Courses Taught

BSC 497/695 – Marine Biogeography & Evolution (Spring Semesters): Although evolution isn’t a fundamentally different process in the ocean than it is on land, key differences exist between marine and terrestrial environments that can lead to differences in the mode and tempo of how biodiversity is generated and maintained across geographic space. In this course we compare and contrast evolutionary processes between marine and terrestrial environments, with a special focus on the origin of marine biodiversity hotspots, the relative contributions of allopatric and sympatric speciation, gene flow, and effective population sizes. This course will include a hands-on field component at Dauphin Island Sea Lab where we will visit and snorkel around hard bottom habitats and offshore natural gas platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.

Coral Reef Ecology and Biology (Dauphin Island Sea Lab): In this course we travel to the island of Utila- part of the Bay Islands, Honduras- to explore the diversity, evolution, ecology, behavior, and function of Caribbean coral reefs. 

Marine Biology (Dauphin Island Sea Lab): This course is a general survey of Marine Biology for undergraduate students offered over 5-weeks at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. This is a field heavy course exploring the marine habitats of the Gulf of Mexico, including salt marshes, sea grasses, sandy beach habitat, artificial reefs. We especially focus on the organismal diversity in these habitats.