Student Blogs & Vignettes

Bostony Braoudakis

ABOUT MY RESEARCH

I graduated from Eckerd College with a double major in marine science and French. There I worked on a research project led by Dr. Amy Siuda and Dr. Shannon Gowans to quantify spatial and temporal trends for microplastics abundance in Tampa Bay. I also participated in a remote NSF REU program on coral reef ecology with Scripps Institution of Oceanography under Dr. Stuart Sandin, employing image-based analysis to assess population dynamics in hard and soft corals at Rarotonga. 

Currently, I am pursuing a PhD under Dr. Brad Seibel, in which I will investigate how different environmental conditions impact lionfish and their physiology. I am interested in examining how individual lionfish survive under varying pH, oxygen concentrations, and temperatures, and how their behavior changes under different conditions. Having a greater understanding of lionfish physiological responses could help make predictions about their future populations and potential to invade under certain conditions and in particular habitats.

I would also like to monitor lionfish distributions in various locations in the Atlantic, and interpret this information in the context of biodiversity and species richness at those locations. I am also interested in studying the effects of lionfish on invertebrates, and other aspects of lionfish behavior and their dispersal patterns, which could indicate how they invaded the Atlantic.

Additionally, I am academically curious about using eDNA metagenomics and metabarcoding, combined with data from visual surveys, to assess the biodiversity of ecologically important marine habitats across time, to find how disturbances or anthropogenic stressors impact the community.

WHY USF CMS?

I would like to be a researcher conducting my own projects and potentially be able to run my own lab in the future. While searching among the many labs and graduate programs, Dr. Brad Seibel’s lab and the USF College of Marine Science (CMS) particularly stood out to me. This program provides fantastic and unparalleled opportunities to gain more experience doing research and attain a greater depth of understanding for marine biology. The skills I can acquire here will prepare me for my ideal career in the future. 

I was drawn to the variety of the research being done within CMS, because this program allows me the flexibility to pursue the research that I am interested in doing. Dr. Seibel’s research interests align with mine, in particular his focus on the physiological responses of specific marine animals to changing environmental conditions, such as ocean acidification, thermal stress, and low oxygen. 

My decision to accept the offer from USF was also influenced by the offer of the Von Rosenstiel Endowed Fellowship, which will help with the funding of my research.

Additionally, the location of CMS in the St. Petersburg area attracted me due to its accessibility to phenomenal marine biodiversity in Tampa Bay, which I also experienced firsthand throughout my undergraduate years at Eckerd College.