Owen R. O’Shea B.Sc. (Hons I), Ph.D. - The Centre for Ocean Research and Education (CORE), Gregory Town, Eleuthera, The Bahamas - - Citizenship: Australia and The United Kingdom - [email protected]

Professional Objective: To empower local citizens through capacity building on Eleuthera and surrounding Family Islands of The Bahamas, by integrating marine and coastal conservation research programs with education and outreach, providing a conduit for local people to take ownership of their saltwater country

CEO & Principal Research Scientist: September 2017 - present CORE In January 2017, I established The Centre for Ocean Research and Education (CORE) and have been working fulltime as the executive director and head of research since September 2017. The mission of this organisation is to involve Bahamian students and communities in the data collection process of an Applied Scientific Marine and Environmental Research initiative, that furthers our understanding of ecologically sensitive habitats, ultimately promoting the conservation of biodiversity. This is achieved through attracting traditional sources of funding, as well as private donations to build a robust research portfolio with which to foster a scientific curiosity and educate the next generation of research scientists and environmental stewards for The Bahamas. We are rapidly gaining an international following through our unique mission, branding and social media presence and have already secured several scientific collaborations and synergies with local and international NGOs and research institutions. We became incorporated in January 2018, and as of December 2018 have 501(c)(3) charitable status with the IRS.

Director of Elasmobranch Research: December 2016 – September 2017 CEI I was responsible for managing an applied research group of around 15 people including interns, technicians and graduate students running 17 separate research projects in the wider Caribbean region. My research objectives related to the life history and ecology of chondrichthyan fishes and the promotion of conservation value to habitats that support a range of these species, particularly stingrays and pelagic sharks. I was further responsible for creating applied scientific research syllabi for the sister organisation The Cape Eleuthera Island School, managing all outreach strategies for this research group, supervision of under and postgraduate students. I also actively engaged in a mentorship program within the local community as a scientific ‘activist’ and took on four local students each year to provide support for their school studies. This position was created for me after the Shark Research and Conservation Program merged with the Batoid Research Group in 2016. I tendered my notice of resignation in January 2017, in order to establish CORE.

Research Associate: July 2013 – December 2016 CEI I was employed as Research Associate for The Shark Research and Conservation Program, running a team of typically around ten interns, research technicians, assistants and graduate students. I was responsible for assisting in the day to day management of shark research encompassing every major ecosystem in the greater Caribbean region with direct conservation applications, as well as focusing significantly on education and outreach. I taught eight consecutive, 100-day semester programs at The Island School, as well as the highly successful ‘Sharks in Schools’ program, bringing shark conservation science into local schools. In January 2014, I set up the CEI Batoid Research Group, acquiring funds to promote the conservation value of stingrays and developed a range of projects that became the largest research program at CEI, supporting five graduate students, over 55 outreach and education programs resulting in exposure to over 1,000 students, educators, scientists and a United Nations delegation.

Education: School: Year awarded: Ph.D. – Marine Ecology Murdoch University 2013 Honours; Class I – Marine Biology James Cook University 2007 Bachelor of Science – Marine Biology James Cook University 2006

Awards, Fellowships and Grants:

• 2007, James Cook University Dean’s Award for Academic Achievement • 2009, International Postgraduate Research Scholarship, $184,462 • 2009, MIPS Fellowship, Murdoch University, $79,970 • 2012, Murdoch University conference travel award, $3,906 • 2015, Private donations to research initiatives, $10,000 • 2015, Rufford Foundation, ‘Gene flow in the Caribbean whiptail stingray’ $8,000 • 2016, Idea Wild Conservation Equipment Grant, $1,500 • 2016, Exeter University Adjunct Research Fellowship • 2017, Conservation conference travel award, $1,075 • 2017, Research vessel donation to CORE $8,000 • 2017, NSF/Smithsonian network partner, ‘Tropicalisation of western Atlantic seagrass’ $20,000 • 2018, Fundraising and donations for CORE, $38,802 • 2018, Idea Wild Conservation Equipment Grant, $1,400 • 2018, Professional member of Sea and Society, University of Gothenburg, Sweden • 2018, Lyford Cay Foundation Inc. CORE Summer Education Program, $5,000 • 2018, Adjunct Staff Scientist (contracted), The Smithsonian Institution. • 2019, The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), ‘Evaluating the impact of Ocean Acidification on the Queen Conch (Lobatus gigas)’, $13,561 • 2019, Lyford Cay Foundation Inc. CORE Summer Education Programs, $7,500 • 2019, British Ecological Society, Community Outreach Grant, $2,620 • 2019, Private Foundation, ‘An integrated approach to the management of coastal shark populations within a new marine reserve in The Bahamas’, $45,567 • 2019, Gregory Town Primary School Appreciation Award, Eleuthera, Bahamas • 2019, Certificate of Appreciation for services to Community Education and Outreach, Eleuthera • February 2020, The Morning Glory Foundation, Community Outreach Grant, $5,000 • August 2020, The Morning Glory Foundation, Community Outreach Grant, $7,500 • October 2020, Wildlife Conservation Society, Conservation Equipment grant, $2,600 • January 2021, Idea Wild Conservation Equipment Grant, $1,200 • January 2021, Mission Blue Hope Spot Ambassador for The Bahamas • April 2021, The Morning Glory Family Foundation, Community Science and Outreach, $10,000 • June 2021, US Embassy, Nassau, PIMS collaboration, Rising Tides education program, $10,000 • June 2021, Leon Levy Foundation, outreach and education grant, $10,000

