwin High School
Cecelia is a Biology and Environmental Science Teacher at Henry Perrine Baldwin High School in Wailuku, Maui. She participated in the deep water algae Teacher-at-Sea program, and spent 24 hours on the research vessel assisting with on-going science and learning about operations aboard the research vessel.
Francis J. Sansone, Ph.D.
Professor and Co-PI
Oceanography Department
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Frank Sansone is a professor at the University of Hawaii-Manoa, received his M.S. and Ph.D. from North Carolina, and is currently the head of the Marine Geology and Geochemistry Division of the Department of Oceanography, UHM. His primary research focus is on marine biogeochemistry, with a particular emphasis on dissolved gases in the marine environment. Sansone is actively involved in the biogeochemistry and physical dynamics of permeable sediments, lava-seawater interactions, hydrothermal vent gas geochemistry at Loihi Seamount (Hawaii), mid-ocean ridges, and mid-ocean ridge-flanks, and methane and nitrous oxide stable isotope geochemistry. Dr. Sansone has developed a novel sediment pore water sampler to be used with the submersible manipulator arm to determine the effect of sediment nutrient dynamics on sand-dwelling macroalgae in Hawaii, and vice versa.
Thomas Sauvage
Undergraduate and Laboratory Technician
Botany Department
University of of Hawaii, Manoa
Thomas Sauvage is a recent graduate of the University of Hawaii-Manoa, receiving his B.S. in Zoology in 2004. He has previously worked on several invasive algae projects through the UHM Botany Department, which looked at the distribution of Gracilaria salicornia along the south shore of Oahu and analysis of experimental alien algal removal plots in Waikiki. Sauvage also co-presented "Feasibility of Manual Removal of the invasive red alga, Gracilaria salicornia in Waikiki, Oahu" at the Third International Marine Bioinvasions Conference (2003) in San Diego, CA. Currently, he is working for Dr. Isabella Abbott, a well-known ethnobotanist and phycologist. Other research interests include the reproductive structures of Halophila hawaiiana and H. decipiens.
Alison Sherwood, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Botany Department
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Alison Sherwood is a professor at the University of Hawaii-Manoa, and received her Ph.D. from the University of Guelph, Canada. Her research is concentrated on the systematics of various photosynthetic protistan lineages in the Hawaiian Islands, their mechanisms of spread, and their evolution and subsequent phylogenetic relationships. Sherwood is actively investigating the systematics and biogeography of several very different groups: the fleshy crustose red seaweeds (marine), invasive seaweeds (marine), stream macroalgae (freshwater), and the trentepohlialean green algae (subaerial). Other research includes the development of DNA markers for quick detection of unrecognized biodiversity or newly arriving algae to Hawaii, and the establishment of a genomic DNA archive for Hawaiian algae. Alison is heading our effort on molecular analyses on deep water algae in Hawaii.
Celia M. Smith, Ph.D.
Professor and Principle Investigator
Botany Department
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Celia Smith is a professor at the University of Hawaii-Manoa (UHM), and received her M.S. at UHM and Ph.D. from Stanford. Smith was involved in saturation diving research projects using the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Florida-based Aquarius research station, where she and a team of colleagues from five other institutions studied the ecology of two species of Halimeda. While heading her own laboratory at the UHM, Smith continues to play integral roles in various phycologically-based areas such as native algae, invasive alien algae, and biofouling research. Dr. Smith contributes her expertise in the genus Halimeda and other algae in Hawaii towards a better understanding of deep water algal assemblages in Hawaii.
Jennifer Smith, Ph.D.
Junior Researcher
Botany Department
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Jennifer Smith completed her Ph.D. at the University of Hawaii-Manoa, Botany Department in 2003, and received her B.S. in Zoology and Biology from Humboldt State University. Her research interests include the ecology and physiology of invasive macroalgae, nutrient dynamics of coastal ecosystems, marine ecology, phycology, conservation and management, and ecophysiology. Jen is assisting with physiological measurements of deep water algae in the laboratory on the ship. In 2005, she will begin an NCEAS post-doctoral fellowship at the University of California, Santa Barbara. .
Heather Spalding
Chief Scientist and Co-Principle Investigator
Botany Department
University of Hawaii, Manoa
Heather Spalding is currently working on her Ph.D. at the University of Hawaii-Manoa after completing her M.S. at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in 2002. Her previous studies have focused on deep water macroalgal assemblages in California. Her dissertation work is on the distribution and abundance of deep water algae in Hawaii and the ecology and ecophysiology of algal meadows. She's using advanced diving techniques, such as decompression diving with rebreathers, as well as the submersibles and the ROV to study deep water macroalgae and conduct physiological experiments in situ. Heather is a highly trained research diver, with certifications including NAUI Dive Master, advanced EANx, technical decompression diving, EANx gas blending, and the Inspiration rebreather.
