Dr Bridie Allan, Our staff, Department of Marine Science

Contact details

Office 310 Castle Street, room 148
Tel +64 3 479 8327
Email bridie.allan@otago.ac.nz

Academic qualifications

BSc University of Otago
MSc James Cook University
PhD James Cook University

Research interests

Marine ecology
Swimming performance in fishes
Chemical ecology of predator-prey interactions
Environmental influences on predator-prey interactions.

My research explores how environmental changes can alter the mechanisms underlying population processes and how these changes scale to community dynamics. To do this, I use field collections, observations and experiments in conjunction with laboratory experiments to investigate a wide range of impacts including climate change, oil pollution, habitat disturbances, microplastic pollution, and other human activities that influence the physiology, behaviour and survival of fish. My field sites span both tropical and temperate regions.

I am also a member of the Coastal People: Southern Skies collaboration that connects communities with world-leading, cross-discipline research to rebuild coastal ecosystems.
Coastal People: Southern Skies

I encourage enthusiastic students who have a strong academic background and are interested in joining our research group to contact me directly to discuss potential postgraduate projects:

Influence of habitat complexity on anti-predator behaviour in marine animals
Impacts of microplastic pollution on the physiology and behaviour of marine animals
The impacts of dredging and sediment exposure on the physiology and behaviour of marine animals
Effects of habitat degradation on reproductive fitness in marine animals
The ecological role of chemically-mediated larval behaviour in ecosystem function

Courses

AQFI 251 Principles of Aquaculture (Lecturer)
MARI 112 Marine Biology: The Living Ocean (Course co-ordinator)
MARI 202 Ecology and Biology of Marine Invertebrates (Lecturer)
MARI 301 Marine Ecology and Ecosystems (Lecturer)
MARI 401 Advanced Methods in Marine Science (Lecturer)

Postgraduate students

Current students

Eleanor Kelly, PhD: The combined response of warming, UV, and crude oil exposure on predator-prey interactions of fish and the neurophysiological drivers responsible.
Aneesa Delpachitra, MSc: Assessing the interactive impacts of crude oil and microplastics on juvenile coral reef fish (Pomacentrus amboinensis).
Jake Edwards-Ingle, MSc: Influence of habitat complexity and time of day on encounter-rates of blacktip reef shark neonates and their predators.
Hannah Fox-McLachlan, MSc: Can Common triplefin (Forsterygion lapillum) recruits use associative learning mechanisms to learn the identity of a novel predator.

Completed students

Isabella Clere, MSc: Quantification and characterisation of microplastics in wild and farm reared commercial fish from southern New Zealand.
Brad Lamont, MSc: The effects of chemical alarm cues on fish physiology and development.
Amelia Mannering, MSc: Another one bites the microplastic! The impacts of microplastic exposure on the condition and anti-predator behaviour of coral reef fish.
Teresa Morrell, MSc: The impact of microplastic exposure on the reproductive success of Triplefins.
José Emilio Trujillo Moyano, PhD: The relationship between physiological traits and fast-start escape behavior of juvenile blacktip reef sharks under different thermal conditions.
Zoe Psarathoukis, MSc: The impact of ingested microplastics with adsorbed heavy metals on the fitness and predator avoidance behaviour of Forsterygion capito (robust triplefin fish).
Paige Olmstead, MSc: The effect of microplastics on gut morphology in triplefin.
Ashleigh Hawke, MSc: The effect of heavy metal and microplastic contamination on the escape performance of the New Zealand Triplefin fish.
Eleanor Kelly, MSc: Microbial biofilms on marine plastic debris.
Ben Paanakker, PGdipSci: Exposure to sublethal levels of glyphosate-based herbicide on the embryonic development of coastal triplefin, Forsterygion capito.
Campbell Pearson, PGdipSci: The effect of crude oil on Triplefin (Forsterygion capito) embryo physiology.
Fletcher Munsterman, MSc: The effect of plasticisers on nest guarding behaviour in Triplefins.
Isla Twigg, PhD: Macrocystis pyrifera as a biogenic engineer.