Publications: I have an h-index of 12 and a total of 453 citations to my work.

Peer Reviewed:

• O'Brien DA, Taylor M, Masonjones, HD, Boersch-Supan PH and O'Shea OR. (2021) An experimental assessment of social tolerance and dietary preference in a high-density octopus population. Marine Biology, doi.org/10.1007/s00227-021-03865-4 168(6): 221

• Clementi G, Babcock E, Valentin-Albanese J et al... O’Shea OR (2021) Anthropogenic pressures on reef-associated sharks in jurisdictions with and without directed shark fishing. Marine Ecology Progress Series, doi.org/10.3354/meps13607 661: 175 - 186 • O’Shea OR, van Leeuwen T, O’Brien D, Arrowsmith, L, McCalman R, Griffiths M and Exton D. (2021). Evidence and description of a nursery habitat for the recently reclassified stingray Styracura schmardae from The Bahamas Marine Ecology Progress Series. 660: 141-151 • Smulders F, O'Shea OR and Christianen M (2021). -borne video reveals atypical behaviour in provisioned green turtles: a global perspective of a widespread tourist activity. Global Ecology and Conservation. 25: e01417 • O'Shea OR, Meadows L, Wrigglesworth E, Newton J and Hawkes L. (2020). Novel insights into the diet of southern and Caribbean whiptail stingrays. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 655:157-170 • MacNeil, M.A., Chapman, D.D., Heupel, M. et al... O'Shea, O.R. (2020). Global status and conservation potential of reef sharks. Nature. 583: 801 - 806 • O’Brien, D., Taylor, M.L., Masonjones, H.D., Boersch-Supan. P.H. and O'Shea, O.R. (2020). Drivers of octopus abundance and density in an anchialine lake: a 30-year comparison. Journal of experimental marine biology and ecology 528: doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2020.15137 • Schwanck, T.N., Schweinsberg, M., Lampert, K.P., Guttridge, T.L., Tollrian, R. and O’Shea, O.R. (2020). Linking local movement and molecular analysis to explore philopatry and population connectivity of the americanus. Journal of Fish Biology 96: 1475–1488 • Orrell, D., Schneider, E., Eisenbach, O., Garg, A., Bigelow, B., Hauptmann, H., Simon, F., Cartwright, J., O’Shea, O.R., McGaw, I.J. and Van Leeuwen, T.E. (2019). From individual to ecosystem: evaluating the effects of the stone crab (Menippe mercenaria) fishery process using simulated fishing scenarios in the laboratory. Caribbean Naturalist, 63 • Ward, C., Bouyoucos, I., Brooks, E. & O’Shea, O.R. (2019). Novel attachment methods for assessing activity patterns using triaxial accelerometers on stingrays in The Bahamas. Marine Biology, 166 (5), 53 • Shipley ON, Brownscombe JW, Danylchuk AJ, Cooke SJ, O’Shea OR, & Brooks EJ. (2018). Fine-scale movement and activity patterns of Caribbean reef sharks (Carcharhinus perezi) in the Bahamas. Environmental Biology of Fishes, 101 (7), 1097-110 • Shipley ON, Murchie KJ, Frisk MG, O’Shea OR, Winchester M, Brooks RJ, Pearson J, Power M. (2018). Trophic niche dynamics of three nearshore benthic predators in The Bahamas. Hydrobiologia, 813: 1, pp. 177-88. • O'Shea OR., Wueringer BE, Winchester MM, Brooks EJ (2017). Comparative feeding ecology of the yellow ray (Urobatis jamaicensis) from The Bahamas. Journal of Fish Biology, doi:10.1111/jfb.13488. • O’Shea OR., Ward, C and Brooks, E (2017). Range Extension in Styracura (= ) schmardae (Caribbean Whiptail Stingray) from The Bahamas. Caribbean Naturalist, 38: 1-8. • Shipley ON, Murchie KJ, Frisk MG, Brooks EJ, O’Shea OR, Power M (2017). Low polar compound effects and inter-tissue comparisons of stable isotope signatures in three nearshore elasmobranchs. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 579: 233-238. • Shipley ON, O’Shea OR, Brooks EJ, and Zuckerman ZC (2016). Sighting of Three Female Gervais’ Beaked Whales (Mesoplodon europaeus) from the Exuma Sound, The Bahamas. Caribbean Naturalist, 32: 1-4. • O’Shea OR, Mandelman J, Talwar B, and Brooks EJ (2015). Novel observations of an opportunistic predation event by four apex predatory sharks. Marine and Freshwater Behaviour and Physiology, 48(5), 374-380. • O’Shea OR, Hamann M, Smith W, and Taylor H (2014). Predictable pollution: An assessment of weather balloons and associated impacts on the marine environment–An example for the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 79(1), 61-68.

