2025 Student Grant Award Winners

Claribel Alcantar
California State University, Long Beach
Effects of recent thermal history and food ration on the physiological response of Mytilus californianus to subsequent high temperature stress

Emma Dudley
Chapman University
Stretching their restoration range to the limit: physiological and genetic responses in a reciprocal acclimation of Southern California and Puget Sound Phyllaplysia taylori sea hares

Eva Greco
California State University, Northridge
Hot lizards on cool islands: characterizing the thermal biology of an insular endemic

Jade Zounes
California State University, Northridge
The role of Opaleye (Girella nigricans) in giant kelp (Macrosystis pyrifera) dispersal

Past Student Grant Award Winners

2024

Alexis Codding
California State University, Long Beach
Predicting the combined effects of thermal stress and predation risk on Mytilus californianus using integral projection models (IPMs)

Charles Boissavy
Claremont Graduate University
Diversification and taxonomy of the Latifolia clade of wild buckwheats (Eriogonum)

Daniel Olivares-Zambrano
University of Southern California
Investigating evolution of an exclusive symbiosis across a thermally variable seascape

2023

Alice Coleman
University of Southern California
Leveraging local adaptation to evaluate cross-tolerance in Tigriopus californicus

Alyssa Taylor
California State University, Long Beach
Impacts of paired Olympia Oyster (Ostrea lurida) and Eelgrass (Zostera marina) restoration on fish movement and fine scale habitat utilization in upper Newport Bay, California

Matea Djokic
University of California, Irvine
Urban runoff affects the gut microbiome and physiology of western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) in San Diego Creek watershed

2022

Jessica Peria
California State University, Northridge
Characteristics of Giant Sea Bass (Stereolepis gigas) aggregation sites and movements among them in the Southern California Bight

Ariana Lee
California State University, Long Beach
Assessing the phenotypic plasticity response in low-fed larvae of Dendraster excentricus when switched to high food conditions

Jade Morris
University of California, Santa Barbara
A new species of copepod (Family: Porcellidiidae) living commensally with pagurid hermit crabs off the Palos Verdes Peninsula

2021

Sean Farmer
California State University, Northridge
Does evaporative water loss limit the range of the paradoxically rare Common Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis) in Southern California?

Kiran Reed
California State University, Northridge
Evaluating the nonconsumptive effects of giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas).

Karina Brocco French
University of California, Irvine
Host-Microbial Relationships Reveal Impacts of Pollutants on Coastal Ecosystems near the Port of Los Angeles

2020

James Chhor
California State University, Long Beach
Effects of microplastic exposure on the early life and development of California grunion (Leuresthes tenuis)

Racine Rangel
University of California, Irvine
Do climate conditions affect host-parasite relationships in marine snails?

Austin Pyles
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Habitat use and nesting patterns of garibaldi (Hypsypops rubicundus) on harbor breakwalls in southern California and potential implications on reproductive success

2019

Jack May
California State University, Long Beach
The influence of environmental and social factors on aggregation behavior of the leopard shark (Triakis semifasciata) along the southern California coast

Dan Metz
University of California, San Diego
Soldiers and reproductives: the nature of trematode caste structure

Kyra MacFarlane
California State University, Long Beach
Connectivity of salt marsh physical characteristics and small mammal ecology in a southern California tidal marsh

Ariana McKenzie
California State University, Fullerton
Potential sub-lethal effects of anticoagulant rodenticide exposure on coyotes in southern California

2018

Camille Brzechffa
Occidental College
Investigation of the endosymbiotic bacteria of deep sea Bathymodiolus mussels from the west coast margin of Costa Rica

Amanda Haas
California State University, Long Beach
Potential effects of ocean acidification on predator-prey dynamics in the rocky intertidal zone

George Jarvis
California State University, Northridge
Evaluating the effects of predation risk on prey fitness in the bluebanded goby Lythrypnus dalli

2017

Alyssa Clevenstine
California State University, Long Beach
Aggregation patterns and site fidelity of giant sea bass Stereolepis gigas on Santa Catalina Island

