“I have been working to determine if submarine groundwater discharge is a driver of primary production in the surf zone using radium isotopes and photosynthesis estimates. This work is part of my Masters project. Early in 2017 I will be starting my PhD in collaboration with DPI scientists at the NMSC. I will try to determine if cetacean carcass burials on beaches attract sharks to the surf. This will involve studying the decomposition of carcasses, the components of decomposition and the size and shape of the groundwater leachate plume. I will also investigate the behaviour of sharks when exposed to a groundwater leachate plume in the laboratory. This project will be conducted over the next three years.”

Contact: j.tucker.22@student.scu.edu.au