Prof Morgan Pratchett has broad interests in population and community ecology of coral reef organisms, especially corals and fishes. His current research focuses on major disturbances that impact coral reef ecosystems, with a view to understanding differential responses and vulnerabilities among coral reef organisms.

Morgan has written many papers describing direct and indirect effects of coral bleaching and outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish, considering impacts on both coral assemblages and associated assemblages of coral reef fishes. He has also conducted extensive research on the biology and ecology of coral reef butterflyfishes.

Teaching

• BZ3755: Biodiversity and Climate Change: Impact, Mitigation and Adaptation (Level 3; TSV)
• BZ5755: Biodiversity and Climate Change: Impact, Mitigation and Adaptation (Level 5; TSV)
• MB3190: Coral Reef Ecology (Level 3; TSV)
• MB5190: Coral Reef Ecology (Level 5; TSV)

Interests

Research

• Impacts of climate change on coral reef ecosystems
• Population outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish
• Population dynamics of scleractinian corals
• Ecological versatility in coral reef fishes
• Biology and ecology of butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae)

Research Disciplines

• Ecology (0602)
• Environmental Science and Management (0502)
• Ecological Applications (0501)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Expanding Knowledge (9701)
• Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity (9608)
• Climate and Climate Change (9603)

Fellowships

• 2012 - Queensland Smart Futures Fellowship
• 2011 - ACU Titular Fellowship, University of Oxford
• 2008 - Sir Keith Murdoch Fellowship, American Australian Association
• 2008 - Sir John and Laurine Proud Research Fellowship, Lizard Island Reef Research Foundation
• 2008 - Churchill Fellowship, University of Newcastle, UK

Memberships

• Australian Coral Reef Society
• Fisheries Society of the British Isles
• Recording Secretary for International Coral Reef Society

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Anderson K, Cantin N, Casey J and Pratchett M (2019) Independent effects of ocean warming versus acidification on the growth, survivorship and physiology of two Acropora corals. Coral Reefs, 38 (6), pp. 1225-1240, DOI:10.1007/s00338-019-01864-y.
• Baraf L, Pratchett M and Cowman P (2019) Ancestral biogeography and ecology of marine angelfishes (F: Pomacanthidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 140, Article: 106596, DOI:10.1016/j.ympev.2019.106596.
• Bellwood D, Pratchett M, Morrison T, Gurney G, Hughes T, Álvarez-Romero J, Day J, Grantham R, Grech A, Hoey A, Jones G, Pandolfi J, Tebbett S, Techera E, Weeks R and Cumming G (2019) Coral reef conservation in the Anthropocene: confronting spatial mismatches and prioritizing functions. Biological Conservation, 236, pp. 604-615, DOI:10.1016/j.biocon.2019.05.056.
• Doszpot N, McWilliam M, Pratchett M, Hoey A and Figueira W (2019) Plasticity in three-dimensional geometry of branching corals along a cross-shelf gradient. Diversity, 11 (3), Article: 44, DOI:10.3390/D11030044.
• Hughes T, Kerry J, Baird A, Connolly S, Chase T, Dietzel A, Hill T, Hoey A, Hoogenboom M, Jacobson M, Kerswell A, Madin J, Mieog A, Paley A, Pratchett M, Torda G and Woods R (2019) Global warming impairs stock-recruitment dynamics of corals. Nature, 568 (7752), pp. 387-401, DOI:10.1038/s41586-019-1081-y.
• Hughes T, Kerry J, Connolly S, Baird A, Eakin C, Heron S, Hoey A, Hoogenboom M, Jacobson M, Liu G, Pratchett M, Skirving W and Torda G (2019) Ecological memory modifies the cumulative impact of recurrent climate extremes. Nature Climate Change, 9 (1), pp. 40-44, DOI:10.1038/s41558-018-0351-2.
• Maldonado A, Nowicki J, Pratchett M and Schlenk D (2019) Differences in diet and biotransformation enzymes of coral reef butterflyfishes between Australia and Hawaii. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part C: toxicology & pharmacology, 216, pp. 1-9, DOI:10.1016/j.cbpc.2018.10.004.
• Pisapia C, Burn D and Pratchett M (2019) Changes in the population and community structure of corals during recent disturbances (February 2016-October 2017) on Maldivian coral reefs. Scientific Reports, 9, Article: 8402, DOI:10.1038/s41598-019-44809-9.
• Pratchett M, Lang B and Matthews S (2019) Culling crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster cf. Solaris) on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef: rationale and effectiveness. Australian Zoologist, 40 (1), pp. 13-24, DOI:10.7882/AZ.2018.021.
• Pratchett M and Cumming G (2019) Managing cross-scale dynamics in marine conservation: pest irruptions and lessons from culling of crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster spp.). Biological Conservation, 238, Article: 108211, DOI:10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108211.
• Pratchett M, Hoey A, Tan C, Kuo C, Bauman A, Kumaraswamy R and Baird A (2019) Spatial and temporal variation in fecundity of Acropora spp. in the Northern Great Barrier Reef. Diversity, 11, Article: 60, DOI:10.3390/d11040060.

