Summer Scholarship In Marine Ecology! University of Canterbury

[Isabella Cawthorn]

Algal dynamics in a recovering estuary

Summer Scholarship In Marine Ecology - School of Biological Sciences at the University of Canterbury


This project is to work with the Marine Ecology Research Group in association with a new FRST-funded programme entitled "After the outfall: recovery from eutrophication in degraded New Zealand estuaries". The programme, done in conjunction with NIWA, will provide new information on the processes and time scales of change in coastal ecosystems that have been severely impacted by excess nutrients but are subject to rehabilitation following nutrient reduction.

The Summer Student project will be to work with the estuary team and a) initiate sampling across study sites within the Avon-Heathcote Estuary for nuisance macroalgae and its correlates, especially micro- and macro-invertebrates, and sediment characteristics, and b) initiate field and lab-based studies, accompanied by PAM and oxygen-based productivity experiments, to understand macro-algal responses to N abatement.

This project will give the student a very good grounding in lab and field techniques in soft-shore ecology. The results will form a pilot study for further sampling and experimentation.

Summer scholarships are for students who have finished their BSc and who are intending on doing a postgraduate degree afterwards.


Initial contact outlining your background, interests and (unofficial) record should be made to Professor David Schiel ([e-mail] ) as soon as possible.


Please refer to http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/emaildisclaimer for more information.