David Jen
Research Details
Thesis Name
Investigating macroalgal dynamics to enhance inshore coral restorationThesis Abstract
David Jen is a PhD candidate at CQUniversity’s Coastal Marine Ecosystems Research Centre (CMERC) in Gladstone, supported by an Elevate Scholarship funded by Gladstone Ports Corporation and CQUniversity.
His research focuses on coral reef resilience, examining how environmental and biological stressors influence interactions between corals and macroalgae. By better understanding these dynamics under conditions such as thermal stress, David’s work aims to identify opportunities to reduce reef stress and improve coral restoration outcomes.
David has conducted reef research around the world, including thermal stress experiments on corals in Bermuda and studies in French Polynesia investigating algal responses and herbivorous fish behaviour following storm disturbances. He has also analysed historic Great Barrier Reef coral core data to assess links between coral growth and ocean temperature.
His research combines ecophysiology, phenotyping, omics approaches and microbial community analysis to better understand changing reef ecosystems and help guide effective coral restoration strategies.