Darien Glave
California State University, Long Beach
Predator driven behavioral adaptation in the black surfperch Embiotoca jacksoni

Laura Martinez Steele
California State University, Long Beach
Assessing Carnobacterium maltaromaticum infection modes in stranded sub-adult common thresher sharks Alopias vulpinus

Milinda Thompson
California State University, Fullerton
Effect of water restriction on stress in the herbivorous lizard Dipsosaurus dorsalis

Chelsea Muñoz Williams
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Determining spatial variation in age and growth patterns of a non-fished pomacentrid Hypsypops rubicundus including validation of annual growth increments

2016

Ellie Wenger
California State University, Long Beach
The impacts of sea level rise on decomposer communities in California salt marshes

Homam Jamal
California State University, Fullerton
The Seasonal Reproductive Biology of Blue Rockfish (Sebastes mystinus)

Emily Meese
California State University, Long Beach
Thermal energetics and activity rates of horn sharks, Heterodontus francisci

Alyssa Braciszewski
University of California, Irvine
Relatedness and differential disease resistance in abalone (genus Haliotis)

Haley Gause
California State University, Long Beach
Assessing the dissemination potential of tachyzoite stages of Toxoplasma gondii parasites during exposure to coastal California seawater conditions: exploring a new pathway to marine mammal infections

2015

Molly Burdick-Whipp
California State University, Long Beach
Understanding fish habitat in a tidally restricted urban lagoon.

Nick Jensen
Claremont Graduate University/Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden
Southern California Streptanthus as a model system for understanding historical biogeography and regional patterns of edaphic specialization.

Caitlin McGarigal
California State University, Long Beach
Behavioral and physiological effects of angling stress, and post-release mortality, of two important game fish in southern California, kelp bass (Paralabrax clathratus) and barred sand bass (P. nebulifer).

Magalie Valere-Rivet
Loma Linda University
Lactate production in the hermit crab, Pagurus samuelis, subjected to temperature and burial stresses.

Thomas Kroupa
California State University, Long Beach
Thermal defense strategy determines limpet response to acute temperature stress on rocky shores.

2014

Sarah O’Neill
University of California, Riverside
Invasional meltdown: Does facilitation between an invasive insect and an invasive plant promote declines in a native shrub?

Connor White
California State University, Long Beach
The effects of habitat and environment on the energy expenditure and behavior of the leopard shark, Triakis semifasciata.

Amanda Bird
California State University, Fullerton
Determining population structure, reproductive potential and habitat associations of threaded abalone (Haliotis kamtschatkana assimilis) in southern California.

2013

Ariel Carter
California State University, Fullerton
Changes in the chorion due to fertilization and extended incubation in the California grunion, Leuresthes tenuis

Megan Fitzgerald
California State University, Long Beach
The Relationship between Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in a Coastal Wetland

Rachel Pound
California State University, Fullerton
The effect of low tide temperature on the susceptibility of Lottia gigantea to predation in a changing climate

Cristy Rice
California State University, Fullerton
Morphological and genetic determination of pipefish species (Family Syngnathidae) in southern California

2012

Tania Asef
California State University, Long Beach
Ecological Impacts of Genetically Divers Tamarisk Invading San Dieguito Lagoon and Tijuana Estuary

JoAnne Linnenbrink
California State University, Fullerton
Understanding the current genetic population structure of the Olympia oyster, Ostrea lurida, in southern California

Nathan McClain
California State University, Long Beach
The Effects of Increased Inundation Due to Sea Level Rise on the Decomposing Communities of a Recently Restored Southern California Coastal Salt Marsh

2011

Sophie Crinion
Loyola Marymount University
Ecological Stress Caused by Fire and its Effects on Orb Weaving Spiders

Dieta Hanson
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
The invasion pathway of the Japanese bubble snail, Haminoea japonica (Opisthobranchia: Haminoeoidae)

Katherine Lyons
California State University, Long Beach
Modeling Maternal Transfer of Accumulated Organochlorine Contaminants in Elasmobranchs using the Round Stingray (Urobatis halleri)

