Kay C. Vopel

Vopel Photo Dr. rerum naturalium

Zoology, Marine Ecology
University of Rostock, Germany, 1997

Education

University of Rostock, Germany (1987-1992), Diploma magna cum laude in Biology

University of Rostock, Germany (1992-1997), Doctor rerum naturalium magna cum laude, Zoology

Interests

My research focuses on interactions between marine invertebrates and their microenvironment. I am particularly interested in how benthic macro- and meiofauna shape the physical and chemical properties of their immediate surrounding.

Studies on animal-sediment relations are important because they provide information on the species' effect on the flux of solutes and particles across the sediment-water interface - a major component of material cycles in marine environments. Further, information on the mechanisms that control the species' microenvironment can improve our understanding of the evolution of biotic interactions such as bacterial-animal symbioses. They also can serve as a key to understanding the processes that structure benthic communities and, thus, species diversity.

My research involves field and laboratory experiments in which microelectrode techniques are applied. I use these techniques to measure, for instance, concentrations of dissolved oxygen and hydrogen sulfide, pH, fluid velocity, and diffusivity at high spatial and temporal resolution. I encourage students to be involved in all stages of my research and to develop skills in laboratory and in situ techniques with which to explore the interface between the sediment and the overlying seawater at a µm-scale.