Publications

Munsterman, F., Allan, B. J. M., & Johnson, S. L. (2024). The availability and ingestion of microplastics by an intertidal fish is dependent on urban proximity. New Zealand Journal of Marine & Freshwater Research. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1080/00288330.2024.2365272 Journal - Research Article

Kelly, E. R. M., Trujillo, J. E., Setiawan, A., Pether, S., Burritt, D., & Allan, B. J. M. (2024). Investigating the metabolic and oxidative stress induced by biofouled microplastics exposure in Seriola lalandi (yellowtail kingfish). Marine Pollution Bulletin, 203, 116438. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116438 Journal - Research Article

Allan, B. (2024). Antipredator specializations: Alarm cues. In S. L. Alderman & T. E. Gillis (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Fish Physiology (Vol. 3:. (2nd ed.) (pp. 379-385). Amsterdam, Netherlands: Academic Press. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-323-90801-6.00149-X Chapter in Book - Research

Hawke, A. M., Trujillo, J. E., Oey, I., Giteru, S. G., & Allan, B. J. M. (2024). Exposure to petroleum-derived and biopolymer microplastics affect fast start escape performance and aerobic metabolism in a marine fish. Science of the Total Environment, 906, 167423. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.167423 Journal - Research Article

Nagelkerken, I., Allan, B. J. M., Booth, D. J., Donelson, J. M., Edgar, G. J., Ravasi, T., … Mellin, C. (2023). The effects of climate change on the ecology of fishes [Review]. PLoS Climate, 2(8), e0000258. doi: 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000258 Journal - Research Article

2024

Chapter in Book - Research

Journal - Research Article

2023

Chapter in Book - Research

Allan, B. (2023). Movement specializations: Mauthner cells. In Reference module in life sciences. (Online ed.) Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-323-90801-6.00148-8

Journal - Research Article

Kjesbu, O. S., Alix, M., Sandø, A. B., Strand, E., Wright, P. J., Johns, D. G., … Allan, B. J. M., … Sundby, S. (2023). Latitudinally distinct stocks of Atlantic cod face fundamentally different biophysical challenges under on-going climate change. Fish & Fisheries, 24, 297-320. doi: 10.1111/faf.12728

Fakan, E. P., Allan, B. J. M., Illing, B., Hoey, A. S., & McCormick, M. I. (2023). Habitat complexity and predator odours impact on the stress response and antipredation behaviour in coral reef fish. PLoS ONE, 18(6), e0286570. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0286570

Kelly, E. R. M., Trujillo, J. E., Setiawan, A., Pether, S., Burritt, D., & Allan, B. J. M. (2023). Investigating the impacts of biofouled marine plastic debris on the olfactory behaviour of juvenile yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi). Marine Pollution Bulletin, 192, 115079. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115079

McCormick, M. I., Fakan, E. P., Vamvounis, G., Bosshard, S., Moad, C., Smyth, E., … Allan, B. J. M. (2023). No effects of plasticized microplastics on the body condition and reproduction of a marine fish. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 80, 1267-1276. doi: 10.1093/icesjms/fsad049

2022

Journal - Research Article

Trujillo, J. E., Bouyoucos, I., Rayment, W. J., Domenici, P., Planes, S., Rummer, J. L., & Allan, B. J. M. (2022). Escape response kinematics in two species of tropical sharks: Short escape latencies and high turning performance. Journal of Experimental Biology, 225, jeb243973. doi: 10.1242/jeb.243973

Clere, I. K., Ahmmed, F., Remoto, P. J. G., Fraser-Miller, S. J., Gordon, K. C., Komyakova, V., & Allan, B. J. M. (2022). Quantification and characterization of microplastics in commercial fish from southern New Zealand. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 184, 114121. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114121

Allan, B. J. M., Browman, H. I., Shema, S., Skiftesvik, A.-B., Folkvord, A., Durif, C. M. F., & Kjesbu, O. S. (2022). Increasing temperature and prey availability affect the growth and swimming kinematics of Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) larvae. Journal of Plankton Research, 44(3), 401-413. doi: 10.1093/plankt/fbac014

Komyakova, V., Jaffrés, J. B. D., Strain, E. M. A., Cullen-Knox, C., Fudge, M., Langhamer, O., … Allan, B. J. M., … Haward, M. (2022). Conceptualisation of multiple impacts interacting in the marine environment using marine infrastructure as an example. Science of the Total Environment, 830, 154748. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154748