• Kempster RM, Garza-Gisholt E, Egeberg CA, Hart NS, O'Shea OR, and Collin SP (2013). Sexual dimorphism of the electrosensory system: A quantitative analysis of nerve axons in the dorsal anterior lateral line nerve of the blue-spotted fantail stingray ( lymma). Brain, Behavior and Evolution, 81(4), 226-235. • O'Shea OR, Thums M, van Keulen M, Kempster RM, and Meekan MG (2013). Dietary partitioning by five sympatric species of stingray (Dasyatidae) on coral reefs. Journal of fish biology, 82(6), 1805-1820. • O’Shea OR, Braccini M, McAuley R, Speed CW, and Meekan, MG (2013). Growth of tropical dasyatid rays estimated using a multi-analytical approach. PloS one, 8(10), e77194. • Speed CW, O’Shea OR, and Meekan, MG (2013). Transmitter attachment and release methods for short-term shark and stingray tracking on coral reefs. Marine biology, 160(4), 1041- 1050. • O'Shea OR, Meekan M, and van Keulen, M (2013). Lethal sampling of stingrays (Dasyatidae) for research. In: Dandie, G. (ed), ‘Thinking outside the cage: A different point of view’. Paper presented at The Australian and New Zealand Council for the Care of in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART), Perth, Western Australia, 90-98, The University of Adelaide, South Australia. • Cerutti-Pereyra F, Meekan MG, Wei NWV, O'Shea OR, Bradshaw CJ, and Austin CM (2012). Identification of rays through DNA barcoding: an application for ecologists. PLoS One, 7(6), e36479. • O'Shea OR, Thums M, van Keulen M, and Meekan M (2012). Bioturbation by stingrays at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia. Marine and Freshwater Research, 63(3), 189-197. • O'Shea OR (2010). New locality record for the parasitic leech Pterobdella amara, and two new host stingrays at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia. Marine Biodiversity Records, 3, e113. • O’Shea OR, Kingsford MJ, and Seymour J (2010). Tide-related periodicity of manta rays and sharks to cleaning stations on a coral reef. Marine and Freshwater Research, 61(1), 65-73

Technical Papers

• O’Shea OR (2019). Shark Assessment Report for the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) Detailing the Conservation and Management of Sharks at the Ocean Cay Marine Reserve, The Bahamas (Report # BRUV_19). MSC Foundation. • Dahlgren, C., O’Shea OR, Bullard, J, and Bethel, T. (2019). Ocean Cay Ecological Assessment (Report #: OCREA_19). MSC Foundation. • O’Shea OR (2019). An Investigation of Parasitized Stingrays (Hypanus americanus) at Half Moon Cay, The Bahamas (Report #: HMC_ 0819). Holland America. • O’Shea OR and Taylor H. (2013). Company engagement in strategizing marine debris source reduction: A case for plastic security tags and seals (Report #: 2013302) Tangaroa Blue Foundation (www.tangaroablue.org). • O’Shea OR and Taylor, H. (2013). Plastic loops and loopholes: is bait band legislation in Western Australia actually working? (Report #: 2013303) Tangaroa Blue Foundation (www.tangaroablue.org). • O’Shea OR, Taylor H, Smith W and Ashton K (2013). Plastic resin pellets in the Melbourne metropolitan area and evidence of domestic release to the Port Phillip Bay catchment (Report #: PRP2013302) Tangaroa Blue Foundation (www.tangaroablue.org). • Malinson L, Taylor H and O’Shea OR (2013). Building blocks of plastic or building blocks for disaster? A case study on plastic resin pellets in Australia. Queensland Coastal Conference, Townsville, Australia, 2-4th October 2013. (www.tangaroablue.org). • O’Shea OR (2012). Plastic resin pellets in the Perth metropolitan area and evidence of domestic release to the Swan River catchment

Theses:

• O’Shea OR (2013). The ecology and biology of stingrays (Dasyatidae) at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia (Doctoral Thesis), Murdoch University, Western Australia. • O’Shea OR (2007). The ecology of cleanerfish and their clients (Honours thesis). James Cook University, Queensland, Australia.

