Wes Tunnell, Ph.D.

Associate Director
& Harte Center Research Scientist

Office:	HRI 318 C
Phone:	(361) 825-2055
Fax:	(361) 825-2050
E-Mail:	wes.tunnell@tamucc.edu

Dr. Wes Tunnell is a broadly trained marine biologist/ecologist with a particular interest in field studies on coral reefs and coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico. Although his current focus is on biodiversity of the Gulf of Mexico, he has studied and published on coral reef ecology, coastal ecology, molluscan distribution and ecology, oil spill impacts, brachiopods, colonial waterbirds, and vertebrate fossils from the seabed. Dr. Tunnell published a book on the Laguna Madre of Texas and Tamaulipas, and he has another in press, Coral Reefs of the Southern Gulf of Mexico, and another, Texas Seashells, in preparation.

Education

B.S. in Biology, Texas A&I University, 1967
M.S. In Biology, Texas A&I University, 1969
Ph.D. in Biology, Texas A&M University, 1974

Research Interests

coral reef and coastal ecology;
molluscan systematics, distribution, and ecology;
Gulf of Mexico biodiversity;
oil spill impacts to marine environments

Awards

Fellow, Texas Academy of Sciences, 1981
Fulbright Scholar Award, Yucatan, Mexico, 1985-86
EPA Award for Environmental Excellence in Wetlands, 1994
Regents Professor Service Award, Texas A&M University System, 1998
Distinguished Professor Award, TAMU-CC Alumni, 2003

Selected Publications

Tunnell, J.W. Jr.. 2005. Biodiversity of the Gulf of Mexico project. pp. 285-286 in P. Miloslavich and E. Klein (eds.) Caribbean Marine Biodiversity: The Known and the Unknown. DEStech Publications, USA.
Tunnell, J.W. Jr. and S.A. Earle. 2004. Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies: Initiatives in Marine Science Research. Proceedings of 55th Annual Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute, Xel-Ha, Quintana Roo, Mexico, pp. 132-141.
Beaver, C.R., S.A.Earle, J.W. Tunnell, Jr., E.F. Evans, A.V. de la Cerda. 2004. Mass spawning of reef corals within the Veracruz Reef System, Veracruz, Mexico. Coral Reefs. 23:234.
Tunnell, J.W. Jr. and F.W. Judd (eds). 2002. The Laguna Madre of Texas and Tamaulipas. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas. 346 pp.
Tunnell, J.W. Jr. and B.R. Chapman. 2001. Ecology of nesting seabirds on the Campeche Bank Islands, southeastern Gulf of México. Atoll Research Bulletin 482: 1-50.
Dokken, Q.R., I.R. MacDonald, J.W. Tunnell, Jr., T. Wade, C.R. Beaver, S.A. Childs, K. Withers, and T.W. Bates. 2001. Long-term monitoring of the East and West Flower Garden Banks, 1998-1999. OCS Study MMS. Minerals Management Service. New Orleans, LA. p. 120.
Hicks, D.W., J.W. Tunnell, Jr., and R.F. McMahon. 2001. Population dynamics of the nonindigenous brown mussel Perna perna in the Gulf of México compared to other world-wide populations. Marine Ecology Progress Series 211: 181-192.
Hicks, D.W., C.P. Onuf, and J.W. Tunnell, Jr. 1998. Response of shoal grass, Halodule wrightii, to extreme winter conditions in the Lower Laguna Madre, Texas. Aquatic Botany. 62: 107-114.
Lang, J., P. Alcolado, J.P. Carricart-Ganivet, M. Chiappone, A. Curran, P. Dustan, G. Gaudian, F. Geraldes, St. Gittings, R. Smith, J.W. Tunnell, Jr., and J. Wiener. 1998. Status of coral reefs in the northern areas of the wider Caribbean. Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, Australian Institute of Marine Science. Australia. 123-134 pp.
Tunnell, J.W. and Q.R. Dokken. 1996. Current status and historical trends of the estuarine living resources within the Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program Study Area. Corpus Christi Bay National Estuary Program. 4 Vols. 1442 p.