Dr. Monica Moritsch
Research Fellow
Biography & Research Interests
Monica Moritsch is a Marine Ecologist interested in using spatial approaches to inform decision-making and conservation efforts. She specializes in GIS and geospatial modelling in marine ecosystems.
In a collaboration between the Marine Mapping Group in Warrnambool and the Blue Carbon Lab in Burwood, Monica uses spatial models to estimate future carbon sequestration in salt marshes, mangroves, and seagrasses (‘blue’ carbon habitats). This research examines how different land use scenarios influence the amount of carbon removed from the atmosphere and the economic value of that carbon.
Monica has worked in variety of ecosystems, including coral reefs, polar oceans, rocky intertidal platforms, and estuaries. In 2018, she completed her PhD at University of California Santa Cruz, which focused on spatial patterns of a marine epidemic and its impacts on rocky intertidal ecology. She also gained experience quantifying ecosystem services of California’s coastal habitats as a Geospatial Research Assistant at the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions.
Read more at www.monicamoritsch.com
Research Highlights
Chung, A.E., L.M. Wedding, A. Meadows, M.M. Moritsch, M.K. Donovan, J. Gove, and C. Hunter. Prioritizing Reef Resilience through Spatial Planning following a Mass Coral Bleaching Event. Coral Reefs, in press. doi: 10.1007/s00338-019-01812-w
Moritsch, M. M., L. Strope, and S. G. Crandall. 2019. Beach visitors understand environmental etiquette but do not know where to apply it: a survey of public awareness of marine reserves on the coast of Central California. Ocean and Coastal Management, 167: 104-114. doi: 10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2018.10.005
Moritsch, M. M., and P. T. Raimondi. 2018. Reduction and recovery of keystone predation pressure after disease-related mass mortality. Ecology and Evolution, 8(8): 3952-3964. doi: 10.1002/ece3.3953
Palkovacs, E., M. M. Moritsch, G. Contolini, and F. Pelletier. 2018. Ecology of harvest-driven trait change and implications for ecosystem management. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 16(1): 20-28. doi: 10.1002/fee.1743