Karen Diele
Karen Diele

Prof Karen Diele

Professor

 0131 455 3353

  K.Diele@napier.ac.uk

  

Biography

I am a Professor of Marine Ecology at 麻豆社区 (ENU). I am heading our Centre for Conservation and Restoration Science (CCRS; webpage coming soon) and am ENU lead for Research Structures, working with ENU's new Research Centres. I am member of the steering committees of the Fisheries Science and Aquatic Stressor Fora of the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS; www.masts.ac.uk) and was Co-Director of St Abbs Marine Station, 2015-2020. Before moving to Scotland, I was researcher at the Leibniz Centre of Tropical Marine Ecology (ZMT) in Bremen, Germany, with projects in Brazil and Vietnam (2011-2006). Between 2000 and 2005 I was based in Northern Brazil as a postdoctoral fellow where I also coordinated a 10 yrs bilateral research project on Mangrove Dynamics and Management. In 2000 I gained my PhD degree in Biology at the University Bremen / ZMT, Germany. I am currently teaching in the programmes MSc - Wildlife Biology and Conservation, and BSc (Hon) Marine Freshwater Biology. Prior to ENU I lectured Marine Biology at the University of Bremen and within the programme 'International Studies in Aquatic Tropical Ecology (ISATEC)'.

RESEARCH INTERESTS
My research focuses on the dynamics, management and restoration of coastal ecosystems, on the life cycles and functional ecology of associated benthic marine invertebrates and their behavioural and physiological responses to environmental change (e.g. underwater noise, climatic stressors). I have been working in mangrove forests, seagrass meadows, rocky shores and biogenic reefs. My approach involves descriptive and experimental field and laboratory studies to answer fundamental biological and ecological questions and to deliver conservation, management and livelihood solutions.

RECENT GRANT SUCCESSES
- 'The West of Scotland Herring Hunt' (WOSHH) - William Grant Foundation - 2021-2024. See https://scottishherring.org (Research tab)
- 'Marine Soundscapes and eDNA for Assessing Biodiversity and Functioning of Re-establishing European Flat Oyster Reefs, Ostrea edulis' - NERC - SUPER DTP 2021 - 2025
- 'As Good as (G)Old? Comparing Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services of Restored and Natural Mangrove Forests in the Wallacea Region (CoReNat) - NERC 2018-2022
- Wester Ross Herring Spawning Ecology - Skye and Lochalsh Rivers Trust / William Grant Foundation - 2020-2021
- 'The Role of the Gill Microbiome in the Evolution of Terrestrialness in Brachyuran Crabs (Microlanding)' - CRG KAUST 2019 -2022
- 'Quantifying and Reducing the Environmental Footprint of Processing of the Meat of the Brazilian Mangrove Crab Ucides cordatus and Scoping for Bioactive Compounds. Newton-Confap - 2018-2019

RECENT MEDIA OUTPUT
---- The Scotsman (04/08/22), and The Times (06/08/22), featuring the WOSHH project and launch of a new website dedicated to Scottish Herring
---- AgroMas - Tech and Startup (31/01/22; 30 min life interview); TV Brazil, featuring the launch of the new IoS version of a citizen-science mobile app for monitoring mass-mating of Brazilian mangrove crabs
---- BBC Blue Planet UK Episode 2, featuring our underwater noise research) and Episode 5, featuring our animal 'personality' research).

PLACEMENT STUDENTS
In addition to enjoying my work with Postdoctoral Fellows, PhD, MSc and UG students, I am welcoming UK and international placement students to gain experience in our labs. For example, between 2017 and 2019 I have been accepting three students from the School of Engineering, University of Lyon, France (5 months PROMO-placements), and between 2014 and 2016 IAESTE students from ETH Zuerich, Switzerland, TU Aachen, Germany and University of Bogot谩, Colombia.

