ÌÇÐÄVlog

Education

• Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution, Rice University, 2022
• M.Sc. in Biological Sciences, University of Amsterdam, 2016

Research Interests

• Coral reef conservation
• Microbial ecology
• Cryptic diversity
• Environmental change

Research Description

The Grupstra Reef Symbiosis Lab focuses on understanding the complex and dynamic relationships between organisms that underpin coral reef ecosystems. Our interdisciplinary research integrates ecology, molecular biology, and evolutionary theory to explore how these partnerships shape the resilience and functioning of coral reefs in the face of environmental changes.

Our lab employs a combination of field surveys, manipulative experiments, and molecular approaches to address key questions in coral reef ecology and symbiosis. We conduct extensive field surveys in diverse reef environments, from pristine locations to extreme, naturally hot, reefs, as well as areas impacted by human activities. In the lab, we use physiology and state-of-the-art molecular techniques to dissect the complex interactions between reef organisms.

Publications

We are currently focused on two main lines of research:

1. Disentangling microbial partners and holobiont adaptations that cryptic coral lineages to survive in distinct environments, including in extreme reefs.
2. Understanding how beneficial and pathogenic microorganisms in fish feces affect coral holobiont assembly and responses to environmental change.

• Grupstra CGB; Gómez-Corrales M; Fifer J; Aichelman HE; Meyer-Kaiser KS; Prada C; Davies SW. 2024. Integrating cryptic diversity into coral evolution, symbiosis, and conservation. Nature ecology & Evolution. https://rdcu.be/dywh2
• Grupstra CGB; Meyer-Kaiser KS; Bennett MJ; Andres MO¹; Juszkiewicz DJ; Fifer JE; Da-Anoy JP; Gomez-Campo K; Martinez-Rugerio I; Aichelman HE; Huzar AK¹; Hughes AM¹; Rivera HE; Davies SW. 2024. Holobiont traits shape climate change responses in cryptic coral lineages. Global Change Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.17578
• Grupstra CGB; Howe-Kerr LI; Van der Meulen JA; Veglia AJ; Coy SR; Correa AMS. 2023. Consumer feces impact coral health in guild-specific ways. 2023. Frontiers in Marine Biology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2023.1110346
• Grupstra CGB; Lemoine NP; Cook CN; Correa AMS. 2022. Thank you for biting: Dispersal of beneficial microbiota through "antagonistic" interactions. Trends in Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2022.03.006
• Grupstra CGB; Howe-Kerr LI; Veglia AJ; Bryant RL; Coy SR; Blackwelder PL; Correa AMS. 2022. Thermal stress triggers productive viral infection of a key coral reef symbiont. The ISME Journal. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41396-022-01194-y
• Grupstra CGB; Rabbitt KM; Howe-Kerr LI; Correa AMSC. 2021. Fish predation on corals promotes the dispersal of coral symbionts. Animal Microbiome 3:25. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-021-00086-4

Scholarly Acitivites

Saving Coral Reefs: The Fish-Coral Connection