People

Katharyn Boyer

Associate Professor

Department of Biology

Romberg Tiburon Center for Environmental Studies

Email: katboyer@sfsu.edu

B.S. Zoology, University of Maryland, College Park

M.S. Biology, San Diego State University (Joy Zedler)

Ph.D. Biology, UCLA (Peggy Fong)

Postdoc, UNC Chapel Hill (John Bruno)

Stephanie Kiriakopolos, MS, 2012

Thesis title: Herbivore-driven semelparity in a typically iteroparous plant, Zostera marina)

Current location: Research Technician in Boyer Lab, Junior Research Specialist at UC Davis with Chela Zabin

email: s.kiriakopolos@gmail.com

Thesis title: Nutrient dynamics and production in San Francisco Bay eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds

Current location: WRA Environmental Consultants, San Rafael, CA

email: itsgwen@gmail.com

-completed independent projects

Melanie Williams, May 2009 Currently masters student at CSU Chico

Gwen Santos, May 2008 Currently at WRA Consulting (see above)

Gavin Archbald, May 2007 Currently at H.T. Harvey and Associates (see above)

Courtney Cacace, May 2006 Currently works as Biologist for Santa Clara County Water District

Undergraduate, postbac, and high school assistants

Brittany Huntington, MS, 2006

Current:

Brandi Campbell

Wil Rivera

McKenna Bristow

Carly Bott

Past:

Natasha Dunn

Liz Ross

Adam Bayardo

Anna Lyttle

Kranti Malik

Lyle Rapp

Loriel Caverly

Rene Jerez

Nicholas Fico

Linda Dineen

Cheyenne Anderson

Heather Thams

Nyri Scanlon

Jessi Craft

Ben Snead

Thesis title: Integrated management techniques for the control of Lepidium latifolium (perennial pepperweed) in tidal marshes of San Francisco Estuary

Current location: The Center for Social and Environmental Stewardship

email: anyalasagna@yahoo.com

Thesis title: Is a macroalga threatening seagrass survival? Responses of seagrass to increased macroalgal dominance in Tomales Bay

Current location: Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife following National Research Council postdoc w/Margaret Miller in Miami, and PhD with Diego Lirman at U Miami RSMS

email: brittany.e.huntington@state.or.us

Alumni: Graduate students (in order of graduation)

Alumni: Undergraduate students

Johanna Kertesz, MS, 2006

Thesis title: The role of biodiversity in a fluctuating environment

Current location: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

email: johannakertesz@yahoo.com

Anya Perron-Burdick, MS, 2007

Diana Singh

Matthew Snyder

Grant Willison

David Shay

Hilary Finck

Joseph Spalding

Nicole Clark

Sahana Kribakaran Marissa Weitzman

Jose Blandino-Vargas

Jacob Lang

Adam Damon

Mele Uaisele

Cory Robinson

Suji Grant

Sargun Kaur

Hilary Keller

Doug Clark

Alumni: Research technicians

Laura Reynolds, 2004-2006

Current location: Postdoc with Mike Kennish at Rutgers University, following Ph.D. at University of Virginia on seagrass restoration genetics w/Karen McGlathery and Jay Zieman

email: lkreynolds@virginia.edu

Brittany Huntington, 2007

Current location: Marine Reserves Research Project Leader for Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, following NRC Postdoctoral fellowship and Ph.D. at University of Miami with Diego Lirman on coral restoration and marine reserve design (also see above--graduate student alums)

email: brittanyhuntington@gmail.com

Lindsey Carr, MS, 2008

Thesis title: Epifaunal community structure and trophic interactions in San Francisco Bay eelgrass (Zostera marina) habitats

Current location: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Galapagos, Ph.D. program with John Bruno

email: lacarr@email.unc.edu

Lindsey Carr, 2008-2009

Current location: working on Ph.D. at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with John Bruno (also see above--graduate student alums) on trophic dynamics on Galapagos shores

email: lacarr@email.unc.edu

Current graduate students

Thesis title: Interactive effects of nitrogen and salinity in Sarcocornia pacifica dominated salt marshes

Current location: Pt. Reyes National Seashore

email: amelia_byrd_ryan@yahoo.com

Jeff Lewis, MS Candidate

email: jeffreythomaslewis@gmail.com

I received my BS from Portland State University and spent 3 years working as a field technician for Oregon State University, the USGS, and the Invasive Spartina Project examining the ecology, wildlife, and restoration of the Columbia River and San Francisco Bay estuaries. In my master’s thesis, I am using a combination of field and mesocosm studies to explore how the community structure, recruitment, and assembly order of invertebrate grazers affect eelgrass restoration, as well as how changing environmental conditions are likely to affect this invertebrate community. Following my masters degree and maybe a Ph.D, I intend to continue a career in coastal and estuarine ecology.

