Ilsa B Kuffner, Ph.D.
Ilsa Kuffner is a Research Marine Biologist at the St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center in St. Petersburg, Florida.
As a research marine biologist for the Coastal and Marine Geology Program, I investigate the causes and effects of coral reef degradation. I explore local- to global-scale stressors on reefs, and experimentally determine how environmental variables such as sea-surface temperature, water quality, seawater chemistry, nuisance macroalgae, and ocean acidification affect coral growth, the community structure of reefs, and the process of reef building. My work informs resource managers about the mechanisms causing reef degradation and how management efforts may be improved to protect and restore degraded reefs. Please visit the USGS Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies (CREST) website for more information (see link below).
Professional Experience
Research Marine Biologist, US Geological Survey, St. Petersburg Coastal & Marine Geology Science Center, 2002 to present
Faculty, School for Field Studies, Center for Marine Resource Studies, Turks & Caicos Islands, 2001 to 2002
Director, Forfar Field Station, Andros Island, Bahamas, 2000 to 2001
Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Guam Marine Laboratory, Post-doc advisor: Valerie J. Paul, 1999 to 2000
Education and Certifications
Doctor of Philosophy, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Zoology, Ph.D. Chair: Paul L. Jokiel, 1999
Bachelor of Arts, University of New Hampshire, Department of Zoology, Minor: Marine Biology, 1993
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 17
Time-series Coral-cover Data from Hawaii, Florida, Mo'orea, and the Virgin Islands Time-series Coral-cover Data from Hawaii, Florida, Mo'orea, and the Virgin Islands
Coral reefs around the world have degraded over the last half-century as evidenced by loss of live coral cover. This ubiquitous observation led to the establishment of long-term, ecological monitoring programs in several regions with sizable coral-reef resources. As part of the of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis working group "Local...
USGS Coral Photo ArchiveFlorida Keys Corals: A Photographic Record of Changes from 1959 to 2015 USGS Coral Photo ArchiveFlorida Keys Corals: A Photographic Record of Changes from 1959 to 2015
This data release contains time-series photographs taken of corals and coral habitats in the Florida Keys between 1959 and 2015 at Carysfort Reef and Grecian Rocks (a total of six sites). The original intent was to show coral reef recovery after Hurricane Donna devastated the area in 1960. Corals, especially elkhorn and staghorn coral, grew prolifically after the storm until the late...
Experimental data comparing two coral grow-out methods in nursery-raised Acropora cervicornis Experimental data comparing two coral grow-out methods in nursery-raised Acropora cervicornis
Staghorn coral, Acropora cervicornis, is a threatened species and the primary focus of western Atlantic reef-restoration efforts to date. As part of the USGS Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project (http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/crest/), we investigated skeletal characteristics of nursery-grown staghorn coral reared using two commonly used grow-out methods at Mote Tropical Research Laboratory...
Data for evaluating the Sr/Ca temperature proxy with in-situ temperature in the western Atlantic coral Siderastrea siderea Data for evaluating the Sr/Ca temperature proxy with in-situ temperature in the western Atlantic coral Siderastrea siderea
Massive corals are used as environmental recorders throughout the tropics and subtropics to study environmental variability during time periods preceding ocean-observing instrumentation. However, careful testing of paleoproxies is necessary to validate the environmental-proxy record throughout a range of conditions experienced by the recording organisms. As part of the USGS Coral Reef...
Coral cores collected in Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, U.S.A.: Photographs and X-rays Coral cores collected in Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, U.S.A.: Photographs and X-rays
Cores from living coral colonies were collected from Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, to obtain skeletal records of past coral growth and allow geochemical reconstruction of environmental variables during the corals' centuries-long lifespans. The samples were collected as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project that provides science to assist...
