Education

Dalhousie University, Department of Oceanography
Ph.D. (2009)

Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre
Undergraduate Fall Program
2001

Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia
Formal Exchange Program
2000

Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada
B.Sc. in Marine Biology, Coop Diploma
2002

Scholarships and Awards

2007 – 2009 NSERC Canada Graduate Scholarship D-2
2007 – 2009 Izaak Walton Killam Predoctoral Scholarship
2007 – 2008 Dalhousie Faculty of Graduate Studies Scholarship
2007 – Women Divers Hall of Fame Scholarship
2005 – 2006 NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship Master’s
2004 – 2005 NSERC Canada Graduate Scholarship Master’s
2004 – 2006 Dalhousie Faculty of Graduate Studies Student Supplement
2005 – Kathy Ellis Memorial Book Prize
2001 – Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre Tuition Fund

Grants

2004 – PADI Project Aware Foundation Grant
2002 – TD Bank Friends of the Environment
2002 – Environment Canada EcoAction Coordinator Grant
2002 – HR MacMillan Biodiversity Fund

Invited Presentations

Saunders M (2006) Baby bryozoans in the deep blue sea: Larval supply of an invasive invertebrate. Friday Informal Seminar Hour, Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS.

Papers in Refereed Journals

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2007) Temperature explains settlement patterns of the introduced bryozoan Membranipora membranacea in Nova Scotia, Canada. Marine Ecology Progress Series 344: 95-106.

Saunders M, Metaxas A (In review) High recruitment of the introduced bryozoan Membranipora membranacea is associated with kelp bed defoliation in Nova Scotia, Canada. Marine Ecology Progress Series.

Presentations at Scientific Meetings

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2008) Dispersal of an introduced bryozoan in St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia. American Society of Limnology and Oceanography Summer Meeting, St. John’s, Newfoundland.

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2007) Temperature explains settlement patterns of an introduced bryozoan in Nova Scotia. Conference of Dalhousie Oceanography Graduate Students, Halifax, NS.

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2007) Will climate change cause increases in the abundance of introduced marine species? Northeast Biological Graduate Student Conference, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS.

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2006) Determining larval supply mechanisms of Membranipora membranacea in Atlantic Canada. 7th Larval Biology Symposium, Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, Coos Bay, OR.

Saunders M, Scheibling RE, Metaxas A (2006) Effects of an introduced invertebrate on kelp bed population structure in Nova Scotia. Fisheries and Marine Ecosystems, University of British Columbia, Surrey, BC.

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2006) Determining larval supply mechanisms of an invasive invertebrate. Conference of Dalhousie Oceanography Graduate Students, Halifax, NS.

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2006) Settlement patterns of Membranipora membranacea on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia. Benthic Ecology Meeting, Quebec City, QC.

Saunders M, Metaxas A, Scheibling RE (2005) Temporal and spatial variability in larval and colony abundance of an invasive bryozoan. Atlantic Canada Coastal Estuarine Sciences Society, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Gulf Fisheries Centre, Moncton, NB.

Saunders M, Metaxas A, Scheibling RE (2005) Temporal and spatial variability in larval and colony abundance of an invasive bryozoan. Conference of Dalhousie Oceanography Graduate Students, Halifax, NS.

Posters at Scientific Meetings

Saunders M, Metaxas A (2008) Bay-scale patterns in larval abundance of the introduced bryozoan Membranipora membranacea in Nova Scotia. Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network Meeting, Banff AB.

Outreach and Popular Articles

Saunders M, Hyde F (2003) Eelgrass beds in the Bamfield region of Barkley Sound (maps). Online: http://www.oceanlink.island.net; http://www.shim.bc.ca

Saunders M (2003) From the Field: The Earthwatch “Manatees in Belize” Research Project. Aquanews: Aquatic Environmental News Network. Vancouver Aquarium Marine Sciences Centre. Online: http://www.vanaqua.org/aquanews/field/earthwatchupdates_megan.htm