School

Research Groups

Themes

Research Areas

Events

Esteem

Advisory panels and expert committees or witness

  • Executive Committee Member of 拢5mil NERC Doctoral Training Partnership SUPER (Scottish Universities Partnership for Environmental Research
  • Steering Group Member/ Deputy Lead MASTS Marine Stressor Forum - Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland
  • Scientific Advisor for Mangrove Crab Conservation and Fisheries Management; Conservation International- Brazil
  • Member of the MASTS Executive Committee- The Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland
  • Steering Group Member MASTS Fisheries Science Forum - The Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland
  • Advisor for Brazilian Environmental Government Organization CEPENE-ICMBio

 

Editorial Activity

  • Guest-Editor Special Issue - Global and Planetary Change
  • Editorial Board Member - Revista Cepsul: Biodiversity and Marine Conservation
  • Advisory Committee Member - Pan-American Journal of Aquatic Science

 

External Examining/Validations

  • External PhD thesis examiner at the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Ecology, Bremen, Germany.

 

Grant Funding Panel Member

  • NERC Grant Panel Member- UK-Latin America Biodiversity call - LATAM

 

Grant Reviewer

  • NERC Large Grant Peer Reviewer - Mangrove Ecology

 

Invited Speaker

  • King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST): Research conference speaker (invited) 'Securing a future for the Red Sea ecosystems'.
  • Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM) Annual Meeting -Scotland speaker (invited), Aberdeen, UK.
  • NERC- Ristekdikti Wallacea- Researcher Networking Workshop speaker (invited), Makassar, Indonesia.
  • North-East UK Seabird Research Group Meeting speaker (invited). Berwick-Upon-Tweed, UK.
  • State University of Paraiba, Brazil: Research seminar speaker (invited), School of Biological Sciences. Campina Grande, Brazil.
  • Federal University of Southern Bahia: International Seminar Series speaker (invited). Texeiras de Freitas, Brazil.
  • National Centre of Research and Marine Biodiversity Conservation in North-East Brazil (CEPENE), Community Seminar speaker (invited). Caravelas, Brazil.
  • British Council - Connected Scotland: Researcher Networking workshop speaker (invited), Sao Paulo & Recife, Brazil.
  • Newton-Fund Researcher Links networking workshop speaker (invited). Santa Marta, Colombia.

 

Media Activity

  • BBC One- Blue Planet UK - Episode 2 (Interview of two of my PhD students on their underwater noise research); St Abbs Marine Station
  • BBC One- Blue Planet UK - Episode 5 (interviewed on animal 'personality' research; St Abbs Marine Station
  • Brazilian TV G1 Globo. Interviewed for mangrove crab research (citizen-science app)
  • Featured on webpage of the Brazilian Ministry for the Environment (MMA - ICMBio): Research activities of REMAR project featured three times on webpage between 2017 and 2018
  • NEN - North Edinburgh News - featuring mangrove crab research in Brazil
  • Youtube MASTS vidcast 2017. Interviewed by MASTS for Brazilian mangrove crab research
  • Youtube 麻豆社区 vidcast to promote MSc programme Wildlife Biology and Conservation; interview of MSc student on her seabird research at St Abbs and later career
  • BBC Radio 4 - Shared Planet - BBC Radio 4 - Community Protection (contribution at 10鈥41鈥欌)
  • BBC Radio 4 - Shared Planet - BBC Radio 4 - Mangroves: Putting nature back? (contribution at 8鈥53鈥欌)
  • TV Brazil 鈥 Mangroves of Southern Bahia TV Brazil - Mangroves of Southern Bahia (contribution at 8鈥45鈥欌 and 22鈥56鈥欌)

 

Membership of Professional Body

  • Member of the Scottish Blue Carbon Forum
  • Member of the British Ecological 麻豆社区
  • Founding member and representative of the research network REMAR (Brazil)
  • Member of MASTS- the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland

 

Non-executive Directorship

  • Co-Director of Research, St Abbs Marine Station (25% secondment)

 

Public/Community Engagement

  • STEM - Collaboration with Minerva Scientifica - The Voice Theatre (Scottish Super Women in Science), collaboration with Sighthill and Eyemouth Primary Schools with joint public performances on three occasions. Production of two soundclouds putting my research into tunes.