Filter Total Items: 25
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Filter Total Items: 58
Reestablishing a stepping-stone population of the threatened elkhorn coral Acropora palmata to aid regional recovery Reestablishing a stepping-stone population of the threatened elkhorn coral Acropora palmata to aid regional recovery
Recovery of the elkhorn coral Acropora palmata is critical to reversing coral reef ecosystem collapse in the western Atlantic, but the species is severely threatened. To gauge potential for the species’ restoration in Florida, USA, we conducted an assisted migration experiment where 50 coral fragments of 5 nursery-raised genetic strains (genets) from the upper Florida Keys were moved to...
Authors
Ilsa B. Kuffner, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Lauren Toth, Lucy Bartlett
Increasing comparability among coral bleaching experiments Increasing comparability among coral bleaching experiments
Coral bleaching is the single largest global threat to coral reefs worldwide. Integrating the diverse body of work on coral bleaching is critical to understanding and combating this global problem. Yet investigating the drivers, patterns, and processes of coral bleaching poses a major challenge. A recent review of published experiments revealed a wide range of experimental variables used...
Authors
Andrea G. Grottoli, R. J. Toonen, R. van Woesik, R. Vega Thurber, M. E. Warner, R. H. McLachlan, James Price, K. D. Bahr, I. B. Baums, K. Castillo, M. A. Coffroth, R. Cunning, K. Dobson, M. Donahue, James L. Hench, R. Iglesias-Prieto, D. W. Kemp, C. D. Kenkel, D. I. Kline, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Jessica Matthews, A. Mayfield, J. Padilla-Gamino, S. R. Palumbi, C. R. Voolstra, V. M. Weis, H. C. Wu
Disturbances drive changes in coral community assemblages and coral calcification capacity Disturbances drive changes in coral community assemblages and coral calcification capacity
Anthropogenic environmental change has increased coral reef disturbance regimes in recent decades, altering the structure and function of many coral reefs globally. In this study, we used coral community survey data collected from 1996 to 2015 to evaluate coral calcification capacity (CCC) dynamics with respect to recorded pulse disturbances for 121 reef sites in the Main Hawaiian...
Authors
Travis A. Courtney, Brian B. Barnes, Iliana Chollett, Robin Elahi, Kevin Gross, James R. Guest, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Elizabeth A. Lenz, Hanna R Nelson, Caroline Rogers, Lauren Toth, Andreas J Andersson
Considerations for maximizing the adaptive potential of restored coral populations in the western Atlantic Considerations for maximizing the adaptive potential of restored coral populations in the western Atlantic
Active coral restoration typically involves two interventions: crossing gametes to facilitate sexual larval propagation; and fragmenting, growing, and outplanting adult colonies to enhance asexual propagation. From an evolutionary perspective, the goal of these efforts is to establish self‐sustaining, sexually reproducing coral populations that have sufficient genetic and phenotypic...
Authors
Iliana B. Baums, Andrew C Baker, Sarah W Davies, Andrea G Grottoli, Carly D Kenkel, Sheila A Kitchen, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Todd C LaJeunesse, Mikhail V Matz, Margaret W Miller, John E Parkinson, Andrew A Shantz
The unprecedented loss of Florida's reef-building corals and the emergence of a novel coral-reef assemblage The unprecedented loss of Florida's reef-building corals and the emergence of a novel coral-reef assemblage
Over the last half century, climate change, coral disease, and other anthropogenic disturbances have restructured coral-reef ecosystems on a global scale. The disproportionate loss of once-dominant, reef-building taxa has facilitated relative increases in the abundance of “weedy” or stress-tolerant coral species. Although the recent transformation of coral-reef assemblages is...
Authors
Lauren Toth, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Robert R. Ruzicka, Michael A. Colella, Eugene A. Shinn
Improving estimates of coral reef construction and erosion with in-situ measurements Improving estimates of coral reef construction and erosion with in-situ measurements
The decline in living coral since the 1970s has conspicuously slowed reef construction on a global scale, but the related process of reef erosion is less visible and not often quantified. Here we present new data on the constructional and deconstructional side of the carbonate-budget equation in the Florida Keys, U.S.A. We documented Orbicella spp. calcification rates at four offshore...
