Marine Laboratory | Houk Lab
Houk Lab
Marine Laboratory | Houk Lab
Houk Lab
Peter Houk (CV)
Professor
University of Guam Marine Laboratory
Mangilao, Guam 96923
(671) 735-2188
Skpe: peterhouk
peterhouk@gmail.com
Courses
BI/EV 557(L): Quantitative Population Ecology (syllabus)
BI 691: Seminar-Data Development for Graduate Student Research (syllabus)
Research
Coral-reef ecology; conservation biology; fisheries; food-webs; population ecology; resource management
Micronesia Reef Monitoring
Christy Starsinic
Graduate Student (2017 - present)
Research Interests: My current research interests involve investigating resilience in reefs following a disturbance.
Education and Previous Work: I completed my undergraduate degree in Biology at Fairfield University in 2014. While there, I was able to work on a few projects investigating crab populations in the Long Island Sound, including studying the reproduction cycle of the Green Crab, Carcinus meanas. Additionally, while studying abroad the School of Field Studies Center for Marine Resource Management in the Turks and Caicos Islands, I was able to participate in a variety of projects ranging from surveying Queen Conch, Strombus gigas, populations to tagging sharks and turtles. Here, I was also able to analyze the length-weight relationships of snappers and groupers as part of a larger project determining the health of the fin fish populations and its status as a sustainable fishery.
Andrew McInnis
Graduate Student (2018 - present)
Research Interests: I am interested in a wide range of topics including ecology, fisheries management, and socioeconomic factors affecting marine environments, particularly coral reefs. I aim to conduct applied science which can be directly used in local and regional management. Here at UOG I will be looking at links between trophic structure of reef fish communities and benthic community composition through Micronesia.
Education and Previous Work: I received my undergraduate degree as a double major in Biology and Environmental Studies from Washington and Jefferson College. While there I was able to work on a variety of projects both at the university and abroad. For my undergraduate thesis, I received funding to study small community-based marine protected areas in Fiji. Following that, I worked in Panama for over two years with the Peace Corps in community environmental conservation along the Eastern Tropical Pacific Coast. Some of my main activities during this time included working with small-scale fishing cooperatives, coastal resource management projects, watershed conservation and environmental education.
Leilani Sablan
Graduate Student (2020 - present)
Research interests: My current study aims to 1) contrast commercial and non-commercial fisheries trends, and 2) map the post-landings geographical distribution of non-commercial catch as driven by social and cultural processes. I hope to generate management recommendations based on results.
Education and Previous Work: I received my undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of Guam in 2019. After my freshman year, I participated in EPSCoR's summer fellowship program. During this time, I conducted research on Guam's local manta ray population and their unique feeding behavior on fish spawn. I have since then continued to assist in manta ray research here in Guam with Julie Hartup of Micronesian Conservation Coalition. The summer following my junior year, I spent 10 weeks on the Big Island at UH Hilo assessing water quality in Puako as affected by sewage pollution. Upon graduation, I started my job as a sea turtle biologist with the University of Guam Sea Grant, monitoring one of Guam's nesting sites and tagging nesting turtles for population assessment.
Rachael Keighan
Graduate Student (2021 - present)
Research interests:
I am interested in a variety of different topics including trophic dynamics, fisheries management, and functional ecology. At the University of Guam, I am investigating the ecological role played by species of sea cucumber. I am particularly interested in their role in nutrient cycling and how unsustainable harvest of sea cucumbers may impact reef health.
Education and Previous Work: I received my undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences at the University of Guelph in 2018. Following that, I moved to the Seychelles where I was certified as a divemaster and I fell in love with coral reefs. I then returned to Canada to work at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Center as the assistant scientific diver, and assisted on a variety of surveys and animal collections for visiting researchers. Wanting to continue my career as an underwater scientist, I was certified as a commercial diver, after which I worked as a fisheries biologist/diver for a biological consulting company in Port Hardy, BC.
Previous Lab Members
Javier Cuetos-Bueno
Post Graduate Researcher
I am currently working for The Nature Conservancy and serve as the scientific advisor for Micronesia. My work builds and blends science-to-management frameworks to support evolving fisheries assessments and policies.
Dalia Hernandez
Graduate Student and Post Graduate Researcher
Steven Johnson
Graduate Student
Current work: I am currently a PhD student in geography at Oregon State University, under the supervision of James R. Watson. My research focuses on the diffusion of conservation schema in marine social-ecological systems
Matt McLean
Graduate Student
Linking patterns and processes with shifting baselines on coral reefs
Current work: I am currently conducting my PhD through a joint collaboration with the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea (IFREMER) and the University of Montpellier under the supervision of David Mouillot and Arnaud Auber. My PhD research focuses on changes in the functional structure and diversity of fish communities under climate change.
Rodny Camacho
Graduate Student
Current work:
I am currently employed as the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist for the Bureau of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Resource Management (DCRM) in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Part of my time includes in assisting the Long-term Marine Monitoring Program in conducting marine benthic surveys throughout the populated islands of the CNMI.
David Benavente
Graduate Student
Current work:
Manages the long term marine program at DCRM. Ensures that long term sites, established nearly two decades ago, are surveyed biannually. This data is used to provide guidance for coral reef management in the CNMI.
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