Susan S. Bell
Professor and Chair

Contact

Office: SCA 332
Phone: 813/974-2542
Email:

Education

Ph.D., University of South Carolina, 1979.

Research

Ecology
Marine Ecology, Restoration Ecology

A major focus of my research has been seagrass ecosystems with special emphasis on plant-animal interactions. I am interested in exploring ecological relationships among fish, invertebrates and plant structure. Likewise, I am interested in how animal activity influences spatial distributional patterns of seagrasses. Much of my research focuses on field studies and the seagrass beds in Tampa Bay, located in close proximity to USF, provide excellent experimental systems as well as suitable contrast to other systems within which I have worked (e.g. North Carolina, New Zealand).

My present research interests include examining landscape ecology of seagrass beds and investigating the links between seagrass change and faunal responses to such changes. An additional topic of investigation in which I have been actively involved is restoration of seagrass habitats with a special emphasis on evaluation of functional equivalency of created seagrass beds. Some of my work has addressed short-term questions about faunal invasion and productivity but I am also engaged in longer term studies of fish feeding and invertebrate assemblages in constructed seagrass beds.

Current Courses

Ref	Course	Sec	Course Title	CR	Day	Time	Location
80077	BSC 4910	002	Undergraduate Research Permit From Dept Rep Required S-U Only	2			TBA TBA
82233	BSC 4910	018	Undergraduate Research	3			TBA TBA
87552	BSC 6932	014	Advance in Benthic Ecology	1			TBA TBA
88356	BSC 6932	017	Restoration Ecology	3	W	4:10pm-6:55pm	SCA 333
82319	BSC 7910	007	Directed Research	1-19			TBA TBA
82753	BSC 7910	015	Directed Research	1-19			TBA TBA
85648	BSC 7936	001	Ph.D Seminar	1			TBA TBA
82179	BSC 7980	002	Dissertation: Doctoral	2-19			TBA TBA
85330	BSC 7980	030	Dissertation: Doctoral	2-19			TBA TBA

Recent Publications

Bell, S.S., B.D. Robbins and S. L. Jensen. 1999. Gap dynamics in a seagrass landscape. Ecosystems 2:493-504

Robbins, and S.S. Bell. 2000. Dynamics of a subtidal seagrass landscape: seasonal and annual change in relation to water depth. Ecology 81:1193-1205.

Bell, S.S., R.A. Brooks, B.D. Robbins, M.A. Fonseca and M.O. Hall. 2001 Faunal response to fragmentation in seagrass habitats: implications for restoration efforts in a marine environment. Biol. Conserv. 100:115-123.

Brooks, R.A. and S.S. Bell. 2001.Colonization of a dynamic substrate: factors affecting recruitment of the wood boring isopod, Sphaeroma tenebrans, onto red mangrove roots. Oecologia 127:522-532.

Brooks R.A..and S.S. Bell. 2001.Mobile corridors in marine landscapes:enhancement of faunal exchange at seagrass/sand ecotones. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 264:67-84.

Jensen, S.L. and S.S. Bell. 2001. Seagrass growth and patch dynamics: cross-scale morphological plasticity. Plant Ecol.(in press)

Fonseca, M.S., P. E. Whitfield, N. M. Kelly, and S. S. Bell. 2001. Modeling seagrass landscape pattern and associated ecological attributes. Ecological Appl. (In press )

Brooks, R.A. and S.S. Bell. 2001. Mangrove response to attack by a root boring isopod: root repair versus architectural modification. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. (in press)