Richard's career began on completion of a BSc (Hons) at the University of Adelaide in 1999 studying aspects of marine invertebrate ecology.  He later worked in technical and scientific roles at the the South Australian Research and Development Institute, Aquatic Sciences (SARDI) from 2002 to 2009.  During his time at SARDI, he completed a PhD with the University of Adelaide on reproductive biology and recruitment dynamics in snapper (Chrysophrys auratus).  After completing his PhD studies he secured a post-doctoral position in 2010 with the Algal Biomass and Bioproducts research group at James Cook University in Townsville, Queensland.   In 2012 he returned to fish biology as a Senior Fisheries Biologist with the Queensland Department for Agriculture and Fisheries with a position based in the Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture at James Cook University, Townsville.

Interests

Professional

• Fishery managment

Research

• Fish and fisheries biology
• Ichthyoplankton
• Invasive fishes

Experience

• 2012 to present - Senior Fisheries Biologist, Queensland Department for Agriculture and Fisheries (Townsville, Queensland)
• 2010 to 2012 - Post-doctoral Fellow, James Cook University (Townsville, Queensland)
• 2009 - Research Officer, SARDI (Adelaide, South Australia)
• 2002 to 2008 - Research Services Officer, SARDI (Adelaide, South Australia)

Research Disciplines

• Fisheries Sciences (0704)
• Ecology (0602)
• Genetics (0604)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Fisheries - Wild Caught (8302)
• Fisheries - Aquaculture (8301)
• Ecosystem Assessment and Management (9605)

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

• Wilson J, Saunders R and Hutson K (2019) Parasites of the invasive tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus: evidence for co-introduction. Aquatic Invasions, 14 (2), pp. 332-349, DOI:10.3391/ai.2019. 14.2.11.
• Barton D, Taillebois L, Taylor J, Crook D, Saunders T, Hearnden M, Greig A, Welch D, Newman S, Travers M, Saunders R, Errity C, Maher S, Dudgeon C and Ovenden J (2018) Stock structure of Lethrinus laticaudis (Lethrinidae) across northern Australia determined using genetics, otolith microchemistry and parasite assemblage composition. Marine and Freshwater Research, 69 (4), pp. 487-501, DOI:10.1071/MF17087.
• Brazenor A, Saunders R, Miller T and Hutson K (2018) Morphological variation in the cosmopolitan fish parasite Neobenedenia girellae (Capsalidae: Monogenea). International Journal for Parasitology, 48 (2), pp. 125-134, DOI:10.1016/j.ijpara.2017.07.009.
• Taillebois L, Barton D, Crook D, Saunders T, Taylor J, Hearnden M, Saunders R, Newman S, Travers M, Welch D, Greig A, Dudgeon C, Maher S and Ovenden J (2017) Strong population structure deduced from genetics, otolith chemistry and parasite abundances explains vulnerability to localized fishery collapse in a large Sciaenid fish, Protonibea diacanthus. Evolutionary Applications, 10 (10), pp. 978-993, DOI:10.1111/eva.12499.
• Harry A, Saunders R, Smart J, Yates P, Simpfendorfer C and Tobin A (2016) Assessment of a data-limited, multi-species shark fishery in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and south-east Queensland. Fisheries Research, 177, pp. 104-115, DOI:10.1016/j.fishres.2015.12.008.
• Robson H, Noble T, Saunders R, Robson S, Burrows D and Jerry D (2016) Fine-tuning for the tropics: application of eDNA technology for invasive fish detection in tropical freshwater ecosystems. Molecular Ecology, 16 (4), pp. 922-932, DOI:10.1111/1755-0998.12505.
• Taillebois L, Dudgeon C, Maher S, Crook D, Saunders T, Barton D, Taylor J, Welch D, Newman S, Travers M, Saunders R and Ovenden J (2016) Characterization, development and multiplexing of microsatellite markers in three commercially exploited reef fish and their application for stock identification. PeerJ, 4, Article: e2418, pp. 1-18, DOI:10.7717/peerj.2418.
• Saunders R, Fowler A and Gillanders B (2012) The use of food resources by 0+ snapper, Chrysophrys auratus, from northern Spencer Gulf, South Australia. Marine and Freshwater Research, 63 (8), pp. 680-686, DOI:10.1071/MF11266.
• Saunders R, Paul N, Hu Y and de Nys R (2012) Sustainable sources of biomass for bioremediation of heavy metals in waste water derived from coal-fired power generation. PLoS ONE, 7 (5), Article: e36470, pp. 1-8, DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0036470.

Book Chapters

• Chin A, Cameron D and Saunders R (2019) Fisheries of the Great Barrier Reef. In: The Great Barrier Reef: biology, environment and management. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne, VIC, Australia, pp. 117-130

Other research outputs

• Noble T, Robson H, Saunders R and Jerry D (2015) The utility of eDNA as a tilapia surveillance tool. [monograph]
• Creighton C, Sawynok B, Sutton S, D'Silva D, Stagles I, Pam C, Saunders R, Welch D, Grixti D and Spooner D (2013) Climate Change and Recreational Fishing: implications of climate change for recreational fishers and the recreational fishing industry. [monograph]

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

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.

• Skilton, D. (2019) Parasite attractants: identifying trap baits for parasite management in aquaculture. James Cook University
• Robson, H. (2017) Tilapia eDNA (environmental DNA) data. James Cook University

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