2021

Journal - Research Article

Richardson, C. R., Burritt, D. J., Allan, B. J. M., & Lamare, M. D. (2021). Microplastic ingestion induces asymmetry and oxidative stress in larvae of the sea urchin Pseudechinus huttoni. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 168, 112369. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112369

Journal - Research Other

Arvizu, B., Allan, B. J. M., & Rizzan, J. R. (2021). Indirect predator effects influence behaviour but not morphology of juvenile coral reef Ambon damselfish Pomacentrus amboinensis. Journal of Fish Biology, 99, 679-683. doi: 10.1111/jfb.14728

Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Ahmmed, F., Clere, I., Allan, B., Miller, S., & Gordon, K. (2021). Potential use of Raman microscope for the detection and identification of microplastic polymers in New Zealand commercial fish species. Proceedings of the American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall Meeting. Retrieved from https://www.acs.org

Kelly, E., Trujillo, J., & Allan, B. (2021). Testing the attractiveness of biofouled marine plastic debris on yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi). Proceedings of the University of Otago Student Research Symposium: Te Wānaka Rakahau: Ākoka. (pp. 40). [Abstract]

2020

Journal - Research Article

McCormick, M. I., Chivers, D. P., Ferrari, M. C. O., Blandford, M. I., Nanninga, G. B., Richardson, C., … Allan, B. J. M. (2020). Microplastic exposure interacts with habitat degradation to affect behaviour and survival of juvenile fish in the field. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 287, 20201947. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2020.1947

Allan, B. J. M., Illing, B., Fakan, E. P., Narvaez, P., Grutter, A. S., Sikkel, P. C., … McCormick, M. I. (2020). Parasite infection directly impacts escape response and stress levels in fish. Journal of Experimental Biology, 223, jeb230904. doi: 10.1242/jeb.230904

Bernal, M. A., Schunter, C., Lehmann, R., Lightfoot, D. J., Allan, B. J. M., Veilleux, H. D., … Ravasi, T. (2020). Species-specific molecular responses of wild coral reef fishes during a marine heatwave. Science Advances, 6(12), eaay3423. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aay3423

Cresci, A., Allan, B. J. M., Shema, S. D., Berit Skiftesvik, A., & Browman, H. I. (2020). Orientation behavior and swimming speed of Atlantic herring larvae (Clupea harengus) in situ and in laboratory exposures to rotated artificial magnetic fields. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology & Ecology, 526, 151358. doi: 10.1016/j.jembe.2020.151358

Jarrold, M. D., Welch, M. J., McMahon, S. J., McArley, T., Allan, B. J. M., Watson, S.-A., … Munday, P. L. (2020). Elevated CO₂ affects anxiety but not a range of other behaviours in juvenile yellowtail kingfish. Marine Environmental Research, 157, 104863. doi: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2019.104863

Journal - Research Other

Allan, B. J. M. (2020). The cost of recreation: How hiking could be making birds sick. Conservation Physiology, 8(1), c0aa058. doi: 10.1093/conphys/coaa058

2019

Journal - Research Article

Frommel, A. Y., Brauner, C. J., Allan, B. J. M., Nicol, S., Parsons, D. M., Pether, S. M. J., Setiawan, A. N., … Munday, P. L. (2019). Organ health and development in larval kingfish are unaffected by ocean acidification and warming. PeerJ, 7, e8266. doi: 10.7717/peerj.8266

McCormick, M. I., Fakan, E. P., Nedelec, S. L., & Allan, B. J. M. (2019). Effects of boat noise on fish fast-start escape response depend on engine type. Scientific Reports, 9, 6554. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-43099-5

Journal - Research Other

Domenici, P., Allan, B. J. M., Lefrançois, C., & McCormick, M. I. (2019). The effect of climate change on the escape kinematics and performance of fishes: Implications for future predator-prey interactions. Conservation Physiology, 7(1), coz078. doi: 10.1093/conphys/coz078

Allan, B. J. M. (2019). Scared to death? The killer effect of predation risk in snowshoe hares. Conservation Physiology, 7(1), coz029. doi: 10.1093/conphys/coz029

Hess, S., Allan, B. J. M., Hoey, A. S., Jarrold, M. D., Wenger, A. S., & Rummer, J. L. (2019). Enhanced fast-start performance and anti-predator behaviour in a coral reef fish in response to suspended sediment exposure [Note]. Coral Reefs, 38, 103-108. doi: 10.1007/s00338-018-01757-6