 

Reviewing

  • Peer reviewer for > 25 scientific journals since 2005. Acta Zoologica; Animal Biology; Aquatic Biology; Behavioural Biology and Sociobiology; Brazilian Journal for Biology; Ecotropica; Environmental Science and Pollution Research, Estuarine Coastal Shelf Science; Ethnobiology and Conservation; Fisheries Research; Helgoland Marine Research; Hydrobiologia; Ihringia Zoologica; Journal of Crustacean Biology; Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom; Journal of Plankton Research; Journal for Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology; Journal of Tropical Ecology; Latin American Journal of Aquatic Research; Marine Biology; Ocean and Coastal Management; PlosOne; Science of the Total Environment; Restoration Ecology; Tropical Oceanography; Wetlands Ecology and Management, Zoology.

 

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Date


82 results

Mangroves support an estimated annual abundance of over 700 billion juvenile fish and invertebrates

Journal Article
zu Ermgassen, P. S. E., Worthington, T. A., Gair, J. R., Garnett, E. E., Mukherjee, N., Longley-Wood, K., Nagelkerken, I., Abrantes, K., Aburto-Oropeza, O., Acosta, A., Araujo, A. R. D. R., Baker, R., Barnett, A., Beitl, C. M., Benzeev, R., Brookes, J., Castellanos-Galindo, G. A., Ching Chong, V., Connolly, R. M., Cunha-Lignon, M., 鈥palding, M. D. (2025)
Mangroves support an estimated annual abundance of over 700 billion juvenile fish and invertebrates. Communications Earth & Environment, 6(1), Article 299. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02229-w
Mangroves are a critical habitat that provide a suite of ecosystem services and support livelihoods. Here we undertook a global analysis to model the density and abundance of ...

鈥橞ots on the Ground vs Boots on the Ground: The Future of Robots in Terrestrial Ecological Surveying

Journal Article
White, P., Le Goff, L., Emery, L., Abrahams, C., Findlay, M., Cook, J., Macleod, K., Deacon, L., Reason, P., Stanhope, K., Wale, M., Hart, E., & Diele, K. (2025)
鈥橞ots on the Ground vs Boots on the Ground: The Future of Robots in Terrestrial Ecological Surveying. In Practice (CIEEM), 27, 47-52
At the 2023 CIEEM Modernising Ecology conference, a robot greeted the attendees as they arrived. Was it a glimpse into the future? As with other technologies, robots have the ...

Mangrove dynamics and resilience in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, across the Holocene

Journal Article
Holmes, R., Salzmann, U., Djamaluddin, R., Hocking, E. P., Williams, M., Berrio, J. C., Siregar, I., Tjoa, B., Fusi, M., & Diele, K. (2025)
Mangrove dynamics and resilience in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, across the Holocene. Ecological Indicators, 171, Article 113231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.113231
The mangroves of Sulawesi have been subject to widespread deforestation and degradation, which has intensified since the 1980s. Despite efforts by government and community ini...

Response to consultation: Call for Evidence for Scotland鈥檚 Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement (IFMI) Program

Other
Fox, C., Fernandes, P., Heath, M., Kaiser, M., Mendo, T., Sciberras, M., Diele, K., Frost, M., James, M., & Mouat, B. Response to consultation: Call for Evidence for Scotland鈥檚 Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement (IFMI) Program

)
Fox, C., Fernandes, P., Heath, M., Kaiser, M., Mendo, T., Sciberras, M., Diele, K., Frost, M., James, M., & Mouat, B. Response to consultation: Call for Evidence for Scotland鈥檚 Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement (IFMI) Program

Intraspecific facilitation of the recruitment of a burrowing mangrove crab species along an environmental gradient

Journal Article
Schmidt, A. J., & Diele, K. (2024)
Intraspecific facilitation of the recruitment of a burrowing mangrove crab species along an environmental gradient. Ocean and Coastal Research, 72(suppl 1), 23039-23040. https://doi.org/10.1590/2675-2824072.22162
The exploited mangrove crab Ucides cordatus, an important ecosystem engineer in South American mangroves, has a biphasic lifecycle with pelagic larvae developing offshore. Meg...

