Prof. Iain Suthers

BSc. MSc. PhD

School of Biological Earth and Environmental Science
University of New South Wales
Sydney NSW 2052
AUSTRALIA

Phone: +612 9385 2065
Fax: +612 9385 1558
Email: i.suthers at unsw.edu.au

Research Interests

Iain Suthers is a Professor in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of New South Wales and is partly based in Building 19 at the Sydney Institute of Marine Science. He leads the FAMER lab with Dr. Matt Taylor (DPI-Fisheries), Dr Jason Everett and Dr Nick Payne.

Iain Suthers explores the basis and sustainability of estuarine and coastal ecosystems. His discoveries in the past 5 years concern the effect of rain and nutrients on zooplankton as a measure of water quality, as well as a supply of fish nutrition. Iain has published over 90 papers and book chapters on a variety of marine subjects that concern fisheries oceanography (including a recent book on plankton). He completed his PhD in Canada and post-doctoral work in Norway as well as back home in Australia before taking up a lectureship at UNSW in 1991.

These ecosystem fundamentals become manifest in determining:

• the environmentally appropriate density of young fish or prawns for estuarine re-stocking;
• The ecosystem contribution from design-specific artificial reefs;
• the effect of drought on estuarine fisheries;
• Herring recruitment and long term zooplankton ecosystem dynamics in the Bay of Fund, Canada (with Dr Robert Stephenson);
• the biological significance of salps and krill in the western Tasman Sea; and,
• the biological significance of the East Australian Current (EAC) and its eddies.

His research on the separation of the EAC from the coast off Port Stephens reveals a key region influencing NSW’s climate, fisheries, and red tide production. Since 2005 Suthers has led 5 research voyages on Australia’s Marine National Facility (RV Southern Surveyor) into the EAC and Tasman Front, and has led the deployments of autonomous ocean gliders to explore the enigmatic eddies of the EAC. Iain was leader of the NSW node of Australia’s Integrated Marine Observing System (from 2007-2010), and with his colleague Dr Moninya Roughan he has been one of the major drivers in the remarkable development of the Sydney Institute of Marine Science ; and contributed to the design and build of Australia’s new Research Vessel Investigator (to be launched mid 2013).

He has two ARC Linkage Projects with DPI (Fisheries) and 4 other investigators on the Offshore Artificial Reef (2012-2014); and on Estuarine Predators (2010-2013); an ARC Discovery Project on temperate krill (2012-2014). He and his team were awarded two ARC Large Infrastructure and Equipment Grants in 2010 for a Laser Optical Plankton Counter, and a DIDSON acoustic camera. He has just completed two ARC Discovery projects on salps and eddies of the EAC.

Teaching

He teaches a third year fisheries and oceanography course, contributes to the 2nd year Vertebrates and Biology of Invertebrates courses; to the 4th year honours program; to the Masters of Marine Science and Management program and has a laboratory of 12 PhD students in collaboration with Dr. Matt Taylor (DPI-Fisheries), Dr Jason Everett and Dr Nick Payne.

Committee's

Iain holds the following positions:

• Scientific Advisory Committee for the National Research Facility, R.V. Southern Surveyor (2002-present);
• Technical Advisory Group – R.V. Investigator;
• Scientific Advisory Committee for Sydney Institute of Marine Science (SIMS) (2005-present);
• Scientific Advisory Committee for Sea World Research & Rescue Foundation (2001-present);
• Chairman of Education Committee, Australian Soc. Fish Biology (2004-present);
• ARC Ozreader since (2002-present)

Book Chapters

• Suthers, IM and A. Waite. 2007. Ecological Oceanography, Chapter 8 in [eds Connell & Gillanders], Marine Ecology. Oxford University Press, pp 199-226
• Waite, A. and IM Suthers. 2007. Open water: plankton ecology. Chapter 12 in [eds Connell & Gillanders], Marine Ecology. Oxford University Press, pp 281-315
• D Rissik and Suthers IM. 2009. The importance of plankton, pp 1-14, Chapter 1 in [eds Suthers & Rissik], Plankton: A Guide to Their Ecology and Monitoring for Water Quality. CSIRO Publishing.
• Suthers IM and A Redden. 2009. Plankton processes and the plankton environment, pp 15-38, Chapter 2 in [eds Suthers & Rissik], Plankton: A Guide to Their Ecology and Monitoring for Water Quality. CSIRO Publishing.
• Suthers IM et al. 2009. Plankton-related environmental and water quality issues, pp 39-72, Chapter 3 in [eds Suthers & Rissik], Plankton: A Guide to Their Ecology and Monitoring for Water Quality. CSIRO Publishing.
• Suthers IM et al. 2009. Sampling and monitoring plankton, pp 73-114, Chapter 4 in [eds Suthers & Rissik], Plankton: A Guide to Their Ecology and Monitoring for Water Quality. CSIRO Publishing.
• Suthers IM and AJ Miskiewicz. 2009. Coastal zooplankton diversity and ecology, pp181-222, Chapter 8 in [eds Suthers & Rissik], Plankton: A Guide to Their Ecology and Monitoring for Water Quality. CSIRO Publishing.