Book Chapters

• Pratchett M, Bridge T, Brodie J, Cameron D, Day J, Emslie M, Grech A, Hamann M, Heron S, Hoey A, Hoogenboom M, Lough J, Morrison T, Osborne K, Read M, Schauble C, Smithers S, Sweatman H and Waterhouse J (2019) Australia's Great Barrier Reef. In: World Seas: an environmental evaluation. Elsevier, London, UK, pp. 333-362

More

ResearchOnline@JCU stores 270+ research outputs authored by Prof Morgan Pratchett from 1999 onwards.

Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.

Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Primary or Secondary Advisor.

These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.

Current

• Contrasting Patterns of juvenile density and partial mortality in scleractinian corals across Australia's Coral Sea Marine Park and Great Barrier Reef. (Masters , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• The Role of Hybridisation in the Evolution of Coral Reef Fishes (PhD , Advisor Mentor)
• The Effect of Ocean Warming on the Behaviour and Fitness of Post-settlement Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (Acanthaster cf. solaris) (PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Habitat suitability and patterns of larval settlement for crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster cf. solaris) in the western Pacific (PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Changes in behaviour and sociality of Chaetodon butterflyfish linked to population declines and coral loss (Masters , Primary Advisor)
• Dynamics of Reef-building corals along the north-western Australian coastline (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• The effect of increasing temperature on algae-fish interactions on coral reefs (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Interactions between fish and coral reefs: the influence of habitat degradation on fish communities (PhD , Secondary Advisor/AM)
• Spatial Variation in the Density and Demography of Newly Settled Crown-of-thorns Starfish (Acanthaster cf. solaris). (PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)

Completed

• Environmental influences on the reproductive biology and early life history of the crown-of-thorns starfish (2017, PhD , Primary Advisor)
• Predation on the early life stages of the crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster cf. solaris) (2017, PhD , Primary Advisor)
• Neural and ecological basis of pair bonding in butterflyfishes (F: Chaetodontidae) (2017, PhD , Primary Advisor)
• Effects of habitat versus fisheries management on spatio-temperal variation in fish assemblages on the Great Barrier Reef (2017, PhD , Primary Advisor)
• Effects of climate change-induced thermal stress and habitat degradation to the biodiversity and species composition of coral-associated invertebrates (2016, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Temporal and Spatial Variation in the Growth of Branching Corals (2016, PhD , Primary Advisor)
• The Dietary Niche in Behavioural and Community Ecology (2015, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Spatial and Temporal Variation in Demographic Traits in the Reef Coral, Acropora Millepora, on The Great Barrier Reef (2015, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Vectors and environmental drivers of coral disease dynamics on the Great Barrier Reef (2017, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Adaptive strategies in reef-building corals (2017, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Causes and consequences of natural hybridisation among coral reef butterflyfishes (Chaetodon: Chaetodontidae) (2018, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Variation in structure and function of reef fish assemblages among distinct coral habitats (2018, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Spatial, temporal and taxonomic variation in the incidence of partial mortality among reef-building corals (2015, PhD , Primary Advisor)
• Spatial and temporal variation in movement patterns and behaviour of a large, coral reef mesopredator, Plectropomus leopardus, on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia (2019, PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Effects of coral-dwelling damselfishes abundance and diversity on host coral dynamics (2019, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• The persistence of Sargassum communities on coral reefs: resilience and herbivory (2019, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Temperature preferences of tropical fishes and the influence of local abiotic and biotic factors (2020, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Modelling tools for the management of crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster cf. solaris) outbreaks on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (2019, PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)

These are the most recent metadata records associated with this researcher. To see a detailed description of all dataset records, visit the JCU Research Data Catalogue.

• Pratchett, M. (2020) Gamete concentrations and gonad index for Pacific crown-of-thorns starfish. James Cook University
• Graba-Landry, A. (2020) Graba-Landry PhD thesis: The effect of increasing temperature to algae-fish interactions on coral reefs. James Cook University
• Burn, D. (2020) Biogeographical variation in diurnal behaviour of Acanthaster planci versus Acanthaster cf. solaris. James Cook University
• Hughes, T. (2019) Global warming impairs stock-recruitment dynamics of corals. James Cook University
• Richardson, L. (2018) PhD thesis data: Variation in structure and function of reef fish assemblages among distinct coral habitats, by Laura E. Richardson (2018). James Cook University
• Hughes, T. (2018) Global warming transforms coral reef assemblages. James Cook University
• Blowes, S. (2017) Data from: Heterospecific aggression and dominance in a guild of coral-feeding fishes: the roles of dietary ecology and phylogeny. James Cook University
• Lawton, R. (2017) Data from: High gene flow across large geographic scales reduces extinction risk for a highly specialised coral feeding butterflyfish. James Cook University
• Pratchett, M. (2017) Captive movement rates of the Pacific crown-of-thorns starfish, Acanthaster solaris. James Cook University
• Cowan, Z. (2017) Predation on settling crown-of-thorns starfish larvae by benthic predators. James Cook University

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.