Section for Ecosystem Health
Connecting physical, chemical, biological, and socioeconomic systems to address environmental and community vulnerabilities.
Researchers in the Section for Ecosystem Health work to improve fundamental knowledge of ecosystem processes and functions, while also investigating the impacts of global change on ecological and organismal health. We assess the abundance and toxicity of critical environmental pollutants, and we explore the ecology and evolution of diseases affecting key coastal and marine species.
Through this integrated approach, the section provides vital insights into the complex web of interactions that shape ecosystem health, generating knowledge that informs resilient and sustainable management strategies for coastal and marine environments.
Ryan Carnegie, Section Chair
Ryan Carnegie is a biologist and parasitologist studying disease in marine systems. He leads the Batten School & VIMS Shellfish Pathology Lab. Primary research tracks in his lab include the evolutionary ecology of parasitic diseases of oysters, the diversity and distribution of marine parasites, and the etiology of enigmatic mortality syndromes such as “summer mortality” in bivalve molluscs. The Shellfish Pathology Lab is an important US diagnostic lab for shellfish pathogens, and collaborates regionally, nationally, and internationally on shellfish health management in aquaculture, fisheries, and restoration.