Dr Nicholas Paul

Lecturer

2008- Lecturer, James Cook University; 2006-2007 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Aquaculture Division, James Cook University; BSc (Hons) & PhD, University of New South Wales, Sydney.

Member of: Australasian Society for Phycology and Aquatic Botany, Australian Marine Sciences Association, Phycological Society of America, World Aquaculture Society.

Research Interests

• Integrated (plant-animal) aquaculture

• Identification of seaweeds as valuable products

• Seaweed-herbivore interactions

• Marine chemical ecology

I have a broad interest in the biology of aquaculture organisms, and specifically the role that seaweeds (macroalgae) play in integrated (plant-animal) aquaculture. One of my goals is to deliver cost-effective and robust forms of integrated aquaculture to the diverse types of aquaculture in tropical Australia. I have worked extensively on the interactions between seaweeds and their environment (including herbivores), which will be integral to establishing a productive and valuable seaweed industry in Australia.

My post-doctoral fellowship assessed the use of seaweeds from the Great Barrier Reef in integrated aquaculture through removal of nutrient wastes – a major limiting factor for aquaculture expansion adjacent to the GBR Marine Park. I work in close collaboration with aquaculture companies to further the concept of integrated aquaculture, and this research has identified seaweeds for use as biofilters as well as establishing new aquaculture products. My doctorate research focused on interactions between herbivores (e.g. abalone, crustaceans & urchins) and seaweed, and the means that seaweeds employ to manage consumption (including growth and defence).

My current research program is multidisciplinary, and includes aspects of seaweed biology and their interactions with environments relevant to aquaculture and also interactions with herbivores (themselves aquaculture targets). Together this research will provide for the production of valuable seaweed products and importantly value-add to aquaculture operations, either directly as seaweed products or indirectly through waste management. Both will be important to the future of tropical aquaculture.

Publications

2008

de Paula Silva PH, McBride S, de Nys R, Paul NA. Integrating filamentous ‘green tide’ algae into tropical pond-based aquaculture. Aquaculture in press.

Paul NA, de Nys R. Promise and pitfalls of locally abundant seaweeds as biofilters in integrated aquaculture. Aquaculture 28: 49–55.

Vergés A, Paul NA, Steinberg PD. Sex and life history stage alter herbivore responses to a chemically defended red alga. Ecology 89:1334-1343.

Baumgartner FA, Motti CA, de Nys R, Paul NA. Feeding preferences of specialist marine herbivores align with quantitative differences in seaweed secondary metabolites. Submitted

2007

Khou M, Paul NA, Wright JT, Steinberg PD. Intrinsic factors influence attachment of fragments of the green alga Caulerpa filiformis. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology & Ecology 352: 331-342.

2006

Paul NA, de Nys R, Steinberg PD. Seaweed-herbivore interactions at a small scale: direct tests of feeding deterrence using filamentous algae. Marine Ecology Progress Series 323:1-9.

Paul NA, de Nys R, Steinberg PD. Chemical defence against bacteria in the red alga Asparagopsis armata: linking structure with function. Marine Ecology Progress Series 306: 87-101.

Dworjanyn SA, Wright JT, Paul NA, de Nys R, Steinberg PD. Cost of chemical defence in the red alga Delisea pulchra. Oikos 113:13-22.

Paul NA, Cole L, de Nys R, Steinberg PD. Ultrastructure of gland cells in the red alga Asparagopsis armata (Bonnemaisoniaceae). Journal of Phycology 42:637-645.

Graduate Students

• Ms Sarah Castine (PhD student examining nutrients budgets and trophic processes of flow-through aquaculture facilities) School of Marine & Tropical Biology, James Cook University

• Mr Scott Seymour (PhD student examining the use of diverse tropical seaweeds in integrated aquaculture for nutrient stripping and for aquaculture feed), School of Marine & Tropical Biology, James Cook University.

• Mr Pedro Henrique de Paula Silva (MSc student studying the role of bloom forming filamentous seaweeds in integrated aquaculture), School of Marine & Tropical Biology, James Cook University.

Recent and Currently Supervised PhD Topics

• Food for fodder: integrated seaweed culture with herbivorous aquaculture organisms.

• Blooming algae: roles for filamentous algae in integrated tropical aquaculture.

• Nitrogen trafficking: nutrient cycling in aquaculture effluent ponds.

Future PhD Directions

• Chemical ecology of edible seaweeds: spicing up our dinner plates.

• Enhancing aquaculture water and product quality using seaweed biofilters.

Contact Details

Dr Nicholas Paul

Phone: +61 7 4781 6842

Fax: +61 7 4781 4585

Email: nicholas.paul@jcu.edu.au

Rm 008D, Sir George Fisher Building