Professor Conrad Pilditch
Professor (Biological Sciences)
Qualifications: MSc Otago PhD Dalhousie
Personal Website: http://conradpilditch.wordpress.com
About Conrad
Since joining the Department of Biological Sciences I have lectured primarily in the area of marine ecology and oceanography. In addition to coordinating the marine ecology courses (see below) I also contribute to undergraduate courses in environmental science (ENVS101) and ecology (BIOL212).
I maintain an active student research laboratory and really enjoy helping them develop as scientists. I am looking for new students to join the laboratory and welcome inquires.
When not working I enjoy traveling with my family and outdoor activities. I am a keen (but not very good) surfer, enjoy diving, sailing and hiking.
Honours and Disctinctions
- ASLO DIALOG III Participant (1999)
- Elected New Zealand Marine Sciences Society elected council member (1999-2002, 2006-)
- Editorial advisory board for New Zealand Journal of Marine & Freshwater Research
Membership of professional and learned societies
- New Zealand Marine Sciences Society since 1989
- American Society for Limnology and Oceanography since 1991
- Oceanography Society since 1998
Contribution to wider community
- Independent expert in various technical working groups co-ordinate by Environment Waikato, Auckland Regional Council and Department of Conservation to assess impacts of human activities on coastal environments.
- Provide expert reviews of research proposals for funding agencies in the UK, USA and Chile, regular reviewer for leading marine ecology journals.
- Assisted iwi groups to establish coastal monitoring programs and provided advice on environmental issues.
- Participated in national workshops on marine conservation and classification of the marine environment.
- Communicated the results of scientific research to the general public via numerous talks to community groups (e.g. Forest and Bird Society, high school students) and publication of popular articles.
- Co-convener of the New Zealand Marine Sciences Society annual meeting in 2000 & 2007.
Research Interests
My area of speciality is benthic oceanography/ecology focusing on the processes that influence the structure and function of soft-sediment communities. Specifically, I am interested in how hydrodynamics and benthic organisms interact to affect sediment transport, recruitment, nutrient fluxes and food supply. Together with colleagues and students, research has been conducted in a wide range of environments ranging from the inter-tidal to the deep sea, a reflection of the extensive occurrence of soft-sediment habitats.
Research Supervised
PhD
- Douglas, Emily (in progress). Resilience and response of estuaries to nutrient enrichment.
- Drylie, Tarn (in progress). The effects of low level disturbances on coastal soft sediment biodiversity and ecosystem function.
- Gladstone-Gallagher, Rebecca (submitted). The role of cross-boundary subsides of macrophyte detritus in soft sediment ecosystem function.
- Monahan, Bradley (in progress). Dispersal and ecological connectivity of Austrovenus stutchburyi and Paphies australis larvae in Tauranga Harbour.
- Niemand, Clarisse (in progress). The impact of macroalgal mats on the biodiversity and ecosystem functioning of benthic communities.
- Harris, Rachel (2015). The effects of benthic organisms on intertidal sediment erodibility.
- Pratt, Daniel (2014). Changes in benthic ecosystem properties and functions across sedimentary gradients in estuaries.
- Needham, Hazel (2011). The context-specific roles of a bioturbating crab (Austrohelice crassa) on ecosystem functioning.
- Ross, Phillip (2011). The genetic structure of New Zealand's coastal benthos: using the estuarine clam Austrovenus stutchburyi, to determine rates of gene flow and population connectivity.
- Knox, Matthew (2012). Diversity of New Zealand deep-sea amphipoda.
- Jones, Hannah (2011). The ecological role of the suspension feeding bivalve, Austrovenus stutchburyi, in estuarine ecosystems.
- Dos Santos, Virginie (2011). Impacts of black swans grazing and anthropogenic contaminants on New Zealand seagrass meadows.
- Burger , David (2006). Dynamics of internal nutrient loading in a eutrophic, polymictic lake (Lake Rotorua, New Zealand).
- Giles, Hilke (2006). Dispersal and remineralisation of biodeposits: Ecosystem impacts of mussel aquaculture.
MSc (Research)
- Hughes, Ryan (2016). The coupled effects of shading and nutrient loading on the morphology, growth, and association macrofauna of seagrass meadows.
- Cooper, Jordan (2015). Does seagrass influence the behavioural and physiological response to flow in juvenile snapper (Pagrus auratus)?
- Hines, Laura (2015). Effects of macrofauna diversity on porewater nutrient concentrations following enrichment.
MSc
- Gladstone-Gallagher, Rebecca (2013). Production and decay of mangrove (Avicennia marina subsp. australasica) detritus and its effects on coastal benthic communities.
- McCartain, Lisa (2013). The effects of terrigenous sediment on the behaviour of Macomona liliana (Bivalvia) in permeable sediments: implications for porewater exchange.
- Greenfield, Barry (2013). Spatial variation in functional group diversity in a sandflat benthic community: implications for ecosystem resilience.
- Gibson, Aimee (2009). Seasonal variation in bivalve antioxidant enzymes: can they be used as indicators of heavy metal contamination?
- Niemand, Clarisse (2009). The application of elemental fingerprinting techniques to identify population connectivity using Austrovenus stutchburyi recruits.
- Simpson, Julia (2009). Effects of heavy metal contamination on burial rates of Austrovenus stutchburyi: implications for sediment transport.
- Hailes, Sarah (2006). Contribution of seagrass (Zostera muelleri) to estuarine food webs revealed by carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis
- Sandwell, Dean (2006). Austrovenus stutchburyi, regulators of estuarine benthic-pelagic coupling.
Teaching Commitments
Recent Publications
Li, M., Lundquist, C. J., Pilditch, C. A., Rees, T. A. V., & Ellis, J. (2019). Implications of nutrient enrichment for the conservation and management of seagrass Zostera muelleri meadows. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 29(9), 1484-1502. doi:10.1002/aqc.3141
Collier, K. J., Pilditch, C. A., & Lundquist, C. J. (2019). Mountains‐to‐the‐sea conservation: An island perspective. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 8 pages. doi:10.1002/aqc.3197
Staudt, F., Mullarney, J. C., Pilditch, C. A., & Huhn, K. (2019). Effects of grain-size distribution and shape on sediment bed stability, near-bed flow and bed microstructure. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 44, 1100-1116. doi:10.1002/esp.4559
Vopel, K., Laverock, B., Pilditch, C., & Cary, S. C. (2019). Effect of experimental seawater CO2 enrichment on pH in subtidal, net-heterotrophic silt deposits. In 12th Annual New Zealand Ocean Acidification Community Workshop. Conference held at Otago Museum, Dunedin, New Zealand.