Loretta Roberson
Education
1994-2001 Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Ph.D. Biological Sciences
1988-1994 California State University, Northridge
B.Sc. Biology with Honors
Research interests:
Anthropogenic impacts on coastal marine communities; physiology, ecology, and evolution of eelgrass and coral reef communities; the ecology and evolution of RNA editing in eelgrass and algae; marine biomechanics.
Puerto Rico provides a unique opportunity to study the interacting effects of biological and physical factors, including anthropogenic factors, on seagrass ecosystems. Puerto Rico is one of the most densely populated islands in the world with over 500 km of coastline, approximately 40% of which is seagrass beds. My work in Puerto Rico focuses on correlating watershed water quality with nearshore seagrass community productivity and biodiversity using an interdisciplinary approach. The measurement of both seagrass productivity and ecosystem biodiversity are critical for predicting coastal ecosystem trajectories as disturbances from human encroachment and storm activity increase in the region.