Karen Eigeland

In 2005 I enrolled in a BSc at UQ (majored in Marine Biology), completed my honours with Dr. Janet Lanyon studying the dugong population of Moreton Bay, and realised I loved being out on the water. After study finished I got the travel bug and have been diving/boating/researching and volunteering in various beachy locations and on various marine conservation projects around the world (Seychelles, Portugal, Mozambique, Burma, South Africa, Canada, Mexico and good old Western Australia) for the past 11 years; most recently working for the Crown of Thornes control program in Townsville and Queensland Parks and Wildlife in the southern GBR.

The newest member of the MSEL lab, I am the research assistant for the rubble stabilisation component of the RRAP program. I’m absolutely stoked to be in the field for this project, back in the research game and (most importantly!) contributing to the protection, restoration and resilience of the absolute wonder that is the Great Barrier Reef.

Qualifications
2005 – 2009
Bachelor of Science majoring in marine Biology and Zoology (with first class honours in Marine Biology), University of Queensland, QLD.

2015
PADI Open Water Dive Instructor, Thresher Shark Divers, Phillipines.

2020
Certificate III in Maritime Operations (Master <24m NC), TAFE Queensland, Carins.

Publication
Just one teeny one!

Eigeland, Karen A; Lanyon, Janet M; Trott, Darren J; Ouwerkerk, Dian ; Blanshard, Wendy; Milinovich, Gabriel J; Gulino, Lisa-Maree; Martinez, Emilio; Merson, Samuel; Klieve, Athol V (2012). Bacterial community structure in the hindgut of wild and captive dugongs (Dugong dugon). Aquatic mammals, 38 (4), p.402-411.