Dr. Samuel Starko

Kelp Ecology and Transcriptomics (Postdoc)

I am a Forrest Research Fellow, based in the School of Biological Sciences and UWA’s Ocean Institute. Broadly, my research combines molecular techniques and field ecology to better understand how interactions between marine habitats and their changing environments can influence processes important to ecology, evolution and conservation. At UWA, I am primarily working to understand intraspecific variability and latent adaptive capacity in the golden kelp, Ecklonia radiata. Western Australia’s kelp forests are among the most warm-adapted in the world and my research aims to understand the genetic and physiological mechanisms underlying this heat tolerance.

I completed my PhD at the University of British Columbia (Canada) in 2019, where I used a multidisciplinary approach (genomics, community ecology, biomechanics) to characterise evolutionary patterns in the kelp (Laminariales) around the globe, with a focus on the Northeast Pacific. Following my PhD, I received an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship to explore variation in the responses of marine habitats (kelp forests, coral reefs) to extreme marine heatwaves at the University of Victoria (Canada). In late 2022, I joined the Wernberg lab and the Forrest Research Foundation in Perth.

Qualifications

  • 2019 PhD: University of British Columbia

Selected peer reviewed publications

Full publication list: https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=oJuqLbkAAAAJ&hl=en

  1. Starko S, Fifer J, Claar DC, Davies SW, Cunning R, Baker A, Baum JK. (2023). Marine heatwaves threaten cryptic coral diversity and erode associations amongst coevolving partners. Science Advances. 9(32): eadf0954
  • Starko, S., van der Mheen, M., Pessarrodona, A., Wood, G.V., Filbee-Dexter, K., Neufeld, C.J., Montie, S., Coleman, M.A. & Wernberg, T. Impacts of marine heatwaves in coastal ecosystems depend on local environmental conditions.. 30(8): e17469
  • Whalen M, Starko S, Lindstrom SC, Martone PT (2023). Heatwave restructures marine intertidal communities across a stress gradient. Ecology 104(5), e4027
  • Starko S, Neufeld CJ, Gendall L, Timmer B, Campbell L, Yakimishyn J, Druehl LD, Baum JK. (2022). Microclimate predicts kelp forest extinction in the face of direct and indirect marine heatwave effects. Ecological Applications 32(7), e2673
  • Starko S, Bringloe TT, Soto Gomez M, Darby H, Graham SW, Martone PT (2021). Genomic rearrangements and sequence evolution across brown algal organelles. Genome Biology and Evolution 13(7), evab124
  • Claar DC, Starko S, Tietjen KL, Epstein HE, Cunning R, Cobb KM, Baker AC, Baum JK (2020). Dynamic symbioses reveal pathways to coral survival through prolonged heatwaves. Nature Communications 11(1), 6097
  • Starko S, Demes KW, Neufeld CJ, Martone PT. (2020). Convergent evolution of niche structure across Northeast Pacific kelp forests. Functional Ecology 34, 2131-2146
  • Starko S, Soto Gomez, M, Darby H, Demes KW, Kawai H, Yotsukura N, Lindstrom SC, Keeling PJ, Graham SW, Martone PT. (2019).A comprehensive kelp phylogeny sheds light on the evolution of an ecosystem. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 136, 138-150.
  • Hind, KR, Starko S, Burt JM, Lemay MA, Saloman AK, Martone PT (2019). Trophic control of cryptic coralline algal diversity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 116(30), 15080-15085.
  1. Starko S & Martone PT. An empirical test of ‘universal’ biomass scaling relationships in kelps: evidence of convergence with seed plants (2016). New Phytologist 212(3), 719-729.

Other publications

Starko, S., Timmer, B., Neufeld, C.J. & Baum, J.K. (2024). Why some of British Columbia’s kelp forests are more threatened than others. The Conversation.

Starko, S. & Baum, J.K. (2023). Coral Reefs : How climate change threatens the hidden diversity of marine ecosystems. The Conversation. *Republished by The Globe & Mail

Selected achievements, prizes, honours and awards

  • 2024: Funding: ARC Discovery Grant
  • 2023: Funding: Wild Genomes: Revive & Restore
  • 2022: Funding: Forrest Research Fellowship
  • 2021: Funding: DFO Ecosystem and Ocean Science Framework (Canada)
  • 2021: Funding: Mitacs Accelerate Fellowship (Canada)
  • 2019: Funding: NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship (Canada)
  • 2018: Award: PSA Bold Award
  • 2017: Award: CSEE Best Poster Presentation
  • 2016: Funding: Killam Doctoral Fellowship (Canada)
  • 2015: Funding: PSA Grant-in-aid