F. Joel Fodrie , Ph.D.

Research Senior Marine Scientist I
Research Assistant Professor of Marine Science, University of South Alabama


Ph.D., University of California,
San Diego, 2006

Email

Research Interests            

Fish and bivalve population ecology, with emphasis on: 1) connectivity of marine populations and ecosystems; 2) complex trophic interactions in marine communities; and 3) ecosystem function in relation to habitat quality, availability and utilization. Additionally, I have conducted experiments related to recruitment processes and mechanisms, as well as restoration ecology. Research tools have included manipulative field experiments, intensive field surveys, GIS simulations, ROVs, stable isotope analyses, population projection matrix models and trace element fingerprinting.

Research Settings

Benthic environments of continental shelves, exposed coastlines, rocky intertidal shorelines and estuaries, (seagrass meadows, oyster reefs, salt marshes, and mud flats).

Current Research Grants

NOAA Marine Fisheries Initiative - Nursery origins of adult gag grouper, gray snapper, and lane snapper in the northern Gulf of Mexico: Onshore-offshore connectivity of reef fishes and contribution of seagrass meadows to fishery production.
National Marine Fishery Service - Estimating the relative importance of northern Gulf nursery habitats to adult fish populations: studies of gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus) and gag grouper (Mycteroperca microlepis).

Past Research Grants

California Sea Grant Rapid Response - Development of LA-ICP-MS methods to chart movements of fish.
California Department of Boating and Waterways - Assessing the ecological value of southern California marinas as nursery habitat.
UCMEXUS Dissertation Research Grant - Tracking movements of juvenile fish via elemental fingerprinting and stable isotope analyses.
California Coastal Environmental Quality Initiative - Evaluating the relative importance of coastal habitat types as productive nursery grounds for the California halibut.
California Coastal Environmental Quality Initiative - Retroactive tracking of nursery habitat use by California halibut.

Selected Publications

Fodrie, F.J. and S.H. Herzka. 2008. Tracking juvenile fish movement and nursery contribution within arid coastal embayments via otolith microchemistry. Marine Ecology Progress Series 361:253-265.

Fodrie, F.J. and L.A. Levin. 2008. Linking juvenile habitat utilization to population dynamics of the California halibut. Limnology and Oceanography 53(2):799-812.

Becker, B.J., L.A. Levin, F.J. Fodrie and P.A. McMillan. 2007. Population connectivity patterns differ in closely related coastal bivalve species. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 104(9):3267-3272.

Fodrie, F.J., S.Z. Herzka, A.J. Lucas and V. Francisco. 2007. Intraspecific density regulates positioning and feeding mode selection of the sand dollar Dendraster excentricus. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 340:169-183.

Fodrie, F.J. and G. Mendoza. 2006. Availability, usage and expected contribution of potential nursery habitats for the California halibut. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 68(1-2):149-164.

Becker, B.J., F.J. Fodrie, P. McMillan and L.A. Levin. 2005. Spatial and temporal variability in trace elemental fingerprints of mytilid mussel shells: A precursor to invertebrate larval tracking. Limnology and Oceanography 50(1):48-61.

Craig, M.T., F.J. Fodrie and P.A. Hastings. 2004. The nearshore fish assemblage of the Scripps Coastal Reserve, San Diego, California. Coastal Management 32:341-351.

Peterson, C.H., F.J. Fodrie, H.C. Summerson and S.P. Powers. 2001. Site-specific and density-dependent extinction of prey by schooling rays: generation of a population sink in top-quality habitat for bay scallops. Oecologia 129:349-356.