Nessa O’Connor

Institute:

Queen's University Belfast / University of Dublin

n.oconnor@NoSpamtcd.ie

Expertise:

benthic ecology, global change biology, experimental design, community ecology

Nessa is a lecturer at at the University of Dublin having recently left Queen’s University Belfast. Her research has focussed on empirical tests of the relationship between biodiversity-ecosystem functioning and stability. More recently, her research aims to understand the cumulative impacts of multiple anthropogenic stressors on coastal ecosystems, including nutrient enrichment, harvesting benthic species, the spread of invasive species and climate change. Other current projects include testing the sustainable development of macro-algal biofuels, assessing the impacts of aquaculture on coastal ecosystems, developing methods for the restoration of fragile biogenic reefs and enhanceing fundamental understanding of the multiple components of community stability.

These projects include:

Selected Publications

Mrowicki, R.J. & O’Connor, N.E. Wave action modifies the effects of consumer diversity and warming on algal assemblages (in press) Ecology.

O’Connor, N.E., Emmerson, M.C., Crowe, T.P, & Donohue, I. (2013). Distinguishing between direct and indirect effects of predators in complex ecosystems. Journal of Animal Ecology, 82: 438-448.

O’Connor, N.E. & Donohue, I. (2013). Environmental context determines multi-trophic effects of consumer species loss. Global Change Biology, 19: 431-440.

Smale, D.A., Burrows, M.T., Moore, P., O’Connor, N.E. and Hawkins, S.J. (2013). Threats and knowledge gaps for ecosystem services provided by kelp forests: a northeast Atlantic perspective. Ecology and Evolution, 3: 4016-4038.

Donohue, I., Petchey, O.L., Montoya, J.M., Jackson, A.L., McNally, L., Viana, M., Healy, K., Lurgi, M., O’Connor, N.E. & Emmerson, M.C. (2013). On the dimensionality of ecological stability. Ecology Letters, 16: 421-429.

Useful links

Profile on QUB website

G oogle Scholar profile