A blue carbon model for the European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis) and its application in environmental restoration

Journal Article
Lee, H. Z. L., Davies, I. M., Baxter, J. M., Diele, K., & Sanderson, W. G. (2024)
A blue carbon model for the European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis) and its application in environmental restoration. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 34(1), Article e4030. https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.4030
1. Historically, considerations of the carbon budget of bivalve shellfish have disproportionately focused on the cycling of carbon in shell alone, overlooking respiratory rele...

Brachyuran Crabs of Brazilian Mangrove and Salt Marsh Ecosystems

Book Chapter
Schmidt, A. J., & Diele, K. (2023)
Brachyuran Crabs of Brazilian Mangrove and Salt Marsh Ecosystems. In Y. Schaeffer-Novelli, G. M. D. O. Abuchahla, & G. Cintr贸n-Molero (Eds.), Brazilian Mangroves and Salt Marshes (179-200). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13486-9_10
Brachyuran crabs are the most conspicuous macrobenthic fauna in Brazilian mangrove forests and salt marshes. This chapter presents basic information about the habitat, spatial...

Measuring and understanding sustainability-enhancing processes in tropical coastal and marine social鈥揺cological systems

Book Chapter
Glaser, M., Ferse, S., Christie, P., Diele, K., Dsikowitzky, L., Nordhaus, I., Schl眉ter, A., Schwerdtner Ma帽ez, K., & Wild, C. (2023)
Measuring and understanding sustainability-enhancing processes in tropical coastal and marine social鈥揺cological systems. In B. Glaeser, & M. Glaser (Eds.), Coastal Management Revisited: Navigating towards Sustainable Human-Nature Relations (83-93). Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Tropical coastal and marine social鈥揺cological systems (CM-SES) are diverse, complex and dynamic. They face special challenges as hotspots of biodiversity and centres of popula...

Safeguarding Imperiled Biodiversity and Evolutionary Processes in the Wallacea Center of Endemism

Journal Article
Struebig, M. J., Aninta, S. G., Beger, M., Bani, A., Barus, H., Brace, S., 鈥upriatna, J. (2022)
Safeguarding Imperiled Biodiversity and Evolutionary Processes in the Wallacea Center of Endemism. Bioscience, 72(11), 1118-1130. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biac085
Wallacea鈥攖he meeting point between the Asian and Australian fauna鈥攊s one of the world's largest centers of endemism. Twenty-three million years of complex geological history h...

Bioturbation Intensity Modifies the Sediment Microbiome and Biochemistry and Supports Plant Growth in an Arid Mangrove System

Journal Article
Fusi, M., Booth, J. M., Marasco, R., Merlino, G., Garcias-Bonet, N., Barozzi, A., 鈥affonchio, D. (2022)
Bioturbation Intensity Modifies the Sediment Microbiome and Biochemistry and Supports Plant Growth in an Arid Mangrove System. Microbiology Spectrum, 10(3), https://doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.01117-22
In intertidal systems, the type and role of interactions among sediment microorganisms, animals, plants and abiotic factors are complex and not well understood. Such interacti...

Pre-Napier Funded Projects

  • Leibniz-Association/ZMT: ' Physiological and ontogenetic responses of tropical benthic calcifiers towards combined high DIC and DOC'. I wrote 30% of the proposal. Euro 176,000.
  • Leibniz-Association/ZMT: 'Movement patterns and habitat use of the exploited crab Scylla serrata'. I wrote 50% of the proposal. Euro 125,000.
  • PhD proposal 'Linkage between biodiversity and mangrove ecosystem functioning'. Leibniz-Association /ZMT. I wrote 100% of the proposal. Euro 266,000
  • German Research Foundation (DFG): Land-ocean-atmospheric interactions in the coastal zone of S-Vietnam: dynamics of the green belt.' I wrote 40% of the research proposal, Euro 498,000. Work-package lead.
  • Brazilian Environmental Ministry (MMA): 'Mae d'agua do Caet茅'. Community-based project written with scientifc advisors as myself. BRL 250,000.

