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Senior Lecturer, Leigh Marine Laboratory
PhD Auckland (1997)
MSc Auckland (1991)
BSc Auckland (1988)
Office - Extension - 83607
Email - rb.taylor@auckland.ac.nz |
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Research interests...
Ecology of temperate rocky reefs...
Rocky reefs are inhabited by seaweeds and a variety of animals, including crustaceans, gastropods, sea urchins, and fishes. Much of my research concerns interactions between seaweeds and herbivores. I have focussed on the ecology of small (<10 mm) crustaceans, gastropods and polychaetes, which are extremely abundant in many rocky reef habitats (especially the surfaces of seaweeds). These animals are responsible for the majority of the total flux of materials through animals on rocky reefs, but little is known about the effect of their feeding activities on seaweed communities. The herbivorous ones are called mesograzers, and some harm seaweeds by consuming their tissues and propagules, while others benefit seaweeds by removing epiphytes from their surfaces and dispersing their propagules. There is an urgent need for a better understanding of the diets and feeding impacts of mesograzers under realistic conditions in the field.
Chemical ecology...
The outcome of many ecological interactions is influenced by the chemical properties of the participants. For example, many organisms manufacture or sequester distasteful compounds that protect them from consumers. Since 1997 much of my research has concerned the chemical ecology of seaweed-herbivore interactions. Like terrestrial plants, many seaweeds contain chemicals that deter grazers, and I have investigated how variation in levels of these defenses affects feeding preferences and fitness of grazers, and how feeding by the grazers can in turn induce increases in seaweed defenses (at the University of North Carolina with Prof. Mark Hay, who is now at Georgia Tech). I have also surveyed grazer feeding preferences in two temperate Australasian regions (Sydney and Leigh), in order to test a theory that predicts mesograzers should live on and eat seaweeds that are unpalatable to larger grazers such as sea urchins and fishes (with Prof. Peter Steinberg at the University of New South Wales). In New Zealand the field of marine chemical ecology is very young, and numerous research opportunities exist.
Teaching...
New Zealand Ecology and Conservation (BIOSCI 104)
Ecology and Biodiversity (BIOSCI 206)
Freshwater and Estuarine Ecology (BIOSCI 330) (coordinator)
Marine Ecology (BIOSCI 333)
Marine Ecology (BIOSCI 724)
Principles of Marine Science (MARINE 202)
Selected Topics in Marine Science (MARINE 701) (coordinator)
Publications...
- Taylor, R. B. 2008. Epifauna and epiflora. In: Encyclopedia of ecology. Vol. 2. Jørgensen, S. E., Fath, B. D. (eds). Elsevier, Oxford. pp. 1389-1393.
- Barr, N. G., Kloeppel, A., Rees, T. A. V., Scherer, C., Taylor, R. B., and Wenzel, A. 2008. Wave surge increases rates of growth and nutrient uptake in the green seaweed Ulva pertusa maintained at low bulk flow velocities. Aquatic Biology 3: 179-186.
- Taylor, R. B., and Morrison, M. A. 2008. Soft-sediment habitats and fauna of Omaha Bay, northeastern New Zealand. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand 38: 187-214.
- Taylor, R. B. 2008. Review of 'Subtidal Invertebrates of New Zealand' by S. Wing. New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 42: 269-270.
- Taylor, R. B., and Brown, P. J., 2006. Herbivory in the gammarid amphipod Aora typica: relationships between consumption rates, performance and abundance across ten seaweed species. Marine Biology, 149: 455-463.
- Taylor, R. B., and Steinberg, P. D. 2005. Host use by Australasian seaweed mesograzers in relation to feeding preferences of larger grazers. Ecology 86: 2955-2967.
- Taylor, R. B., Lindquist, N., Kubanek, J., and Hay, M. E. 2003. Intraspecific variation in palatability and defensive chemistry of brown seaweeds: effects on herbivore fitness. Oecologia 136: 412-423.
- Sotka, E. E.*, Taylor, R. B.*, and Hay, M. E. 2002. Tissue-specific induction of resistance to herbivores in a brown seaweed: the importance of direct grazing versus waterborne signals from grazed neighbors. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 277: 1-12. [*denotes equal authorship]
- Taylor, R. B.*, Sotka, E. E.*, and Hay, M. E. 2002. Tissue-specific induction of herbivore resistance: seaweed response to amphipod grazing. Oecologia 132: 68-76. [*denotes equal authorship]
- Taylor, M. W., Taylor, R. B., and Rees, T. A. V. 1999. Allometric evidence for the dominant role of surface cells in ammonium metabolism and photosynthesis in northeastern New Zealand seaweeds. Marine Ecology Progress Series 184: 73-81.
- Brown, P. J., and R. B. Taylor. 1999. Effects of trampling by humans on animals inhabiting coralline algal turf in the rocky intertidal. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 235: 45-53.
- Taylor, R. B. 1998. Density, biomass and productivity of animals in four subtidal rocky reef habitats: the importance of small mobile invertebrates. Marine Ecology Progress Series 172: 37-51.
- Taylor, R. B., J. T. A. Peek, and T. A. V. Rees. 1998. Scaling of ammonium uptake by seaweeds to surface area:volume ratio : geographical variation and the role of uptake by passive diffusion. Marine Ecology Progress Series 169: 143-148.
- Taylor, R. B., and T. A. V. Rees. 1998. Excretory products of mobile epifauna as a nitrogen source for seaweeds. Limnology and Oceanography 43: 600-606.
- Taylor, R. B., and T. J. Willis. 1998. Relationships amongst length, weight and growth of northeastern New Zealand reef fishes. Marine and Freshwater Research 49: 255-260.
- Taylor, R. B. 1998. Seasonal variation in assemblages of mobile epifauna inhabiting three subtidal brown seaweeds in northeastern New Zealand. Hydrobiologia 361: 25-35.
- Taylor, R. B. 1998. Short-term dynamics of a seaweed epifaunal assemblage. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 227: 67-82.
- Rees, T. A. V., C. M. Grant, H. E. Harmens, and R. B. Taylor. 1998. Measuring rates of ammonium assimilation in marine algae: use of the protonophore carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone to distinguish between uptake and assimilation. Journal of Phycology 34: 264-272.
- Taylor, R. B., R. I. Blackburn, and J. H. Evans. 1995. A portable battery-powered suction device for the quantitative sampling of small benthic invertebrates. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 194: 1-7.
- Taylor, R. B., and R. G. Cole. 1994. Mobile epifauna on subtidal brown seaweeds in northeastern New Zealand. Marine Ecology Progress Series 115: 271-282.
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