RESEARCH PROFILE

My research is on community ecology, particularly the effects of natural and anthropogenic stresses on ecosystems, especially (since 1998) on ecosystem responses to climate change.

- Biogeography and biodiversity of Indo Pacific coral reefs, including research on climate change effects on tropical systems which directly support people.

- Coastal Management and conservation projects in middle East and Chagos Archipelago, and Caribbean.

- Marine habitat research in numerous tropical countries, particularly inter-habitat interactions including human interactions with the marine system. GIS based coastal zone management development for lesser developed countries.

- Research on the recent episodes of massive reef mortality in the Indian Ocean.

- Marine biodiversity research, using remote sensing, in tropical marine ecosystems.

- Investigation of community changes along pollution and sedimentation gradients, including the development and use of new and powerful non-parametric methods of analysis.

- Research linking climate data to marine environmental changes.

See Marine and Coastal Ecosytems

Research Theme: Environmental Resource Management

BACKGROUND

I advise several governments on marine and coastal management and science, including the UK Government on its tropical Overseas Territories.

I have organised and led the scientific input to the 2010 creation of the world's largest fully protected marine researce, in the Chagos archipelago, Indian Ocean, where a lot of my research has been focussed.

The other main geographical area of research is the Arabian region.

PhD University of Durham 1976.

Fellow, Linnean Society
Conservation Fellow, Zoological Society London
Reviewing member of the IPCC
Editor of the Elsevier journal:Marine Pollution Bulletin
Author and/or editor 10 books at various levels, from lay, student text and academic.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

• Sheppard CRC and 40 others (2012) 'Reefs and islands of the Chagos Archipelago, Indian Ocean: Why it is the world?s largest no-take marine protected area.' Aquatic Conservation 22 232 - 261
• Ebil S; Sheppard CRC; Wahab R; Price ARG; Bull JV (2013) 'Changes in community structure of finfish catches in Brunei Darussalam between 2000 and 2009' Ocean & Coastal Management 76 45 - 51
• Pratchett MS; Pisapia C; Sheppard CRC (2013) 'Background mortality rates for recovering populations of Acropora cytherea in the Chagos Archipelago, central Indian Ocean' Marine Environmental Research
• Vogler C; Benzie J, Barber PH; Erdmann MV; Ambariyantoe; Sheppard C; Tenggardjaja, K; Gérard K; Wörheide G (2012) 'Phylogeography of the crown-of-thorns starfish in the Indian ocean' PLoS One 7 (8), e43499 [article]
• Riegl, B.M., Sheppard, C.R.C. and Purkis, S.J. (2012) 'Human impact on atolls leads to coral loss and community homogenisation : a modeling study' PLoS One 7 (6), [article]

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