Current Post Grad projects

Previous Post Grad projects

Non-Napier PhD or MSc by Research supervisions

  • Rodrigues, E. (2019): Optimisation of essential habitat in sustainable fishery management. PhD - Second supervisor with M. Bell (Heriot-Watt University, Director of Studies). NERC DTP Studentship (SUPER). Heriot-Watt University, UK.
  • Lee, H. (2018): 鈥淯nlocking the vaults of biogenic reefs: Blue carbon storage and nutrient burial by bivalve shellfish鈥. PhD - Second supervisor with W. Sanderson (Heriot-Watt University, Director of Studies); further supervisors I. Davies (Marine Scotland) and J. Baxter (SNH). Funded by Glenmorangie and Marine Scotland. Heriot-Watt University, UK.
  • Harsanyi, P. (2017) Effects of electromagnetic fields on diversity and functional role of epibiotic bacteria. PhD - team supervision with J. Farkas (Director of Studies, Eotovos Lorand Univerity, Hungary), A. Lyndon & W Sanderson (Heriot-Watt University). Eotvos Lorand University, Hungary / St Abbs Marine Station, UK.
  • Meyer, F. (2015): Combined effects of ocean acidification and elevated nutrient availability on coral reef calcifiers. PhD - University of Bremen, Germany. Team supervision with the Leibniz Center of Tropical Marine Ecology, Germany.
  • Kluger, L. (2012): Intraspecific facilitation? The effect of the mangrove crab Ucides cordatus on sympatric benthic fauna. MScR University of Bremen, Germany. Principle supervisor.
  • Alberts-Hubatsch, H. (2015): Movement ecology and management of the mud crab Scylla serrata. PhD - University of Bremen, Germany. Team supervision with the Leibniz Center of Tropical Marine Ecology, Germany and Griffith University, Australia.
  • Korting, J. (2012): Bioturbation activities of the mangrove crab Ucides cordatus - Method development and fist quantification in the Caet茅 Estuary, North Brazil. MScR University of Bremen, Germany. Principle Supervisor.
  • Kassuga, A. (2014): Reproductive biology of marine ornamental shrimps in SE Brazil. PhD - second supervisor, Federal University of Espirito Santo, Brazil.
  • P眉lmanns, N. (2014): Effects of macrobenthic exclusion on mangrove ecosystem functions. PhD - University of Bremen, Germany. Team supervision with the Leibniz Center of Tropical Marine Ecology, Germany and the Federal University of Par谩, Brazil
  • Meyer, F. (2010): Effects of ocean acidification on the development and survival of brachyuran crab larvae. MScR University of Bremen, Germany. Principle supervisor.
  • Jaenig, M. (2010): sharks (Selachii) in mangrove-fringed habitats of the Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR), with implications for management and conservation. MScR University of Bremen, Germany. Principal supervisor.
  • Schmidt, A.J. (2012): Recruitment and spatial distribution of the harvested mangrove crab Ucides cordatus in mangroves of Caravelas, Bahia, Brazil. PhD - Federal University Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. First supervisor (de facto).
  • Simith, D.J.B. (2012): Larval ecology and metamorphosis of the harvested mangrove crab Ucides cordatus. PhD - Federal University of Par谩, Brazil. First supervisor (de facto).
  • Simith, D.J.B. (2007): induction of settlement and metamorphosis in mangrove crab megalopae, Ucides cordatus. MScR Federal University of Para, Brazil. Principal supervisor.
  • D'Lima, C. (2005): Movement ecology of the mangrove crab Ucides cordatus cordatus in the Caet茅 Estuary, North Brazil. MScR University of Bremen, Germany. Second supervisor.
  • Araujo, A.R.R (2010): Fisheries statistics and commercialisation of the mangrove crab Ucides cordatus. PhD -University of Bremen, Germany. First supervisor (de facto).
  • De Vale, P. (2001): Reproductive biology of the mangrove crab Ucides cordatus in the mangroves of the Caet茅 Estuary, North Brazil. MScR Federal University of Par谩, Brazil. Principle Supervisor.