Rosa Schneider, MS Candidate

email: rosaschneider@gmail.com

A Bay Area native with a lifelong interest in California natural history and ecology, I majored in Environmental Studies at UC Santa Cruz, and have worked for academic and government scientists to examine fire ecology, amphibian disease, and plant community dynamics. For my masters thesis, I am investigating causes of rarity in a wetland endemic plant, the Suisun thistle (Cirsium hydrophilum var. hydrophilum). Although it is a Federally-listed endangered species, little is known about its biology and its interactions with other brackish marsh species, including invasive perennial pepperweed (Lepidium latifolium). Through field experiments, monitoring, and laboratory studies, I aim to improve our understanding of the Suisun thistle's biology and ecology, and to inform restoration plans for Suisun Marsh.

Whitney Thornton, MS Candidate

email: whitneythornton@gmail.com

I graduated from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio with a BS in biology, and minors in environmental science and chemistry. Since then I have worked in various wildlife/plant jobs including trapping and tagging giant garter snakes, monitoring the Palila (an endangered honeycreeper), and performing vegetation surveys in the Sonoran Desert. For the the past 4 years, I have worked for the USGS and the Invasive Spartina Project on various restoration projects in San Francisco Bay. My research interests are in tidal marsh restoration, invasive plant monitoring, and rare marsh plant propagation. For my thesis, I am exploring the roles of donor source and site constraints in the restoration of native Spartina foliosa (Pacific cordgrass) following removal of invasive Spartina hybrids.

Kevin Stockmann, MS Candidate

email: kevin@marinnature.com

Previous to undergraduate and now masters studies at SF State (co-advisors Boyer and Crow), I studied natural history and biology at the College of Marin and earned an economics degree at the University of Pennsylvania. As a scientist, my interest is sustainable fisheries - where resource use and conservation meet. Restoration of eelgrass beds and oyster reefs in San Francisco Bay may provide improved habitat for many fish species. The goal of my research project is to quantify and describe how fish react to the construction of different types of subtidal restoration in different regions of the bay, as part of the California Coastal Conservancy’s Living Shorelines Project. Aside from my research at RTC, I work as a fishery observer for NOAA Fisheries and lead birding and natural history outings for Marin Nature Adventures.

Gavin Archbald, MS, 2011

Thesis title: Predicting the spread of Limonium ramosissimum in San Francisco Bay marshes

Current location: H. T. Harvey and Associates, Los Gatos, CA

email: gavinarchbald@gmail.com

Evyan Borgnis, MS Candidate

email: elborgnis@gmail.com

I received a B.S. from the University of San Francisco and worked as a research technician for 3 years investigating the ability of wetlands to combat sea level rise via sediment accretion and carbon sequestration. As a graduate student in the Boyer lab, I am continuing research on the effects of climate change with a focus shift to the subtidal habitats of the Estuary. Specifically, I am studying the effects of salinity intrusion and temperature increases on a dominant native submerged aquatic vegetation species, Stuckenia filiformis, and an invasive, Egeria densa. Through baseline field measurements and greenhouse manipulations I strive to inform future control programs and restoration efforts.

Cassie Pinnell, MS Candidate

email: cpinnell@mail.sfsu.edu

My thesis is focused on aquatic invertebrate use of restored versus natural eelgrass beds (Zostera marina) in the San Francisco Estuary. This research will help assess the habitat quality of local restored eelgrass beds and provide a measure of effectiveness to inform future restoration activities. My research includes field surveys at established and current restoration sites. Previously, I spent seven years working in vernal pool ecosystems throughout California’s Central Valley and Delta regions. I am especially interested in developing methods to assess the effectiveness of restored wetland systems in providing habitat for aquatic invertebrates.

Lauren Scheinberg, MS Candidate

email: lascheinberg@gmail.com

I graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a BS in Biology with an emphasis in marine ecology and evolution. Since then I have held a variety of positions in Bay Area science museums. For the last three years I have worked at the CA Academy of Sciences as a research and curatorial assistant in the Herpetology Department. I’m excited to move out of museums and into the mud! My research focuses on the feeding behavior and population structure of an amphipod that has novel effects in San Francisco Bay, Ampithoe valida, and its impacts on local eelgrass communities.