Kennedy Wolfe — Marine Spatial Ecology Lab

Dr. Kennedy Wolfe

My research focuses on marine invertebrates, which are frequently overlooked. I have worked from the temperate intertidal to tropical coral reefs, with a keen interest in the Echinodermata, especially sea cucumbers. These “less-charismatic” organisms are largely understudied compared to the more conventional species, like corals and fishes. Currently, my research aims to address the missing link in coral reef food webs between small cryptic invertebrates and invertivorous reef fishes.

Career:

Postdoctoral Researcher – University of Queensland (Feb 2018 – present)

PhD candidate – University of Sydney (Aug 2013 – Feb 2017)

Canaries in the coalmine: using model echinoderm species to address anthropogenic impacts on the Great Barrier Reef.

BSc (Hons) – University of Sydney (Feb 2008 – Dec 2011)

The effects of ocean change on skeletogenesis in the juvenile sea urchin, Heliocidaris erythrogramma, and on the shell of the paper nautilus, Argonauta nodosa: habitat-specific considerations.

Publications:

Wolfe K, et al. (in press) Priority species to support the functional integrity of coral reefs. Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review 49.

Wolfe K, Desbiens A, Stella J, Mumby PJ (2020) Length-weight relationships to quantify biomass for motile coral reef cryptofauna. Coral Reefs, doi: 10.1007/s00338-020-01993-9

Wolfe K, Mumby PJ (2020). RUbble Biodiversity Samplers (RUBS): 3D‐printed coral models to standardise biodiversity censuses. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, doi: 10.1111/2041-210X.13462

Frade PR, Glasl B, Matthews SA, Mellin C, Serrão EA, Wolfe K, Mumby PJ, Webster NS, Bourne DG (2020). Spatial patterns of microbial communities across surface waters of the Great Barrier Reef. Communications Biology, 14:1-4.

Wolfe K, Nguyen HD, Davey M, Byrne M (2020). Characterising biogeochemical fluctuations in a world of extremes: A synthesis for temperate intertidal habitats in the face of global change. Global Change Biology, 26: 3858–3879.

Champion C, Broadhurst MK, Ewere EE, Benkendorff K, Butcherine P, Wolfe K, Coleman MA (2020). Resilience to the interactive effects of climate change and discard stress in the commercially important blue swimmer crab (Portunus armatus). Marine Environmental Research, 159: 105009.

Desbiens A, Wolfe K (2020) Observations of juvenile Stichopus sp. on a Palauan coral reef. SPC Bêche-de-mer Bulletin, 40: 53-55.

Puk LD, Cernohorsky N, Marshell A, Dwyer J, Wolfe K, Mumby PJ (2020). Species-level effects of herbivorous fishes on the establishment of the macroalga Lobophora on coral reefs. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 637: 1–14

Wolfe K, Davey M (2020) Localised high-density population of a sea cucumber on a Malaysian coral reef. Coral Reefs, 39: 33–38.

Budden C, Butler I, Wolfe K, Deaker D, Sweatman H, Byrne M (2019) Effect of sublethal predation on reproductive output of the crown-of-thorns starfish (CoTS, Acanthaster sp.) with an overview of arm damage. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 629: 103-116.

Bradford T, Wolfe K, Mumby PJ (2019) Preferences and perceptions of the recreational spearfishery of the Great Barrier Reef. PLoS ONE 14:e0221855.

Wolfe K, et al. (2019) Recommendations to maintain functioning of the Great Barrier Reef. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. Reef and Rainforest Research Centre Limited, Cairns (330 pp.).

Clements M, Wolfe K, Schwartz K, Byrne M (2019) Forever fissiparous: asexual reproduction and stable demography in a tropical and geographically isolated asterinid sea star. Marine Biology 166:69.

Balogh R, Wolfe K, Byrne M (2019) Gonad development and spawning of the Vulnerable commercial sea cucumber, Stichopus herrmanni, in the southern Great Barrier Reef. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 99: 487-495.

Carrier TJ, Wolfe K, Lopez K, Gall M, Janies DA, Byrne M, Reitzel AM (2018) Diet-induced shifts in the crown-of-thorns (Acanthaster sp.) larval microbiome. Marine Biology, 165:157.

Albright R, Takeshita Y, Koweek D, Ninokawa A, Wolfe K, Rivlin T, Nebuchina Y, Young J, Caldeira K (2018) Carbon dioxide addition to coral reef waters suppresses net community calcification. Nature, doi:10.1038/nature25968.

Balogh R, Wolfe K, Byrne M (2018) Gonad development and spawning of the Vulnerable commercial sea cucumber, Stichopus herrmanni, in the southern Great Barrier Reef. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom.

