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Samuel DIONGPhD Student
Email: samueldiong(AT)u.nus.edu |
Background
I am a PhD candidate with a strong interest in the marine environment. I have always been interested in the natural world but my interest in the marine environment soared after diving for the first time. I worked on projects focusing on marine zooplankton and polyclad flatworms.
PhD Thesis
My PhD research focuses on the use of Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS) to investigate the biodiversity and ecology of the coral reef cryptobiome, particularly within urbanised marine environments. My thesis aims to evaluate and refine the ARMS methodology while applying it to Singapore’s coral reefs. Through the analysis of biological data obtained from ARMS deployments, I aim to uncover the hidden diversity of cryptic reef organisms, assess the effectiveness of ARMS as a reef monitoring tool, and evaluate the completeness and representativeness of the recruitment of organisms onto ARMS with reference to the broader cryptic reef community.
Honours Project
Polyclads are free-living marine flatworms that are found globally. They come in all sorts of colours from the dull colours for camouflage to the very vibrant aposematic colours. They are largely split into two large groups, Acotylea (without suckers) and Cotylea (with suckers). However, their phylogeny and systematics are still not very well studied. My undergraduate Honours Project aimed to provide further clarification on the phylogeny of Polycladida.