Dr Kay C. Vopel

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Study areas

Sciences

Home > Study at AUT > Study areas > Sciences > Our People > Dr Kay C. Vopel

Kay Vopel Qualifications:

Dip Biology (Germany) equiv. MSc(Hons)
Dr rer. nat. (Germany)

Teaching Areas:

Oceanography
Marine Biogeochemistry
Marine Ecology

Research:

Dr Vopel's biogeochemistry group studies the production and decomposition of organic matter in marine sediment as a means of understanding how various scenarios of environmental impact affect coastal ecosystem functioning. The group approaches sediment biogeochemistry primarily through experiments in which microsensor techniques are combined with standard analytical techniques and numerical modeling. His students learn how to perform high-resolution measurements in the laboratory and in the field (underwater) to investigate the transport and reaction of pore water solutes and the role that bottom dwelling organisms play.

Affiliations:

Recent Publications:

Vopel, K., Pilditch, C. A., Wilson, P., Ellwood, M. J. (2009) Oxidation of surface sediment: effects of disturbance depth and seawater flow speed. Marine Ecology Progress Series 392:43–55.

Cummings, V., Vopel, K., Thrush, S. (2009) Terrigenous deposits in coastal marine habitats: influences on sediment geochemistry and behaviour of post settlement bivalves. Marine Ecology Progress Series 383:173–185.

Røy, H., Vopel, K., Huettel, M., Jørgensen, B. B. (2009) Sulfide assimilation by ectosymbionts of the sessile ciliate, Zoothamnium niveum. Marine Biology 156:669–677.

Vopel, K., Gibbs, M., Quinn, J., Hickey, C. (2008). Modification of sediment–water solute exchange by sediment-capping agents: effects on O₂ and pH. Marine and Freshwater Research 59:1101–1110.

Ellwood, M. J., Wilson, P., Vopel, K., Green, M. (2008). Trace metal cycling in the Whau estuary, Auckland. Environmental Chemistry 5:289–298.

Vopel, K., Vopel, A., Thistle, D., Hancock, N. (2007). Effects of spatangoid heart urchins on O₂ supply into coastal sediment. Marine Ecology Progress Series 333:161–171.

Vopel, K., Hawes, I. (2006). Photosynthetic performance of benthic microbial mats in Lake Hoare, Antarctica. Limnology and Oceanography 51:1801–1812.

Vopel, K., Thistle, D., Ott, J., Bright, M., Røy, H. (2005). Wave-induced H₂S flux sustains a chemoautotrophic symbiosis. Limnology and Oceanography 50:128–133.

Teasdale, M., Vopel, K., Thistle, D. (2004). The timing of benthic copepod emergence. Limnology and Oceanography 49:884–889.

Vopel, K., Thistle, D., Rosenberg, R. (2003). Effect of the brittle star Amphiura filiformis (Amphiuridae, Echinodermata) on oxygen flux into the sediment. Limnology and Oceanography 48:2034–2045.

Last updated: 30 Apr 2010 3:01pm

AUT - Dr Kay C. Vopel

Sciences

Dr Kay C. Vopel