Personal profile
Biography
I am an ARC DECRA Fellow at the University of Western Australia. My research explores how marine forest ecosystems work and how we can better predict and adapt to the changes caused by climate change. Recently I have become very interested in the role seaweeds play in the coastal carbon cycle at the global level, and whether seaweeds can provide solutions to climate change mitigation. I am a spade-and-bucket ecologist who tries to spend most days underwater making natural history observations and experimental manipulations. I often combine such evidence with experiments in the lab. I am however convinced that understanding of marine forests at scales relevant to human decision-making requires interdisciplinary partnerships. As such, I also collaborate with molecular ecologists to complement the ecological and physiological insights gained through my research with genomic approaches.
Education/Academic qualification
Marine Ecology, PhD
Award Date: 27 Jul 2022
Marine Biology, MRes
Award Date: 1 Sept 2016
Biology, BSc
Award Date: 1 Sept 2015
External positions
Research Fellow, Conservation International (USA)
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
-
SDG 13 Climate Action
Fingerprint
- 1 Similar Profiles
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
-
Connectivity enhances resilience of marine forests after an extreme event
Vranken, S., Wernberg, T., Scheben, A., Pessarrodona, A., Batley, J. & Coleman, M. A., Dec 2025, In: Scientific Reports. 15, 1, p. 1-13 13 p., 5019.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access2 Link opens in a new tab Citations (Scopus) -
Diverging carbonate budgets following tropicalization of temperate reefs
Attlan, O., Wernberg, T., Wood, G. & Pessarrodona, A., 17 Dec 2025, In: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 292, 2061Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Expert opinions regarding the concept of blue carbon in seaweed systems
Nishihara, G. N., Sato, Y., Eger, A. M., Gallagher, J. B., Hurd, C., Kawai, H., Kuwae, T. & Pessarrodona, A., 23 Aug 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Phycological Research.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access3 Link opens in a new tab Citations (Scopus) -
Global estimates of seagrass blue carbon stocks in biomass and net primary production
Gomis, E., Strydom, S., Foster, N. R., Montemayor, D., Mateo, M. A., Serrano, E., Inostroza, K., McCallum, R., Lafratta, A., Webster, C. L., O’Dea, C. M., Said, N. E., Dunham, N., Bernasconi, R., Werner, A., Vitelli, F., Puigcorbé, V., D’Cruz, A., Salinas, C. & McMahon, K. M. & 5 others, , 2025, In: Nature Communications. 16, 12 p., 9530.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access3 Link opens in a new tab Citations (Scopus) -
Grazing halos reveal differential ecosystem vulnerabilities in vegetated habitats
Minguito-Frutos, M., Arthur, R., Boada, J., Marco-Méndez, C., Adams, M. P., Pagès, J. F., Buñuel, X., Pessarrodona, A., Turon, X., Ballesteros, E., Tamburello, L., Farina, S., Skouradakis, G., Kletou, D., Cebrian, E., Santamaría, J., Verdura, J. & Alcoverro, T., Nov 2025, In: Ecology. 106, 11, 16 p., e70239.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access
Datasets
-
Shield wall: Kelps are the last stand against corals in tropicalised reefs
Ribeiro, F. (Creator), Pessarrodona, A. (Creator), Tuckett, C. (Creator), Mulders, Y. (Creator), Pereira, R. (Creator) & Wernberg, T. (Creator), DRYAD, 11 Jul 2022
DOI: 10.5061/dryad.fqz612jvs, http://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.fqz612jvs and 2 more links, https://zenodo.org/record/6819942, https://zenodo.org/records/6819942 (show fewer)
Dataset
-
Data from: On the challenges of identifying benthic ‘dominance’ on Anthropocene coral reefs
Tebbett, S. (Creator), Crisp, S. (Creator), Evans, R. (Creator), Fulton, C. (Creator), Pessarrodona, A. (Creator), Wernberg, T. (Creator), Wilson, S. (Creator) & Bellwood, D. (Creator), Figshare, 24 Jan 2023
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.21944747, https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Data_from_On_the_challenges_of_identifying_benthic_dominance_on_Anthropocene_coral_reefs/21944747
Dataset
-
A global dataset of seaweed net primary productivity
Pessarrodona, A. (Creator), Filbee-Dexter, K. (Creator), Krumhansl, K. A. (Creator), F. Pedersen, M. (Creator), Moore, P. J. (Creator) & Wernberg, T. (Creator), Figshare, 2022
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14882322.v4, https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/A_global_dataset_of_seaweed_net_primary_productivity/14882322/4
Dataset
-
Data from: On the challenges of identifying benthic ‘dominance’ on Anthropocene coral reefs
Tebbett, S. (Creator), Crisp, S. (Creator), Evans, R. (Creator), Fulton, C. (Creator), Pessarrodona, A. (Creator), Wernberg, T. (Creator), Wilson, S. (Creator) & Bellwood, D. (Creator), Figshare, 24 Jan 2023
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.21944747.v1, https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Data_from_On_the_challenges_of_identifying_benthic_dominance_on_Anthropocene_coral_reefs/21944747/1
Dataset
-
Diverging carbonate budgets following tropicalisation of temperate reefs
Attlan, O. (Creator), Wernberg, T. (Creator), Wood, G. (Creator) & Pessarrodona, A. (Creator), DRYAD, 31 Oct 2025
Dataset
-
The future of sea urchin barrens: global distribution, drivers and consequences
Pessarrodona, A. (Chief Investigator) & Filbee-Dexter, K. (CoPI)
The University of Western Australia
1/01/26 → 31/12/26
Project: Research
-
DECRA Pessarrodona
Pessarrodona, A. (Investigator 01)
ARC Australian Research Council
3/10/25 → 2/10/28
Project: Research
-
Cryptic Connections: Discovery of Hidden Marine Biodiversity
Montie, S. (Investigator 01), Wernberg, T. (Investigator 02), Filbee-Dexter, K. (Investigator 03), Pessarrodona, A. (Investigator 04) & Thomsen, M. (Investigator 05)
Winifred Violet Scott Charitable Trust
1/02/25 → 1/02/27
Project: Research
-
LP22 Blue Carbon Management
Wernberg, T. (Investigator 01), Coleman, M. (Investigator 02), Filbee-Dexter, K. (Investigator 03), Pessarrodona, A. (Investigator 04), Wilson, S. (Investigator 05) & Bell, S. (Investigator 06)
ARC Australian Research Council
1/01/24 → 31/03/28
Project: Research
-
The impact of climate change on Arctic blue carbon (BlueARC)
Filbee-Dexter, K. (Investigator 01), Wernberg, T. (Investigator 02) & Pessarrodona, A. (Investigator 03)
1/11/23 → 31/10/26
Project: Research