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Professor Terry Hughes

Professor

Professor Terry Hughes

Federation Fellow (2002-2007)

Professor (2000 - 2002)

Associate Professor (1997 - 2000)

Senior Lecturer (1993 - 1996)

Lecturer (1990-92), Marine Biology Dept., JCU; Lecturer (1989-90)

Research Biologist (1986-88)

Postdoctoral Fellow (1984-86), University of California at Santa Barbara.

BA Trinity College Dublin; MA, PhD Johns Hopkins.

Member of the: American Association for the Advancement of Science; Australian Coral Reef Society; Australian Marine Science Association; Ecological Society of America; International Society for Reef Studies.

Research Interests

  • Population Dynamics of Corals

  • Coral Reef Ecology

  • Population Genetics of Corals

  • Biogeography

I have broad interests in community and population ecology, especially of clonal animals, particularly corals.

Recent and Current Projects Include

At the population level, much of my work has focussed on the dynamics of coral populations, and the evolutionary ecology of life histories. These include studies of population regulation, demography and comparative studies of reproduction (both sexual and asexual), recruitment, growth and longevity. More recently, I have begun to examine genetic population structures of corals, levels of gene flow, and patterns of biogeography.

Recent and Currently Supervised Projects

  • Spatially-explicit modelling of coral dispersal

  • Species boundaries in Acropora

  • Larval development and competency

  • Predation on corals

Future PhD Directions

  • Herbivory and algal/coral interactions

  • Biomechanics of corals

  • Causes of zonation on reef flats

Selected Publications

Hughes, T.P., D.R. Bellwood, C. Folke, R.S. Steneck, and J. Wilson. 2005. New paradigms for supporting the resilience of marine ecoystems. Trends Ecol. Evol. (In press).

D.R. Bellwood, T.P. Hughes, S.R. Connolly, and J. Tanner. 2005. Environmental and geometric constraints on Indo-Pacific coral reef biodiversity. Ecology Letters 8: 643-651.

R.H. Karlson, Howard V. Cornell, T.P. Hughes. 2004. Reef coral diversity at local, island, and regional scales. Nature. 429: 868-870.

Connell, J.H., T.P. Hughes, C. Wallace, J. E. Tanner, K. E. Harms and A. M. Kerr. A long-term study of competition and diversity of corals. Ecological Monographs 74: 179-210 (2004).

Ayre, D.J., and T.P. Hughes. Climate change, genotypic diversity and gene flow in reef-building corals. Ecology Letters 7: 273-278 (2004).

D.R. Bellwood, T.P. Hughes, C. Folke, and M. Nyström. 2004. Confronting the coral reef crisis. Nature 429: 827-833.

Hughes, T.P., A.H. Baird, D.R. Bellwood, M. Card, S.R. Connolly, C. Folke, R. Grosberg,O. Hoegh-Guldberg,J.B.C. Jackson, J. Kleypas, J.M. Lough, P. Marshall,M. Nyström, S.R. Palumbi, J.M. Pandolfi, B. Rosen, J. Roughgarden. Climate Change, Human Impacts, and the Resilience of Coral Reefs. Science 301, 929-933 (2003).

Hughes, T.P., A.H. Baird, E.A. Dinsdale, N.A. Moltschaniwskyj, M. Pratchett, J.E. Tanner, and B.L. Willis.Supply-side ecology works both ways: The link between benthic adults, fecundity and larval recruits.Ecology 81: 2241-2249 (2000).

Hughes, T.P. and J.E. Tanner.Recruitment failure, life histories, and long-term decline of Caribbean corals.Ecology 81: 2250-2264 (2000).

Bellwood, D.R., and T.P. Hughes. 2001. Regional-scale assembly rules and biodiversity of coral reefs. Science. 292: 1532-1534.

Jackson, J.B.C., T.P., Hughes, and 16 co-authors. 2001. Historical overfishing and the recent collapse of coastal ecosystems. Science 293: 629-638.

Hughes, T.P., A.H. Baird, E.A. Dinsdale, N.A. Moltschaniwskyj, M.S. Pratchett, J.E. Tanner, and B.L. Willis. Latitudinal patterns in larval recruitment: Detecting regional variation using meta-analysis and large-scale sampling.Ecology 83: 436-451 (2002).

Hughes, T.P., Bellwood, D.R., and S.R. Connolly. Biodiversity hotspots, centers of endemicity, and the conservation of coral reefs.Ecology Letters 5: 775-784 (2002).

Contact Details

Professor Terry Hughes

Campus: Townsville

Phone: +61 7 4781 4000

Fax: +61 7 4725 1570

Email: Terry.Hughes@jcu.edu.au

Note: Please direct all student enquiries through the School Secretary.