Authors
Ilsa B. Kuffner, Lauren Toth, J. Harold Hudson, William B. Goodwin, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Lucy Bartlett, Elizabeth M. Whitcher
Non-USGS Publications**
Kuffner, I. B. and V. J. Paul, 2004, Effects of the cyanobacteria Lyngbya majuscula on the larval settlement of the reef corals Acropora serculosa and Pocillopora damicornis: Coral Reefs23:455-458.
Kuffner, I.B., 2002, Effects of ultraviolet radiation and water motion on the reef coral, Porites compressa: A transplantation experiment: Journal of Experimental Marine Biology & Ecology270(2):147-169.
Kuffner, I.B. and V. J. Paul, 2001, Effects of nitrate, phosphate and iron on the growth of macroalgae and benthic cyanobacteria from Cocos Lagoon, Guam: Marine Ecology Progress Series222:63-72.
Kuffner, I. B., 2001, Effects of ultraviolet radiation and water motion on the reef coral Porites compressa Dana: a flume experiment: Marine Biology 138:467-476.
Kuffner, I.B., 2001, Effects of ultraviolet radiation on larval recruitment of the reef coral, Pocillopora damicornis: Marine Ecology Progress Series 217:251-261.
Kuffner, I.B., 1999, The effects of ultraviolet radiation on reef corals and the sun-screening role of mycosporine-like amino acids: Ph.D. dissertation, Department of Zoology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI, 164 pp.
Banaszak, A. T., M. P. Lesser, I. B. Kuffner and M. Ondrusek, 1998, Relationship between ultraviolet (UV) radiation and the concentration of mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) in marine organisms: Bulletin of Marine Science 63(3):617-628.
Kuffner, I. B., M. Ondrusek and M. P. Lesser, 1995, The distribution of mycosporine-like amino acids in the tissues of Hawaiian scleractinia; a depth profile: in D. Gulko and P.L. Jokiel (eds.) Ultraviolet Radiation and Coral Reefs. HIMB Tech Report No. 41, Sea Grant, Honolulu, pp. 77-85.
Grottoli-Everett, A., I. B. Kuffner, 1995, Individual polyp response to UV radiation in Montipora verrucosa: in D. Gulko and P.L. Jokiel (eds.) Ultraviolet Radiation and Coral Reefs. HIMB Tech Report No. 41, Sea Grant, Honolulu, pp. 115-120.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Filter Total Items: 27
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 17
Time-series Coral-cover Data from Hawaii, Florida, Mo'orea, and the Virgin Islands Time-series Coral-cover Data from Hawaii, Florida, Mo'orea, and the Virgin Islands
Coral reefs around the world have degraded over the last half-century as evidenced by loss of live coral cover. This ubiquitous observation led to the establishment of long-term, ecological monitoring programs in several regions with sizable coral-reef resources. As part of the of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis working group "Local...
USGS Coral Photo ArchiveFlorida Keys Corals: A Photographic Record of Changes from 1959 to 2015 USGS Coral Photo ArchiveFlorida Keys Corals: A Photographic Record of Changes from 1959 to 2015
This data release contains time-series photographs taken of corals and coral habitats in the Florida Keys between 1959 and 2015 at Carysfort Reef and Grecian Rocks (a total of six sites). The original intent was to show coral reef recovery after Hurricane Donna devastated the area in 1960. Corals, especially elkhorn and staghorn coral, grew prolifically after the storm until the late...
Experimental data comparing two coral grow-out methods in nursery-raised Acropora cervicornis Experimental data comparing two coral grow-out methods in nursery-raised Acropora cervicornis
Staghorn coral, Acropora cervicornis, is a threatened species and the primary focus of western Atlantic reef-restoration efforts to date. As part of the USGS Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project (http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/crest/), we investigated skeletal characteristics of nursery-grown staghorn coral reared using two commonly used grow-out methods at Mote Tropical Research Laboratory...