Conference Contribution - Published proceedings: Abstract

Allan, B. J. M., McMahon, S., Parsons, D. M., Pether, S. M. J., Pope, S., & Munday, P. L. (2019). The effects of multiple stressors on the escape and routine swimming performance of the New Zealand snapper Chrysophyrs auratus. Proceedings of the 12th New Zealand Ocean Acidification Workshop. (pp. 20). Retrieved from http://nzoac.nz

Conference Contribution - Verbal presentation and other Conference outputs

Allan, B. (2019, July). The impacts of microplastic pollution on the anti-predator behaviour of coral reef fish. Verbal presentation at the NZ Marine Sciences Society (NZMSS) Joint Meeting with the Oceania Chondrichthyan Society, Dunedin, New Zealand.

2018

Journal - Research Article

Watson, S.-A., Allan, B. J. M., McQueen, D. E., Nicol, S., Parsons, D. M., Pether, S. M. J., … Munday, P. L. (2018). Ocean warming has a greater effect than acidification on the early life history development and swimming performance of a large circumglobal pelagic fish. Global Change Biology, 24(9), 4368-4385. doi: 10.1111/gcb.14290

McCormick, M. I., Watson, S.-A., Simpson, S. D., & Allan, B. J. M. (2018). Effect of elevated CO₂ and small boat noise on the kinematics of predator-prey interactions. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 285(1875), 20172650. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2017.2650

McCormick, M. I., Allan, B. J. M., Harding, H., & Simpson, S. D. (2018). Boat noise impacts risk assessment in a coral reef fish but effects depend on engine type. Scientific Reports, 8(1), 3847. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-22104-3

McCormick, M. I., Fakan, E., & Allan, B. J. M. (2018). Behavioural measures determine survivorship within the hierarchy of whole-organism phenotypic traits. Functional Ecology, 32(4), 958-969. doi: 10.1111/1365-2435.13033

2017

Journal - Research Article

Johansen, J. L., Allan, B. J. M., Rummer, J. L., & Esbaugh, A. J. (2017). Oil exposure disrupts early life-history stages of coral reef fishes via behavioural impairments. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 1, 1146-1152. doi: 10.1038/s41559-017-0232-5

Ferrari, M. C. O., McCormick, M. I., Allan, B. J. M., & Chivers, D. P. (2017). Not equal in the face of habitat change: Closely related fishes differ in their ability to use predation-related information in degraded coral. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 284(1852), 20162758. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2758

Ramasamy, R. A., Allan, B. J. M., McCormick, M. I., Chivers, D. P., Mitchell, M. D., & Ferrari, M. C. O. (2017). Juvenile coral reef fish alter escape responses when exposed to changes in background and acute risk levels. Animal Behaviour, 134, 15-22. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.09.026

McCormick, M. I., & Allan, B. J. M. (2017). Interspecific differences in how habitat degradation affects escape response. Scientific Reports, 7, 426. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-00521-0

McCormick, M. I., Chivers, D. P., Allan, B. J. M., & Ferrari, M. C. O. (2017). Habitat degradation disrupts neophobia in juvenile coral reef fish. Global Change Biology, 23(2), 719-727. doi: 10.1111/gcb.13393

Ferrari, M. C. O., McCormick, M. I., Mitchell, M. D., Allan, B. J. M., Gonçalves, E. J., & Chivers, D. P. (2017). Daily variation in behavioural lateralization is linked to predation stress in a coral reef fish. Animal Behaviour, 133, 189-193. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.09.020

Chivers, D. P., McCormick, M. I., Warren, D. T., Allan, B. J. M., Ramasamy, R. A., Arvizu, B. K., … Ferrari, M. C. O. (2017). Competitive superiority versus predation savvy: The two sides of behavioural lateralization. Animal Behaviour, 130, 9-15. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.05.006

Allan, B. J. M., Domenici, P., Watson, S. A., Munday, P. L., & McCormick, M. I. (2017). Warming has a greater effect than elevated CO₂ on predator-prey interactions in coral reef fish. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 284(1857), 20170784. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2017.0784

McCormick, M. I., Barry, R. P., & Allan, B. J. M. (2017). Algae associated with coral degradation affects risk assessment in coral reef fishes. Scientific Reports, 7(1), 16937. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-17197-1

