Ph.D. (University of Victoria); B.Sc. (Memorial)

Associate Professor (joint with Biology)

Office:   Ocean, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences Building A327

Phone:  250-472-5010

Fax:      250-721-7120

Web page:  http://web.uvic.ca/~dower/dowerlab/index.html

Subjects taught:  Biological Oceanography, Understanding the World's Oceans

Research facilities:   Ocean, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences Building B318

Research Statement

Dr. Dower's research focuses on the role of biophysical coupling in regulating the structure and productivity of planktonic marine ecosystems. Research in the lab is truly multidisciplinary and combines aspects of fisheries oceanography, population and community ecology, conservation biology, and ecophysiology. Areas of particular interest currently include:  quantifying factors that regulate interannual variability in the production, growth and survival of larval fish and their zooplankton prey; the role of small-scale physical process (e.g. micro-scale turbulence) in plankton ecology; and, the ecology and oceanography of seamount ecosystems. Dr. Dower also participates in the water column processes groups within both the NEPTUNE and VENUS projects. Research in the lab is strongly field-based, but often incorporates experimental and modeling approaches as well. Field programs focus primarily on the Strait of Georgia, the offshore NE Pacific, and the coastal waters of Newfoundland.

Publications