Recent Publications

Katz T., Yahel G., Reidenbach M.A., Tunnicliffe V., Herut B., Crusius J., Whitney F., and Lazar B., 2012, "Resuspension by fish facilitates the transport and redistribution of coastal sediments", Limnology and Oceanography, in press.

Hansen J.C.R. and Reidenbach M.A., 2012, "Wave and tidally driven flows in eelgrass beds and their effect on sediment suspension", Marine Ecology Progress Series, 448, 271-287.

Leys S.P., Yahel G., Reidenbach M.A., Tunnicliffe V., Shavit U., and Reiswig H.M., 2011, "The sponge pump: the role of current induced flow in the design of the sponge body plan", PLoS ONE 6(12): e27787. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0027787

Reidenbach M.A. and Koehl M.A.R., 2011, "The spatial and temporal patterns of odors sampled by lobsters and crabs in a turbulent plume", Journal of Experimental Biology, 214, 3138-3153.

Mellon D.F. and Reidenbach M.A., 2011, "Fluid mechanical problems in crustacean active chemoreception", in Frontiers in Sensing: From Biology to Engineering, F. Barth, J.A.C. Humphrey and M.V. Srinivasan (Eds.), Springer-Verlag, 159-170.

Reidenbach M.A., Limm M., Hondzo M., and Stacey M.T., 2010, "The effects of bed roughness on boundary layer mixing and mass flux across the sediment-water interface", Water Resources Research, 46, W07530, doi:10.1029/2009WR008248.

Monismith S.G., Davis K.A., Shellenbarger G.G., Hench J.L., Nidzieko N.J., Santoro A.E., Reidenbach M.A., Rosman J.H., Holtzman R., Martens C.S., Lindquist N.L., Southwell M.W., and Genin A., 2010, "Flow effects on benthic grazing on a tropical reef", Limnology and Oceanography, 55(5), 1881-1892

Koehl M.A.R. and Reidenbach M.A., 2010, "Swimming by microscopic organisms in ambient water flow", in Animal Locomotion, G. Taylor, M. Triantafyllou, and C. Tropea (Eds.), Springer-Verlag, 117-130.

Genin A., Monismith S.G., Reidenbach M.A., Yahel G., and Koseff J.R., 2009, “Intense benthic grazing of phytoplankton in a coral reef”, Limnology and Oceanography, 54(3), 938-951.

Reidenbach M.A., Koseff J.R., and Koehl M.A.R., 2009, “Hydrodynamic forces on larvae affect their settlement on coral reefs in turbulent, wave driven flow”, Limnology and Oceanography, 54(1), 318-330.

Reidenbach M.A., George N.T., and Koehl M.A.R., 2008, “Antennule morphology and flicking kinematics facilitate odor sampling by the spiny lobster, Panulirus argus“, Journal of Experimental Biology, 211, 2849-2858.

Kamio M., Reidenbach M.A., and Derby C.D., 2008, “To paddle or not: context dependent courtship display by male blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus“, Journal of Experimental Biology, 211, 1243-1248.

Koehl M.A.R. and Reidenbach M.A., 2007, “Swimming by microscopic organisms in ambient water flow”, Experiments in Fluids, 43, 755-768.

Reidenbach M.A., Koseff J.R., and Monismith S.G., 2007, “Laboratory experiments of fine-scale mixing and mass transport within a coral canopy”, Physics of Fluids, 19(7), 075107.

Koehl M.A.R., Strother J.A., Reidenbach M.A., Koseff J.R., and Hadfield M.G., 2007, “Individual-based model of larval transport to coral reefs in turbulent, wave-driven flow: behavioral responses to dissolved settlement inducer”, Marine Ecology Progress Series, 335, 1-18.

Reidenbach M.A., Monismith S.G., Koseff J.R., Yahel G., and Genin A., 2006, “Boundary layer turbulence and flow structure over a fringing coral reef”, Limnology and Oceanography, 51(5), 1956-1968.

Monismith S.G., Genin A., Reidenbach M.A., Yahel G., and Koseff J.R., 2006, “Thermally driven exchanges between a coral reef and the adjoining ocean”, Journal of Physical Oceanography, 36(7), 1332-1347.