Conference Presentations:

• 2011, Australian Marine Science Association (AMSA), Fremantle, Western Australia • 2012, International Coral Reef Symposium (ICRS), Cairns, Queensland • 2012, Australia and New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART) Perth, Western Australia • 2012, American Elasmobranch Society (AES), Vancouver, Canada • 2013, South West Catchments Council (SWCC), Bunker Bay, Western Australia • 2014, Friends of The Environment, Abaco Science Alliance (ASAC), Abaco, The Bahamas • 2014, American Elasmobranch Society (AES), Chattanooga, Tennessee • 2015, Fisheries Society of the British Isles (FSBI), Plymouth, England. • 2016, Friends of The Environment, Abaco Science Alliance (ASAC), Abaco, The Bahamas • 2016, American Elasmobranch Society (AES), New Orleans, Louisiana • 2017, Beacon Hill Seminar Series (Invited Talk), Boston, Massachusetts • 2017, Idea Wild Conservation Conference (Invited Talk), Fort Collins, Colorado • 2018, Bahamas National History Conference (BNHC) (two presentations), New Providence, The Bahamas. • 2018, Idea Wild Conservation Conference (Invited Talk), Lyons, Colorado • 2018, Idea Wild Conservation Conference (Invited Talk), Rapid City, South Dakota • 2020, Bahamas Natural History Conference (BNHC) Webinar series, co-author; Two presentations • 2021, Fisheries Society of the British Isles (FSBI), online conference

Current Research Collaborations:

Genetics: Dr Elizabeth Wallace (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission), Dr Kathrin Lampert (Ruhr-Universität Bochum), Dr Tristan Guttridge (Bimini Biological Field Station). Stable Isotope Analysis: Dr Lucy Hawkes (Exeter University), Dr Heather Mason-Jones (University of Tampa) Population Ecology: Dr Kathrin Lampert (Ruhr-Universität Bochum), Dr Tristan Guttridge (Bimini Biological Field Station), Prof. David Smith (Essex University) Behavioural Ecology: Dr Barbara Wueringer (James Cook University), Prof. David Smith (University of Essex) Conservation Biology: Dr Dan Exton (Operation Wallacea), Dr Heather Mason-Jones (University of Tampa), Duncan O’Brien (Bristol University), Professor Michael Thorndyke (Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences), Dr Ethan Fried (Bahamas National Trust) Dr Justin Campbell (Smithsonian Institution), Dr Olivia Rhoades (Smithsonian Institution), Dr Craig Dahlgren (Perry Institute of Marine Science), Prof. David Smith (Essex University), Dr Travis van Leeuwen (DFO, Canada)

Communications:

Education and Outreach: I have over 13 years’ experience in education, including undergraduate marine invertebrate biology, zoology, coral reef ecology and ecology and evolution of reef corals at James Cook University, Australia. I also managed first year environmental science classes at Murdoch University from 2009-2011. In 2014, I taught the pelagic ecology unit for a RSMAS Masters of Professional Science field course (University of Miami). I was lead advisor for Applied Scientific Research at the Cape Eleuthera Island School from 2013-2017 and currently supervise a range of graduate students from all over the world.

Since 2013 I have been directly involved in over 200 outreach and educational programs in The Bahamas, resulting in an exposure to over 3,000 students, educators, scientists, community leaders and United Nations delegates throughout The Bahamas, central America, Europe and the USA. I currently host free weekly marine and environmental science classes in Eleuthera, bi-weekly community science outreach events and as of June 2018, have developed and delivered a curriculum for residential applied scientific marine research classes to much success, and at zero cost to the community. As of December 2020, these free education programs have been delivered to over 600 Bahamian citizens and I currently supervise and sponsor Bahamian students’ research with our partner organisations.

Media: Since establishing CORE, my research, education and community outreach programs have been featured in around 30 separate TV and print media interviews for the global press community, including 15 international media outlets, books and radio, and in 2015 a documentary was made about my stingray research, which came first place in the category ‘Sea & Beaches’ at the Finisterra Arrabida Film Art & Tourism Festival, 2016 in Portugal.

I have also filmed with various production companies for marine science and conservation documentaries including the BBCs Natural History Department for their Blue Planet series, National Geographic as well as WIRED magazine, Condé Nast and more recently Sea Legacy.