2016

Journal - Research Article

Chivers, D. P., McCormick, M. I., Allan, B. J. M., Mitchell, M. D., Gonçalves, E. J., Bryshun, R., & Ferrari, M. C. O. (2016). At odds with the group: Changes in lateralization and escape performance reveal conformity and conflict in fish schools. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 283(1841), 20161127. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2016.1127

Chivers, D. P., McCormick, M. I., Allan, B. J. M., & Ferrari, M. C. O. (2016). Risk assessment and predator learning in a changing world: Understanding the impacts of coral reef degradation. Scientific Reports, 6, 32542. doi: 10.1038/srep32542

McCormick, M. I., & Allan, B. J. M. (2016). Lionfish misidentification circumvents an optimized escape response by prey. Conservation Physiology, 4(1), cow064. doi: 10.1093/conphys/cow064

Munday, P. L., Welch, M. J., Allan, B. J. M., Watson, S.-A., McMahon, S. J., & McCormick, M. I. (2016). Effects of elevated CO₂ on predator avoidance behaviour by reef fishes is not altered by experimental test water. PeerJ, 4, e2501. doi: 10.7717/peerj.2501

Munday, P. L., Watson, S.-A., Parsons, D. M., King, A., Barr, N. G., Mcleod, I. M., Allan, B. J. M., & Pether, S. M. J. (2016). Effects of elevated CO₂ on early life history development of the yellowtail kingfish, Seriola lalandi, a large pelagic fish. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 73(3), 641-649. doi: 10.1093/icesjms/fsv210

2015

Journal - Research Article

Ramasamy, R. A., Allan, B. J. M., & McCormick, M. I. (2015). Plasticity of escape responses: Prior predator experience enhances escape performance in a coral reef fish. PLoS ONE, 10(8), e0132790. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0132790

Ferrari, M. C. O., McCormick, M. I., Allan, B. J. M., Choi, R., Ramasamy, R. A., Johansen, J. L., … Chivers, D. P. (2015). Living in a risky world: The onset and ontogeny of an integrated antipredator phenotype in a coral reef fish. Scientific Reports, 5, 15537. doi: 10.1038/srep15537

Ferrari, M. C. O., Munday, P. L., Rummer, J. L., McCormick, M. I., Corkill, K., Watson, S.-A., Allan, B. J. M., … Chivers, D. P. (2015). Interactive effects of ocean acidification and rising sea temperatures alter predation rate and predator selectivity in reef fish communities. Global Change Biology, 21(5), 1848-1855. doi: 10.1111/gcb.12818

Allan, B. J. M., Domenici, P., Munday, P. L., & McCormick, M. I. (2015). Feeling the heat: The effect of acute temperature changes on predator-prey interactions in coral reef fish. Conservation Physiology, 3(1), cov011. doi: 10.1093/conphys/cov011

Ferrari, M. C. O., McCormick, M. I., Allan, B. J. M., Choi, R. B., Ramasamy, R. A., & Chivers, D. P. (2015). The effects of background risk on behavioural lateralization in a coral reef fish. Functional Ecology, 29(12), 1553-1559. doi: 10.1111/1365-2435.12483

2014

Journal - Research Article

Domenici, P., Allan, B. J. M., Watson, S.-A., McCormick, M. I., & Munday, P. L. (2014). Shifting from right to left: The combined effect of elevated CO₂and temperature on behavioural lateralization in a coral reef fish. PLoS ONE, 9(1), e87969. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087969

Allan, B. J. M., Miller, G. M., McCormick, M. I., Domenici, P., & Munday, P. L. (2014). Parental effects improve escape performance of juvenile reef fish in a high-CO₂ world. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 281(1777), 20132179. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2013.2179

2013

Journal - Research Article

Allan, B. J. M., Domenici, P., McCormick, M. I., Watson, S.-A., & Munday, P. L. (2013). Elevated CO₂ affects predator-prey interactions through altered performance. PLoS ONE, 8(3), e58520. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0058520

2012

Journal - Research Article

Domenici, P., Allan, B., McCormick, M. I., & Munday, P. L. (2012). Elevated carbon dioxide affects behavioural lateralization in a coral reef fish. Biology Letters, 8(1), 78-81. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2011.0591