Reidenbach M.A., Koseff J.R., Monismith S.G., Steinbuck J.V., and Genin A., 2006, “The effects of waves and morphology on mass transfer within branched reef corals”, Limnology and Oceanography, 51(2): 1134-1141.

Holzman R., Reidenbach M.A., Monismith S.G., Koseff J.R., Genin A., 2005, "Near-bottom depletion of zooplankton over a coral reef: II. Relationships with zooplankton swimming ability", Coral Reefs, 24(1), 87-94

Genin A., Yahel G., Reidenbach M.A., Monismith S.G. and Koseff J.R., 2002, "Intense benthic grazing on phytoplankton in coral reefs revealed using the control volume approach", Oceanography, 15(2), 90-96

Research

Chemical sensing by aquatic organisms:
We study how benthic animals like crayfish and lobsters detect and locate odor sources utilizing information they obtain from turbulent flow patterns and odor sampling by their olfactory appendages. This has important implications in the design of man-made sensors that can accurately track and identify sources of chemicals and pollutants in the natural environment.

Filter feeding and metabolism of intertidal oysters:
Oysters are voracious filter feeders, removing not only phytoplankton from the water but also suspended sediment. This increases water clarity, and the bio-deposition of sediments enhances carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus flux to the ocean floor. We are currently monitoring a group of intertidal oyster reefs to quantify sediment filtration and it's effect on water clarity, and how water quality impacts oyster's net metabolism by measuring their uptake of oxygen by a non-intrusive eddy-correlation technique. The ultimate goal is to determine conditions suitable for the successful restoration of oyster habitat.

Sediment dynamics along vegetated coastlines:
The Virginia coastline is a diverse landscape of tidal marshes, lagoons, and barrier islands. The seafloor in these regions is comprised mainly of sand and soft muds, and the suspension and deposition of this material depends upon the interaction of waves, tidal currents and stratified flows with the local seafloor topography. We are currently developing an underwater laser-based particle image velocimetry instrument to investigate the impact that submerged and emergent vegetation has on flow dynamics at the sediment-water interface and the role it plays in suspension, transport and deposition of coastal sediments.

Flow and mass transport processes in coral reefs:
Coral reefs are of great importance to the marine environment due to their tremendous productivity and immense diversity of marine organisms. Flow dynamics are vital to these reef communities because they control essential processes such as particle capture by benthic organisms, the uptake of dissolved nutrients, larval dispersal, as well as sediment deposition and removal. These hydrodynamic processes occur over many different scales, affecting both individual corals as well as whole reef systems. At small scales, water flow interacts with the morphology of coral to affect growth rates and control mass exchange, while at large scales, the extreme roughness of the topography influences reef scale circulation patterns and can also control exchanges with the open ocean. Motivated by the importance of hydrodynamics to both large and small scale ecological processes on coral reefs, we performed a series of field measurements along a fringing coral reef in the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea, as well as laboratory measurements conducted in a wave-current water flume.

Teaching

Physical Hydrology (EVSC 3600)
Studies the physical principles governing the flow of water on and beneath the earth’s surface, including open channel hydraulics, ground water hydraulics, and dynamics of soil moisture.

Biomechanics of Organisms (EVSC 3060)
Explores interactions between biology and the fluid environment (air and water) within which organisms function. Examines such issues as animal locomotion, heat exchange, mass exchange, bio-acoustics, and bio-optics in air and water, as well as living at the interface between the two fluids.

Physical Oceanography (EVSC 5440)
Studies the physical properties, processes, and structure of the oceans; mass and energy budgets; methods of measurements; and the nature and theory of ocean currents, waves, and tides in the open sea, near shore and in estuaries.

Coastal Oceanography (EVSC 5060)
An interdisciplinary course which covers physical, biological, and chemical processes occurring along coastlines and within coastal ecosystems.

Hydrological Transport Processes (EVHY 5650)
Examines the transport of dissolved substances, and of sediment and particulate matter in terrestrial and aquatic environments.

Graduate Students

Jennifer Hansen (Ph.D.)

Amy Grady (Ph.D.)

Swapnil Pravin (Ph.D.)

Jonathan Stocking (Ph.D.)

Emily Thomas (M.S.)