Wolfe K, Vidal-Ramirez F, Dove S, Deaker D, Byrne M (2018) Altered sediment biota and lagoon habitat carbonate dynamics due to sea cucumber bioturbation in a high-pCO2 environment. Global Change Biology, 24: 465-480.

Wolfe K, Byrne M (2017) Biology and ecology of the vulnerable holothuroid, Stichopus herrmanni, on a high-latitude coral reef on the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs, 4: 1143-1156.

Wolfe K, Graba-Landry A, Dworjanyn S, Byrne M (2017) Superstars: assessing nutrient thresholds for enhanced larval success of Acanthaster planci, a review of the evidence. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 116: 307-314.

Byrne M, Wolfe K, O’Loughlin M, Miskelly A (2017) Report on a stranding of the dendrochirotid sea cucumber Cladolabes perspicillum and other echinoderms by a low-pressure induced storm surge on the New South Wales coast, Australia. SPC Beche-de-mer Bulletin, 37: 117-118.

Wolfe K, Byrne M (2016) Population biology and recruitment of the vulnerable sea cucumber, Stichopus herrmanni, on a protected reef. Marine Ecology, 38: e12397.

Byrne M, Gall ML, Wolfe K, Agüera A (2016) From pole to pole: the potential for the Arctic seastar Asterias amurensis to invade a warming Southern Ocean. Global Change Biology, 22: 3874-3887.

Palazzo L, Wolfe K, Byrne M (2016) Discovery and description of Stichopus herrmanni juvenile nursery sites on Heron Reef, Great Barrier Reef, SPC Beche-de-mer Bulletin, 36: 36-40.

Kwiatkowski L, Albright R, Hosfelt J, Nebuchina Y, Ninokawa A, Rivlin T, Sesboüé M, Wolfe K, Caldeira K (2016) Interannual stability of organic to inorganic carbon production on a coral atoll. Geophysical Research Letters, 43: 3880-3888.

Albright R, Caldeira L, Hosfelt J, Kwiatkowski L, Maclaren JK, Mason BM, Nebuchina Y, Ninokawa A, Pongratz J, Ricke KL, Rivlin T, Schneider K, Sesboue M, Shamberger K, Silverman J, Wolfe K, Zhu K, Caldeira K (2016) Reversal of ocean acidification enhances net coral reef calcification. Nature, 531: 362-365.

Wolfe K, Graba-Landry A, Dworjanyn S, Byrne M (2015) Larval phenotypic plasticity in the boom-and-bust crown-of-thorns seastar, Acanthaster planci. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 539: 179-189.

Wolfe K, Graba-Landry A, Dworjanyn S, Byrne M (2015) Larval starvation to satiation: influence of nutrient regime on the success of Acanthaster planci. PLoS ONE, e0122010.

Hardy NA, Lamare M, Uthicke S, Wolfe K, Doo S, Dworjanyn S, Byrne M (2013) Thermal tolerance of early development in tropical and temperate sea urchins: inferences for the tropicalization of eastern Australia. Marine Biology, 161: 395-409.

Byrne M, Foo S, Soars NA, Wolfe K, Nguyen HD, Hardy NA, Dworjanyn S (2013) Ocean warming will mitigate the effects of acidification on calcifying sea urchin larvae (Heliocidaris tuberculata) from the Australian global warming hot spot. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 448: 250-257.

Wolfe K, Dworjanyn SA, Byrne M (2013) Thermal and pH/pCO2 fluctuations in the intertidal habitat of Heliocidaris erythrogramma: effects on post-metamorphic juveniles. Cah. Biol. Mar. 54: 657-666.

Wolfe K, Dworjanyn SA, Byrne M (2013) Effects of ocean warming and acidification on survival, growth and skeletal development in the early benthic juvenile sea urchin (Heliocidaris erythrogramma). Global Change Biology, 19: 2698-2707.

Wolfe K, Smith AM, Trimby P, Byrne M (2012) Microstructure of the paper nautilus (Argonauta nodosa) shell and the novel application of electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) to address effects of ocean acidification. Marine Biology, 8: 2271-2278.

Wolfe K, Smith AM, Trimby P, Byrne M (2012) Vulnerability of the paper nautilus (Argonauta nodosa) shell to a climate-change ocean: potential for extinction by dissolution. Biological Bulletin, 223: 236-244.

Smith AM, Wolfe K, Byrne M (2012) Argonauta at risk: dissolution and carbonate mineralogy of egg cases. Proceedings of the International Coral Reef Symposium, July 2012.