Research Program                                    

Regional Effects of Climate Change on Coastal Ecosystems:

Broad-scale human adaptation to climate change will become increasingly necessary in the coming decades, thus, it is critical that during this period of historically unprecedented ecological change, meaningful linkages across scientific and decision making arenas are developed to anticipate climate-related ecosystem changes and invest strategically to increase socio-ecological resilience.

This work aims to build groundwork for the development of integrated socio-ecological models focused on opportunities that meet coastal needs for climate-related decision, support enhancing communication with coastal managers and policy makers for more extensive incorporation of human dimensions.

Landscape Ecology and Spatially-explicit Modeling

The work relies on large-scale approaches to ecosystem analysis. Using simulation modeling as research tool, questions on how coastal areas respond to diverse impacts, natural and man-made are to be answered. The research of integrating landscape ecology to assess different approaches to coastal resource management has been based on highly several multidisciplinary teams for the development of these ecosystem models. Previous modeling efforts span from plant productivity, fish migration, medium-sized experiments, to landscape simulation focused on understanding processes in wetlands and tropical watersheds.

Geographically projects have included coastal North Carolina, estuaries and bays of Louisiana, models for the Virginia Coastal Reserve estuarine complex (an LTER site), the Everglades in Florida, Padilla Bay in Washington, Liberty Island on the San Jacinto Delta, California, and several coastal lagoons in the Mexican Caribbean.

Courses Taught

BIOL4320 Ecological Responses to Global Climate Change

BIOL7300 Landscape Ecology.

BIOL6850 & BIOL6994. Ecosystems of Coastal Cities.

BIOL 6128. Systems Ecology.

CRM6300. Ecological Dimensions of Coastal Zone Management.

Certificate Course. Ecología de Sistemas. Institut de Recerce I Tecnologia Agroalimentaries, Ecosistemes Aquàtics. Spain.

Ecology of Estuarine and Coastal Tropical Ecosystems. Inst. de Ecología, Mex.

Certificate Course. Manejo Integrado de la Zona Costera. Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana, Mexico.

Recent Publications

Reyes E. In Press. Wetland Landscape Spatial Models. Chapter 32. In: Coastal Wetlands: an Ecosystem Integrated Approach. Wolanski E, Cahoon D, Perillo GME, Brinson M, (eds). Elsevier, Amsterdam.

Reyes, E., K.A. Rose, D. Justic. In Press. Estuarine Ecological Modeling. In: Estuarine Ecology. Day, J.W., A. Yanez-Arancibia, (eds). John Willey, New York.

Lara-Dominguez, A.L. E. Reyes, P. Sanchez-Gil, M.A. Ortiz-Perez, P. Mendez-Linares, D. Zarate Lomeli, J.W. Day and A. Yanez-Arancibia. In Press. Ecosystem-based Management of the Centla Wetlands Biosphere Reserve Based on Environmental Units: A Critical Review for Protecting its Future. Chapter 11. In: The Gulf of Mexico: Ecosystem-based Management. Yáñez-Arancibia A. and J.W. Day (eds). Texas A & M University Press.

Day, J.W., W.J. Mitsch, P.H. Templet, E. Reyes, R.R. Twilley In Press. Ecosystem-based management of the Mississippi basin and delta. Chapter 4. In: The Gulf of Mexico: Ecosystem-based Management. Yáñez-Arancibia A. and J.W. Day (eds). Texas A & M University Press.

Day, J.W., F. Sklar, J. Cable, D. Childers, C. Coronado-Molina, S. Davis, S. Kelly, C. Madden, B. Perez, E. Reyes, D. Rudnick, M. Sutula. In Press. The salinity transition zone between the Southern Everglades and Florida Bay: System functioning and implications for management. In: The Gulf of Mexico: Ecosystem-based Management. Yáñez-Arancibia A. and J.W. Day (eds). Texas A & M University Press.

Lane RR, Day JW, Marx BD, Reyes E, Hyfield E, Day JN. 2007. The effects of riverine discharge on temperature, salinity, suspended sediment and chlorophyll a in a Mississippi delta estuary measured using a flow-through system. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science 74: 145-154.

Buzzelli, C., E. Reyes, M. Piehler, C.H. Perterson, C.Currin, J. Morris, M.C. Wong. Submitted. Forecasting the effects of relative sea level risoe on biogeochemical cycling in nearshore estuarine habitats. Wetlands Ecology and Management.

