People: Layman Lab at FIU

The Layman Lab aquatic ecology • food webs • restoration ecology • predator-prey interactions

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People

Alan and Craig

Craig A. Layman (CV)
cal1634@yahoo.com
I received my B.A. from the University of Virginia in 1996 with a triple major in Biology, Environmental Science and Economics. I continued at UVA and received a M.S. in Environmental Science with a thesis focused on coastal fish assemblages on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. I received my Ph.D. under Kirk Winemiller at Texas A&M in 2004 with a dissertation focused on the food web of a tropical floodplain river in Venezuela. I also spent two years as the Donnelley Environmental Fellow at Yale University in David Post's lab. I started at FIU in 2006 as an assistant professor.

Caroline Peyer

Caroline Peyer, Ph.D. Student (CV)
cpeye001@fiu.edu
I obtained my Biology Diploma from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland in 2006. For my Diploma project, I conducted an experimental study on prey-predator interactions between mangrove-associated fishes at NOAA/NMFS/RSMAS Miami under the guidance of Dr. Joseph Serafy. Currently, I am pursuing my Ph.D. at Florida International University, under the supervision of Dr. Craig A. Layman. My research interests encompass the effects of human impacts on intraspecific variation and individual specialization in resource use of fishes. Specifically, I am interested how aquatic ecosystem fragmentation can influence the incidence and degree of individual diet specialization of schoolmaster snapper, Lutjanus apodus in Bahamian tidal creeks.

Sam Whitcraft

Samantha Whitcraft (CV), Ph.D. Student
samantha.whitcraft@noaa.gov
I received my Masters Ordinarius from St. Andrews University, Scotland in 1989 where I studied History of Art and English Literature. In 2000, I completed my Bachelor's degree in Biology at Harvard University during which I interned at the New England Aquarium and at the USFW Refuge at Midway Atoll. During my studies at Harvard, I also completed an independent research project on the management of several sea turtle nesting beaches along the west coast of Costa Rica. Through 2003, I managed the marine protected area of the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve for the State of Hawai'i's Department of Land and Natural Resources and worked closely with the University of Hawai'i's Marine Option Program (QUEST), HIMB's Coral Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (CRAMP), and the U.S. Navy. I am currently completing my Master's of Marine Affairs and Policy at the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and am working full-time on the South Florida Science Program at Southeast Fisheries Science Center. I started the Ph.D. program in Biology at FIU in 2006.
Example research poster: Applying Micro-Acoustic Tagging & Telemetry Methods to Juvenile Snapper Habitat-Use Studies

Vanessa Haley

Vanessa Haley, M.S. Student
haley.vanessa@gmail.com
I graduated from The College of Charleston in South Carolina in 2004 with a B.S. in Marine Biology. From 2004 - 2005, I worked at The Medical University of South Carolina in the Pharmaceutical Science department. During my time there, I was successful in developing a protocol to induce and treat renal ischemia in mice. In 2005, I returned home (The Bahamas) as a training manager for the Atlantis resort. After being there a year, I was chosen by The Kerzner Marine Foundation and Perry Institute for Marine Science to assist Dr. Craig Dahlgren in developing an evaluation and monitoring program for the National Park on the Westside of Andros. I am currently pursuing my M.S. in Biological Sciences at Florida International University. I am primarily interested in studying the effect of various anthropogenic threats to bonefish Albula vulpes populations in The Bahamas and how national parks affect bonefish abundance, size and mortality with implications for a sustainable fishery through effective management.

Congratulations from the Lab to Vanessa. She's a recipient of the 2008 Schmied Scholarship.

Lauren Yeager

Lauren Yeager, Ph.D. Student
l_yeager@hotmail.com
I received my B.S. from Eckerd College in 2006 with majors in Marine Science and Spanish. For my senior thesis I studied differential habitat utilization by reef fishes in shallow-water habitats in Manzanillo, Costa Rica. From 2003-2006 I worked on the wetlands ecology program at the U.S. Geological Survey and researched the effects of habitat alteration on mangrove fish communities. I then received a Fulbright grant to study back-reef fish communities of the Mexican Caribbean in 2006-2007. I worked out of the Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados del I.P.N. and investigated day-night shifts in fish communities along with relative predation rates on juvenile grunts in seagrass habitat. I am currently pursuing my Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at F.I.U. under the direction of Dr. Craig Layman. My research interests include back-reef nursery function, habitat connectivity and optimal foraging theory as it relates to estuarine fishes. I am interested to study trade-offs between predation risk/survival and growth for gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus) in tidal creeks and its affect on movement and habitat selection.

Casuarina McKinney

Casuarina McKinney, M.S. Student
Casuarina is an international woman of mystery. So far, all we know is she's passionate about mangroves, Nassau grouper and marine conservation. Watch the following films to learn more:

Elizabeth Stoner

Elizabeth Stoner, Ph.D. Student
e_stoner@skidmore.edu
I received my B.A. in environmental science with a concentration in biology with honors from Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY in 2008. During my time in school, I studied in South Caicos, TCI at the Marine Resources Center with the School for Field Studies, and conducted research on a nutrient-enriched mangle and the impacts of the nutrient effluent on the diversity and abundance of mangrove organisms. I specifically evaluated the effluent on Cassiopea jellyfish abundance. This research continued to the lab, where I evaluated whether direct nutrient inputs to Cassiopea spp. would increase their bell size. For my senior thesis, I studied whether sub-lethal copper sulfate additions impacted the foraging behaviors of bluegill sunfish. My broad research interests focus on coastal ecosystems. I am particularly interested in ecological restoration projects and evaluations of Cassiopea spp. as bioindicators of anthropogenic impacts to coastal ecosystems. I am currently pursuing my P.h.D under Dr.Craig Layman at Florida International University.

Zack Jud

Zack Jud, Ph.D. Student
zackjud@gmail.com
Zack is a new Ph.D. student who started in the fall of 2008. His work will deal with the ecology of the common snook in South Florida estuaries. More information on his research soon to come.