Dr Adam Hughes

Telephone: 01631 559208
E-mail:        adam.hughes@sams.ac.uk
Job Title:     Research Associate in Invertebrate Ecology



Scientific interests
I am post doctoral research assistant working at the interface of biogeochemistry and marine ecology, with a particular interest in understanding the flows of energy through benthic systems. I have extensive experience managing complex research projects, carrying out intertidal and subtidal field work and laboratory experiments. I have particular expertise in isotope ecology and biochemical trophic proxies. 

Current projects
Turning waste into a useful product is the basic premise of integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA). By using waste products from fin-fish aquaculture as food and nutrients for other organisms then we can reap the dual benefits of reduced pollution and increased productivity. The principle is simple, the practice however is complex: ongoing research at SAMS aims to overcome some of these complexities and bridge the gap between theoretical concept and industrial application.  As part of the European Union funded project ‘ENRICH ‘(FP7-SME-2007-1-222492) scientists at SAMS are working to commercialise the concept of IMTA through the introduction of echinoculture (Sea urchin farming) alongside existing finfish fish aquaculture. 
                           

Sea urchin roe is a luxury foodstuff with a premium price and  global market. This has unfortunately led to wild populations being over exploited and a number of fisheries have been closed around the world.  As such sea urchins area prime candidate organism for IMTA. Previous research from SAMS has shown that the European sea urchin, Paracentrotus lividus (the main commercially exploited  European species) thrives when grown alongside Atlantic salmon aquaculture, feeding on the particles that fall out of the salmon cage.

The ENRICH project takes these earlier studies to the next stage by addressing some of the bottle necks that prevent the full adoption of IMTA within the aquaculture industry. Working with business and scientific partners in Scotland, Italy, Croatia and Israel, the project addresses the issues of broodstock supply and development, larval rearing and the technical problems of integrating echinoculture within existing aquaculture infrastructure on a European wide basis.

The work at SAMS focuses on broodstock development and larval rearing in terms of diet quality. We are currently conducting trials to understand the role that maternal nutrition has on larval health and development. We are also developing a range of artificial larval diets. Larvae are traditionally fed cultures of phytoplankton, however these cultures are variable in their nutritional content and require specialist facilities to grow. By developing artificial diets it is hoped to eliminate this bottle neck in larval production and to speed up the commercialisation of echinoculture and the adoption of integrated multi-trophic aquaculture.

Publications
BOOK CHAPTERS
Kelly MS, Hughes A.D. Cook EJ (2006) The ecology of Psammechinus miliaris. In: Lawrence JM (ed) Edible Sea Urchins: Biology and Ecology 2nd Edition Elsevier Science

JOURNAL ARTICLES
Hughes, A.D., Cook, E.J., Orr, H., Kelly, M.S., Black, K.D. (Submitted).  Invertebrate grazers transfer and transform primary production. 
Hughes, A.D., A. G. Grottoli, T. K. Pease, and Y. Matsui (Submitted) Why all carbon is not equal, the acquisition and utilization of carbon in non-bleached and bleached corals.
Cook, E.J., Hughes, A.D., Orr, H., Kelly, M.S (2007).  Influence of diet on the lipid composition of the sea urchins Paracentrotus lividus and Psammechinus miliaris (Echinodermata).  Aquaculture.
Hughes A.D., Kelly M.S., Barnes D.K.A., Catarino, A.I and K. D. Black. (2006). The Dual Functions of Sea Urchin Gonads are reflected in the temporal variation of their Biochemistry. Marine Biology
Hughes A.D., Catarino, A.I., Kelly M.S., Barnes D.K.A., and K. D. Black. (2005). Gonad Fatty Acids and Trophic Interactions of the echinoid Psammechinus miliaris. Marine Ecology Progress Series
Hughes, A., & S.M. White. 2002. The use of Volunteers to Monitor Andros’ Marine Resources. The Bahamas Journal of Science

CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS
Levas S, Grottoli AG, Hughes AD, Pease T  Energy balance and growth in bleached Porites lobata and Pocillopora meandrina corals. 11th International Coral Reef Symposium, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Grottoli AG, Hughes AD, Pease TK  Acquisition and allocation of carbon in bleached Hawaiian corals. 11th International Coral Reef Symposium, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Hughes AD, Grottoli AG, Pease TK (2008) Recovery from bleaching: autotrophic and heterotrophic carbon acquisition in two Hawaiian corals during recovery from thermally induced bleaching. 2008 American Society of Limnology and Oceanography and American Geophysical Union Ocean Sciences Meeting, Orlando, FL
Grottoli AG, Hughes AD, Pease TK (2008) Acquisition and allocation of carbon in bleached Hawaiian corals. 2008 American Society of Limnology and Oceanography and American Geophysical Union Ocean Sciences Meeting, Orlando, FL
Hurley L, Hughes AD, Grottoli AG, Pease TK (2008) Variability in the lipid class and isotopic compositions of the Hawaiian coral Porites compressa, and it’s symbiotic zooxanthellae. 2008 American Society of Limnology and Oceanography and American Geophysical Union Ocean Sciences Meeting, Orlando, FL
Hurley L, Hughes AD, Grottoli AG, Pease TK (2007) Spatial variability of δ15N and δ13C in tissues of the Hawaiian coral Porites compressa. Estuarine Research Federation, Providence RI, Nov 2007
Hughes AD, Grottoli AG, Pease TK (2007) Thermally induced bleaching alters carbon flow between host, symbiont and skeleton in two Hawaiian corals. Estuarine Research Federation, Providence RI,
Hughes AD, Kelly M, Barnes DKA (2004) Sea bed scrapers and shapers: the role of urchins in regulating hard substrate communities of Scottish sea lochs” 39th European Marine Biology Symposium, Genoa
Cumming, R.L., Toscano, M.A., Lovell, E.R., Carlson, B.A., Dulvy, N.K., Hughes, AD., Koven, J.F., Quinn, N.J., Sykes, H.R., Taylor, O.J.S., and D. Vaughn.(2000) Mass coral bleaching in the Fiji Islands, 2000. Proc. 9th Int. Coral Reef Symp., Bali, Indonesia

Grant Captures
June 2005 ‘The role of urchins in structuring nearshore benthic communities’ OMSF 028 NERC Life Sciences Stable Isotope Facility, value £60,000. The grant is to allow the use of compound specific stable isotope analysis to examine the metabolism of fatty acids within sea urchins in order to better understand their trophic ecology.
October 2003 ‘Sea Bed Scrapers and Shapers: Urchins in control?’ 59-8/03 NERC Life Sciences Stable Isotope Facility, value £8,700. The grant allowed the study of the trophic ecology of sea urchins using stable isotopes of Carbon and Nitrogen.


Educational and career history
POST DOCTORAL VISITING RESEARCH SCHOLAR:   Acquisition, Allocation and Utilization of Carbon in Bleached and Recovering Corals Ohio State University and University of Texas Marine Science Institute: June 2006 - 2008
PhD: The Role of Sea Urchin Grazing in Structuring Benthic Communities of Scottish Sea Lochs
Scottish Association for Marine Science/UHI Millennium Institute/Open University: November 2002 - March 2006
MASTERS OF RESEARCH: Marine and Coastal Ecology and Environmental Management
Marine and Coastal Ecology and Environmental Management, University of York: October 1996 - October 1997
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE: Marine Biology
Marine Biology, University College Swansea, Lower Second: October 1991-June 1994
GREENFORCE RESEARCH PROJECTS: Chief Scientific Officer, BAHAMAS (2001-2002), FIJI (1999-2001)
FALKLAND ISLANDS FISHERY DEPARTMENT: Fisheries Observer (1998-1999)
FRONTIER EXPEDITIONS MOZAMBIQUE: Masters Student (1997)
FRONTIER EXPEDITIONS TANZANIA: Research Assistant (1995)