Data for evaluating the Sr/Ca temperature proxy with in-situ temperature in the western Atlantic coral Siderastrea siderea Data for evaluating the Sr/Ca temperature proxy with in-situ temperature in the western Atlantic coral Siderastrea siderea
Massive corals are used as environmental recorders throughout the tropics and subtropics to study environmental variability during time periods preceding ocean-observing instrumentation. However, careful testing of paleoproxies is necessary to validate the environmental-proxy record throughout a range of conditions experienced by the recording organisms. As part of the USGS Coral Reef...
Coral cores collected in Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, U.S.A.: Photographs and X-rays Coral cores collected in Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, U.S.A.: Photographs and X-rays
Cores from living coral colonies were collected from Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, to obtain skeletal records of past coral growth and allow geochemical reconstruction of environmental variables during the corals' centuries-long lifespans. The samples were collected as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project that provides science to assist...
Filter Total Items: 25
No results found.
Filter Total Items: 58
Reestablishing a stepping-stone population of the threatened elkhorn coral Acropora palmata to aid regional recovery Reestablishing a stepping-stone population of the threatened elkhorn coral Acropora palmata to aid regional recovery
Recovery of the elkhorn coral Acropora palmata is critical to reversing coral reef ecosystem collapse in the western Atlantic, but the species is severely threatened. To gauge potential for the species’ restoration in Florida, USA, we conducted an assisted migration experiment where 50 coral fragments of 5 nursery-raised genetic strains (genets) from the upper Florida Keys were moved to...
Authors
Ilsa B. Kuffner, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Lauren Toth, Lucy Bartlett
Increasing comparability among coral bleaching experiments Increasing comparability among coral bleaching experiments
Coral bleaching is the single largest global threat to coral reefs worldwide. Integrating the diverse body of work on coral bleaching is critical to understanding and combating this global problem. Yet investigating the drivers, patterns, and processes of coral bleaching poses a major challenge. A recent review of published experiments revealed a wide range of experimental variables used...
Authors
Andrea G. Grottoli, R. J. Toonen, R. van Woesik, R. Vega Thurber, M. E. Warner, R. H. McLachlan, James Price, K. D. Bahr, I. B. Baums, K. Castillo, M. A. Coffroth, R. Cunning, K. Dobson, M. Donahue, James L. Hench, R. Iglesias-Prieto, D. W. Kemp, C. D. Kenkel, D. I. Kline, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Jessica Matthews, A. Mayfield, J. Padilla-Gamino, S. R. Palumbi, C. R. Voolstra, V. M. Weis, H. C. Wu
Disturbances drive changes in coral community assemblages and coral calcification capacity Disturbances drive changes in coral community assemblages and coral calcification capacity
Anthropogenic environmental change has increased coral reef disturbance regimes in recent decades, altering the structure and function of many coral reefs globally. In this study, we used coral community survey data collected from 1996 to 2015 to evaluate coral calcification capacity (CCC) dynamics with respect to recorded pulse disturbances for 121 reef sites in the Main Hawaiian...
Authors
Travis A. Courtney, Brian B. Barnes, Iliana Chollett, Robin Elahi, Kevin Gross, James R. Guest, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Elizabeth A. Lenz, Hanna R Nelson, Caroline Rogers, Lauren Toth, Andreas J Andersson
Considerations for maximizing the adaptive potential of restored coral populations in the western Atlantic Considerations for maximizing the adaptive potential of restored coral populations in the western Atlantic
Active coral restoration typically involves two interventions: crossing gametes to facilitate sexual larval propagation; and fragmenting, growing, and outplanting adult colonies to enhance asexual propagation. From an evolutionary perspective, the goal of these efforts is to establish self‐sustaining, sexually reproducing coral populations that have sufficient genetic and phenotypic...
