Dr Steven Newman
Research Associate
- Email: steve.newman@ncl.ac.uk
- Telephone: +44 (0) 191 222 5091
- Fax: +44 (0) 191 222 7891
- Address: School of Marine Science & Technology
4.71 Ridley building
Newcastle University
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 7RU United Kingdom
Background
A marine ecologist with over 10 years’ tropical field research in the Caribbean and Indian Ocean, in residence at institutions in the Bahamas, Jamaica, Turks and Caicos Islands and the Maldives. Within the Caribbean, Dr Newman has also conducted research in Antigua, Barbados, Belize, Bonaire, Curacao, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Puerto Rico, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines. Research interests include fish community ecology in reef, seagrass and mangrove systems, predator/prey interactions and foraging ecology, as well as short- and long-term movement patterns and habitat use. His current work focuses on the role of architectural complexity on reef fish communities in the Caribbean, mesopredator release in the Caribbean, and foraging ecology and predator loading on reefs in the Maldives.
Roles and Responsibilities
Coordinate, lead and conduct research. Supervision of undergraduate and graduate research projects.
Research Interests
- Predator-prey interactions, bioenergetics and optimal foraging
- Biology and ecology of elasmobranchs
- Ecology of coral reef, mangrove and seagrass ecosystems
Current Advisory Work
PhD Students: Wahyu Nugraha (with NP Polunin, SP Rushton) - macroecology of Caribbean parrotfish; George Stoyle (with NP Polunin) - parrotfish and macroalgal dominance of reefs; Charlie Dryden (with SP Newman) - reef fish-habitat relationships in the Caribbean
MSc Students: Phil Lowe (with NP Polunin) - mesopredator release on Caribbean reefs; Charlotte Wiseman (with NP Polunin) - utilisation of mangroves and reefs by juvenile fish; Kate Griffiths (with NP Polunin) - effect of reef complexity on species richness
Additional Research Projects
- Predator loading on Maldivian reefs (with L Kroeger Oxford, M Moraitis Maldives, B. Riegl NCRI)
- Effect of lunar eclipse on reef fish in the Maldives
- Feeding ecology of groupers, snappers and tuna in the Maldives
- Diel variation in mangrove fish communities in the TCI (with M Ashley, Plymouth Uni)
Additional Roles
- Adjunct Faculty Virginia Institute of Marine Science 2008-Present
- Honorary Research Fellow Plymouth University 2009-Present
- Scientific Advisory Committee for the Turks and Caicos Islands 2006-2008
- Association of Marine Laboratories of the Caribbean Board of Directors 2006-2008
Projects
- Project: Future of reefs in a changing environment: an ecosystem approach to managing Caribbean coral reefs in the face of climate change (FORCE)
Project Leader(s): Prof. Nick Polunin - Understanding and addressing the impacts of threats to marine ecosystems/biodiversity in the UK overseas territories in the Caribbean
Project Leader(s): Dr Clare Fitzsimmons
Undergraduate Teaching
MST2001: Tropical Marine Environment and Ecology
- Newman SP, Handy RD, Gruber SH. Ontogenetic variation in diet and prey preference of juvenile lemon sharks, Negaprion brevirostris, reveal a flexible foraging tactic. Environmental Biology of Fishes 2012. In Press.
- Newman SP, Handy RD, Gruber SH. Diet and prey preference of juvenile lemon sharks, Negaprion brevirostris, at Bimini, Bahamas. Marine Ecology Progress Series 2011, 398, 221-234.
- Pettitt-Wade H, Newman SP, Parsons KT, Gruber SH, Handy RD. Dietary metal and macro-nutrient intakes of juvenile lemon sharks determined from the nutritional composition of prey items. Marine Ecology Progress Series 2011, 433, 245-260.
- Richardson PB, Broderick AC, Bruford M, Calosso M, Clerveaux W, Formia A, Henderson A, McClellan K, Newman SP, Parsons K, Pepper M, Ranger S, Silver JJ, Slade L, Godley BJ. Marine turtles in the Turks and Caicos Islands: remnant rookeries, regionally significant foraging areas and a major turtle fishery. Chelonian Conservation and Biology 2009, 8(2), 192-207.
- Vo A, Dikou A, Newman SP. Biological, Socioeconomic, and Political Aspects of the Nassau Grouper (Epinephelus striatus) Fishery in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Harvard Undergraduate Research Journal 2008, 1(1), 80-87.
- Newman SP, Handy RD, Gruber SH. Spatio-temporal variation in mangrove and seagrass communities, at Bimini, Bahamas. Bulletin of Marine Science 2007, 80, 529-553.
- Barker MJ, Gruber SH, Newman SP, Schluessel V. Spatial and temporal variation in growth of nursery-bound juvenile lemon sharks (Negaprion brevirostris) using a new age-assigning technique. Environmental Biology of Fishes 2005, 72, 343-355.
- Newman SP, Gruber SH, Handy RD. The scarecrow toadfish (Opsanus phobetron): Habitat, abundance, and reproductive maturity at Bimini, Bahamas. Journal of Fish Biology 2004, 64, 248-252.
- Newman SP, Gruber SH. Comparison of mangrove and seagrass fish and macroinvertebrate communities in Bimini, Bahamas. Bahamian Journal of Science 2002, 9, 19-27.
- Gruber SH, Grant AT, Newman SP. Effects of large-scale seafloor excavation in the Bimini lagoon. Bahamian Journal of Science 2002, 9, 36-40.