Our research program is diverse, but currently focuses on migration patterns of marine life, how marine animals interact with their habitats, and the vital role estuaries and near-shore waters play in sustaining marine life.

Below are highlights of our current research.  Click the tabs on the left to learn more about individual projects.

Dolphin-fish in the Gulf of Mexico: migration patterns, habitat use, and life history

Like many oceanic species there are large gaps in our knowledge of the migration patterns of dolphinfish and the factors that influence them. Furthermore, relatively little is known about the life history, population structure, age and growth, age at maturity, reproductive status, feeding habits, and general ecology for dolphinfish in the Gulf of Mexico. This large data gap is evidence of the challenges often associated with attempting to estimate and manage a stock that potentially migrates across numerous foreign and domestic boundaries. Learn more.

The overall goal of our shark research is to generate much needed data on the movement patterns and ecology of sharks in Gulf of Mexico waters using state-of-the-art assessment techniques.  This research examines shark distribution, feeding habitats, and movement patterns in nearshore waters of the Padre Island National Seashore and south Texas bays and estuaries using passive tagging, acoustic telemetry, and satillite tracking .  Learn more.

Testing hypotheses on red snapper survival, habitat use, and recruitment patterns

Red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) is the most economically important reef fish species in the Gulf of Mexico and considered to be a fishery in decline due to overfishing. Our lab is studying the mortalitiy, recruitment, and population connectivity of red snapper using a variety of techniques that include both active and passive acoustic telemetry, tag and recaptures studies, hyperbaric chamber experimentation, and genetics. Learn more.

Texas Artificial Reef Monitoring - Fish Community Assessment

During the last few decades, artificial reef development has been undertaken to create new habitat for mitigation/restoration, increased fisheries production, and recreational use such as diving and fishing. Artificial reefs have the potential to positively affect fish populations and increase opportunities for use of our natural resources by forming the basis of the food web and providing structured habitat for a host of reef fishes. The goal of this project is to evaluate the fish community structure associated with artificial reefs developed under the Texas Artificial Reef Program along the Coastal Bend region of Texas.  Learn more.

Using acoustic telemetry to track movement patterns of spotted seatrout, red snapper, and sharks in Texas coastal waters

With the advancement in technology in recent years it has it become possible to track real time movements of individual fish. We are currently tracking adult spotted seatrout, red snapper, and sharks using passive acoustic ultrasonic telemetry that employs an array of stationary receivers to detect signals from fish affixed with uniquely coded transmitters. This technology has become a widely used method of determining habitat usage and movement patterns of fish.

Effect of seagrass fragmentation on estuarine nekton in a subtropical estuary

Habitat fragmentation within the world's ecosystems is a widespread and ubiquitous problem. Habitats are often in decline and/or degradation worldwide, and many are at risk of being lost permanently. As habitats experience degradation or loss, they typically go through phases of fragmentation. The overall goal of our research is to determine the response of nekton to variability in fragmentation of seagrass meadows within an estuarine complex. Learn more.

Assessing stock structure using otolith microchemistry

Knowledge of geographic stock structure is critical to understanding the dynamics of marine fish populations. Currently, there are significant gaps in our knowledge as to the stock structure of many fisheries in the Gulf. We currently have new techniques that may help elucidate these stock structures, and retrospectively identify the source (natal origin) and the relative contribution of different nursery grounds. The overall goal of this proposal is to characterize the stock structure and make predictions about bays of natal origin for estuarine fish populations. Learn more.

The majority of commerically and recreationally important fish are estuarine-dependent, so access to nursery habitats via tidal inlets is critical for reproduction, growth, survival,and sustainability of these important populations.  The goal of this research is to examine juvenile fish recruitment and and adult migration patterns from offshore waters into estuaries through several Texas tidal inlets (Packery Channel, Port Mansfield Channel, and Aransas Pass). Learn more.

Catch-and-release mortality of sport-fish

Catch-and-release is becoming more common as a management tool in marine recreational fisheries. Clearly, a critical factor in determining different management scenarios using this strategy is post-capture survival. The purpose of these studies was to investigate the mortality associated with catch-and-release in sportfish fisheries (spotted seatrout, red snapper, dolphin-fish, and sharks) in Texas coastal waters. Learn more.

Oyster reef as essential fish habitat

Oyster reefs were once a dominant feature along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. Over-harvesting and other anthropogenic causes have reduced oyster reefs to little of their historic coverage. The magnitude of their habitat value is unknown and very few studies have quantitatively assessed the use of oyster reefs by fisheries species particularly as they relate to impact from dredging, loss of fisheries habitat, and food web dynamics. The goal of this research is to determine the habitat value of subtidal and intertidal oyster reefs to benthic crustaceans and nekton.  Learn more.