Megan Donahue
PhD University of California, Davis (Ecology) 2003
Assistant Researcher, Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology
School of Ocean & Earth Science & Technology
University of Hawaii
Kaneohe, HI 96744
phone: (808) 236-7417
donahuem@hawaii.edu
http://www.himb.hawaii.edu/html/donahue/

Population ecology, particularly of interspecific interactions

I am a marine community ecologist, broadly interested in spatial dynamics and connecting spatial theory with data. My research program focuses on three areas critical to understanding the effects of spatial heterogeneity in ecological systems: (i) scaling community dynamics from local interactions to regional dynamics by incorporating environmental heterogeneity, (ii) modeling behavioral responses to heterogeneous environments (e.g., habitat selection), and (iii) investigating the consequences of spatial behavior on population dynamics. Considering the challenges of demonstrating spatial mechanisms of population dynamics, I use a diversity of approaches, including statistical and theoretical methods, laboratory and field based experiments, and manipulative and observational studies.These research questions have important consequences for the spatial management of marine ecosystems.

Spatial management strategies, like marine protected areas, are an increasingly prevalent approach to fisheries management. Spatial management has important benefits compared to traditional fisheries management including the maintenance of intact food webs, enhancement of reproductive stock, spill-over, preservation of spawning aggregations, and potential enhancement of non-extractive uses. However, the benefits of spatial management depend on site characteristics, including size and connectivity, which have received considerable attention, but also including habitat quality and anthropogenic stressors. Understanding how spatial variation in habitat quality and anthropogenic stressors influences the dynamics of species under management is essential to effective placement of MPAs.

Representative Publications

Krediet CJ and MJ Donahue. 2009. Growth-mortality trade-offs along a depth gradient in Cancer borealis. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology & Ecology. 373: 133-139.

Jayewardene D, MJ Donahue, C Birkeland. 2009. Effects of frequent fish predation on corals in Hawaii. Coral Reefs. 28(2): 499-506.

Robles CD, RA Desharnais, C Garza, MJ Donahue, and CA Martinez. 2009. Complex equilibria in the maintenance of boundaries: Experiments with mussel beds. Ecology. 90(4): 985-995.

Donahue, MJ. 2006. Conspecific cueing and growth-mortality tradeoffs jointly lead to conspecific attraction. Oecologia. 149: 33-43.

Chesson P, MJ Donahue, B Melbourne, and AL Sears. 2005. Scale transition theory for understanding mechanisms in metacommunities. In M. Holyoak, M. Leibold, and R. Holt, editors. Metacommunties: spatial dynamics and ecological communities.

Melbourne B, AL Sears, MJ Donahue, and P Chesson. 2005. Applying scale transition theory to metacommunities in the field. In M. Holyoak, M. Leibold, and R. Holt, editors. Metacommunties: spatial dynamics and ecological communities.

Donahue MJ. 2004. Size-dependent competition in a gregarious porcelain crab Petrolisthes cinctipes (Anomura: Porcellanidae). Marine Ecology Progress Series. 267: 196-207.

Donahue MJ, M Holyoak, and C Feng. 2003. Patterns of dispersal and dynamics among habitat patches varying in quality. The American Naturalist. 162: 302-317.

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