Authors
Iliana B. Baums, Andrew C Baker, Sarah W Davies, Andrea G Grottoli, Carly D Kenkel, Sheila A Kitchen, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Todd C LaJeunesse, Mikhail V Matz, Margaret W Miller, John E Parkinson, Andrew A Shantz
The unprecedented loss of Florida's reef-building corals and the emergence of a novel coral-reef assemblage The unprecedented loss of Florida's reef-building corals and the emergence of a novel coral-reef assemblage
Over the last half century, climate change, coral disease, and other anthropogenic disturbances have restructured coral-reef ecosystems on a global scale. The disproportionate loss of once-dominant, reef-building taxa has facilitated relative increases in the abundance of “weedy” or stress-tolerant coral species. Although the recent transformation of coral-reef assemblages is...
Authors
Lauren Toth, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Ilsa B. Kuffner, Robert R. Ruzicka, Michael A. Colella, Eugene A. Shinn
Improving estimates of coral reef construction and erosion with in-situ measurements Improving estimates of coral reef construction and erosion with in-situ measurements
The decline in living coral since the 1970s has conspicuously slowed reef construction on a global scale, but the related process of reef erosion is less visible and not often quantified. Here we present new data on the constructional and deconstructional side of the carbonate-budget equation in the Florida Keys, U.S.A. We documented Orbicella spp. calcification rates at four offshore...
Authors
Ilsa B. Kuffner, Lauren Toth, J. Harold Hudson, William B. Goodwin, Anastasios Stathakopoulos, Lucy Bartlett, Elizabeth M. Whitcher
Non-USGS Publications**
Kuffner, I. B. and V. J. Paul, 2004, Effects of the cyanobacteria Lyngbya majuscula on the larval settlement of the reef corals Acropora serculosa and Pocillopora damicornis: Coral Reefs23:455-458.
Kuffner, I.B., 2002, Effects of ultraviolet radiation and water motion on the reef coral, Porites compressa: A transplantation experiment: Journal of Experimental Marine Biology & Ecology270(2):147-169.
Kuffner, I.B. and V. J. Paul, 2001, Effects of nitrate, phosphate and iron on the growth of macroalgae and benthic cyanobacteria from Cocos Lagoon, Guam: Marine Ecology Progress Series222:63-72.
Kuffner, I. B., 2001, Effects of ultraviolet radiation and water motion on the reef coral Porites compressa Dana: a flume experiment: Marine Biology 138:467-476.
Kuffner, I.B., 2001, Effects of ultraviolet radiation on larval recruitment of the reef coral, Pocillopora damicornis: Marine Ecology Progress Series 217:251-261.
Kuffner, I.B., 1999, The effects of ultraviolet radiation on reef corals and the sun-screening role of mycosporine-like amino acids: Ph.D. dissertation, Department of Zoology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI, 164 pp.
Banaszak, A. T., M. P. Lesser, I. B. Kuffner and M. Ondrusek, 1998, Relationship between ultraviolet (UV) radiation and the concentration of mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) in marine organisms: Bulletin of Marine Science 63(3):617-628.
Kuffner, I. B., M. Ondrusek and M. P. Lesser, 1995, The distribution of mycosporine-like amino acids in the tissues of Hawaiian scleractinia; a depth profile: in D. Gulko and P.L. Jokiel (eds.) Ultraviolet Radiation and Coral Reefs. HIMB Tech Report No. 41, Sea Grant, Honolulu, pp. 77-85.
Grottoli-Everett, A., I. B. Kuffner, 1995, Individual polyp response to UV radiation in Montipora verrucosa: in D. Gulko and P.L. Jokiel (eds.) Ultraviolet Radiation and Coral Reefs. HIMB Tech Report No. 41, Sea Grant, Honolulu, pp. 115-120.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Filter Total Items: 27