2010

Andres Carrillo
California State University, Fullerton
Effects of extended incubation on skeletal development, body shape and feeding rates in the California grunion, Leuresthes tenuis

Elysse Gatdula
Cal Poly Pomona
Molecular biogeography of some California species of Aglajidae (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia)

Aaron Sappenfield
University of California, Riverside
Depositional environments of the Wood Canyon Formation (southern California) and their influence on the distribution and preservation of Ediacaran macrofauna

2009

Tracey Magrann
Loma Linda University Nutrient Threshold for Production of Cyanobacterial Toxins in Southern California Lagoons, Bays, and Lakes

Thomas Farrugia
California State University, Long Beach
Site fidelity, residency time and habitat use of the shovelnose guitarfish (Rhinobatos productus) in a southern California estuary: assessing restoration success

Chris Chabot
University of California, Los Angeles
Comparative Phylogeography of the Grey Smoothhound (Mustelus californicus) and the Brown Smoothhound (Mustelus henlei) from the Northeastern Pacific

2008

Lisa Komoroske
San Diego State University
Studying contaminant levels in the East Pacific green turtle (Chelonia mydas) and its ecosystem in the San Diego Bay, CA

Stephen M. Trbovich
California State University, Long Beach
Examining Genetic Population Differences of Kelp Bass (Paralabrax clathratus) in the Southern California Channel Islands: Effects of Complex Current Systems on Gene Flow

2007

Wendy Billock
Loma Linda University
Is there contextual cognition in the intertidal hermit crab, Pagurus samuelis, on rocky shores of southern California?

Jeanette Hendricks
California State University, Fullerton
Foraging habitats and dietary shifts of nesting seabirds following restoration of the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve

Christopher M. Rodriguez
California State University, Northridge
Why are rattlesnakes on islands smaller than on the mainland?

2006

Lynne Wetmore
Occidental College
The Effects of Size Selective Fishing Pressure on the Life-History Parameters and Sex- Change Dynamics of the California Sheephead, Semicossyphus pulcher

Mike Blazevic
California State University, Fullerton
Characterizing and Interpreting Macro- and Micro-scale Sediment Features in a Mountain Playa (Baldwin Lake, Southern California): is There a Climate Connection?

Levi Lewis San Diego State University
The Effects of Trophic Diversity on Ecosystem Function in a Subtropical Seagrass Habitat.

Christopher Mull
California State University, Long Beach
Temporal Reproductive Cycling of the Round Stingray (Urobatis halleri)

2005

Samantha Galasso
Chapman University
Investigation of Acids as Biomarkers for Crude Oil Degradation in the Environment

Julianne Kalman
University of California, Los Angeles
Parasites of Demersal Fishes Associated with Wastewater Discharge in the Southern California Bight

Erica Jarvis
California State University, Long Beach
The effects of barotrauma in catch & release survivorship of shelf rockfishes

Kurt Karageorge
California State University, Long Beach
Reproductive natural histories of female Pacific rockfishes, microsatellite assessment of multiple paternity (polyandry)

2004

Tom Benson
California State University, San Bernardino
Molecular Ecology of Pygmy Nuthatches (Sitta pygmaea): Genetic Differentiation Within and Among Mountain Ranges in Southern California

Kelly Connell
California State University, Fullerton
Dietary Response of Elegant Tern (Sterna elegans) to Changing Ocean Conditions and Prey Populations in Southern California

Sarah K. Henkel
University of California, Santa Barbara
Physiological stress response of the intertidal kelp, Egregia menziesii (Turner) Areschoug

2003

Stephanie Yelenik
University of California, Los Angeles
Native plant reestablishment in the face of alien grass

Diana Andres
California State University, Northridge
Testing diet switching as a mechanism for the evolution of herbivory in lizards

Torrey G. Nyborg
Loma Linda University
Geochronology and stratigraphic placement of the playa-lake lacustrine and fluvial deposits of the Copper Canyon basin, Death Valley National Park, California, USA

Annual Meeting Schedule

2026 Full Program

Schedule at a Glance