Dr. Catherine Collier

Dr. Collier is a Postdoctoral Fellow and seagrass ecophysiologist at JCU. She has a background in ecophysiology and marine conservation with work on morphology, physiology, growth and meadow characteristics of seagrasses, and their vulnerability to climate change. Between 2007 and 2010 she was a postdoctoral fellow in the Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Facility, supported by the Commonwealth Environmental Research Program (CERF).

Dr. Collier is broadly interested in coastal marine ecology, with a particular emphasis on seagrass eco-physiology and ecology. Her current work focuses on flood impacts on seagrasses, with the interest triggered by widespread loss of such habitat throughout Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef following record floods in 2011. It is intended that these studies generate information that will improve coastal system management. Dr. Collier’s temperate and tropical research experience has heightened her interest in systems comparisons, and her aim is to further our understanding of tropical seagrass ecology and to contribute to the protection of seagrass meadows in regions where livelihoods are particularly dependant on productive natural ecosystems.