Day, J.W., J. Cable, J. Cowan, R. DeLaune, B. Fry, D. Justic, D. Justic, P. Kemp, J. Ko, R.R. Lane, H. Mashriqui, E. Reyes, J. Rick, S. Rick, L. Rosas, G. Snedden, G. Steyer, C. Swarzenski, E. Swenson, P. Templet, R. Twilley, B. Wissel, E. Hyfield, J.N. Day, K. Wheelock. Submitted. The impacts of re-introduction of river water on a Mississippi Delta coastal basin.

Poulter, B., R.L. Feldman, M. Brinson, B. Horton, M. Orbach, S. Pearsall, E. Reyes, S. Riggs, J. Whitehead. Submitted. Managing coastal systems for sea level rise: Coastal policy and research progress in North Carolina, USA. Ocean and Coastal Management.

Reyes E., I. Georgiou, D. Reed, A. McCorquodale. 2005. Using models to evaluate the effects of barrier islands on estuarine hydrodynamics and habitats: A numerical experiment. Journal of Coastal Research. Special Issue 44:276-285.

Reyes E., J.W. Day, A.L. Lara-Dominguez, P. Sanchez-Gil, D. Zarate-Lomeli, A. Yanez-Arancibia,. 2005. Assessing coastal management plans using watershed spatial models for the Mississippi delta, USA, and the Usumacinta-Grijalva delta, Mexico. Ocean & Coastal Management 47 (2004) 693–708.

Day, J.W., Jae-Young Ko, J. Rybczyk, D. Sabins, R. Bean, G. Berthelot, C. Brantley, L. Cardoch, W. Conner, J.N. Day, A.J. Englande, S. Feagley, E. Hyfield, R. Lane, J. Lindsey, J. Mistich, E. Reyes, R. Twilley. 2004. The use of wetlands in the Mississippi Delta for wastewater assimilation: A review. Ocean & Coastal Management 47: 671–691.

Coronado-Molina C., J.W. Day, E. Reyes, B.C. Perez, 2004. Standing crop and aboveground biomass partition of a dwarf mangrove forest in Taylor River Slough, Florida. Wetland Ecology and Management.12: 157-164.

Davis, S.E, J.E. Cable, D.L. Childers, C. Coronado-Molina, J.W. Day, C.D. Hittle, C.J. Madden, E. Reyes, D. Rudnick, and F. Sklar. 2004. Importance of Storm Events in Controlling Ecosystem Structure and Function in a Florida Gulf Coast Estuary. Journal of Coastal Research. 20(4): 1198-1208.

Reyes E., J.F. Martin, J.W. Day, G.P. Kemp, H. Mashriqui. 2004. River Forcing at Work: Watershed modeling of prograding and regressive deltas. Wetlands Ecology and Management.12 (2): 103-114, April 2004.

Coronado-Molina C., J.W. Day, E. Reyes, B.C. Perez, 2004. Standing crop and aboveground biomass partition of a dwarf mangrove forest in Taylor River Slough, Florida. Wetland Ecology and Management. 12: 157-164.

Lane, R.R, J.W. Day, D. Justic, E. Reyes, B. Marx, J.N. Day, E. Hyfield. 2004. Changes in stoichiometric Si, N and P ratios of Mississippi River water diverted through coastal wetlands to the Gulf of Mexico. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. 60: 1-10.

McCorquodale, A., H. Mashriqui, D. J. Reed, E. Reyes, J. Day, I. Georgiou, J. Visser, G. P. Kemp, V. Stutts, J. Foret, E. Swenson, G.D. Steyer, E. Meselhe, C. Willson, 2004. Effects of River Diversion Projects Using a Pulsing Scenario of Proposed Alternatives Based on Both Simulation and Box Modeling Approaches. Chapter 18. In, R.R. Twilley (ed.), Coastal Louisiana Ecosystem Assessment and Restoration (CLEAR) Model of Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Comprehensive Ecosystem Restoration Plan. Volume II: Tasks 9-15. Final Report to Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Restoration Division, Baton Rouge, LA. Contract No. 2511-02-24. 355 pp.

Kemp, G. P., D. J. Reed, H. Mashriqui, W. McAnally, E. Reyes, C. Sasser, J. Suhayda, J. Visser, J. Wells, and C. Willson. 2004. Predicting Land Building in the Mississippi Delta Plain: Knowledge and Uncertainty, Chapter 20. In, R.R. Twilley (ed.), Coastal Louisiana Ecosystem Assessment and Restoration (CLEAR) Model of Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA) Comprehensive Ecosystem Restoration Plan. Volume II: Tasks 9-15. Final Report to Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Restoration Division, Baton Rouge, LA. Contract No. 2511-02-24. 355 pp.

Laboratory Personnel