Prof David Paterson

Prof David Paterson

Professor

Phone
+44 (0)1334 46 3467
Email
dp1@st-andrews.ac.uk

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Research areas

Ecology, biodiversity and dynamics of marine systems

My research concerns the ecology and dynamics of marine systems with a strong focus on the "biodiversity-ecosystem function" debate and the dynamics of marine microbiota. This work is supported by extensive field studies and laboratory mesocosms often using multiple stressors. This adds aspects of climate change research including the combined effects of temperature and CO2 on system response. The primary productivity of coastal systems is an important functional response and is also under investigation using fluorescence techniques. This work includes interdisciplinary studies of "biogenic stabilisation" by microbes and microphytobenthos, through the extracellular polymers produced by biofilms that increase the critical threshold for sediment re-suspension. We have also developed novel techniques to measure the stability of sediments in situ, and the relative adhesion capacity of different biofilms and surfaces. Recently, we have also been using molecular techniques to examine the effects of both natural (e.g. bioturbation) and anthropogenic (e.g. toxins, plastics, climate change) stressors on marine microbial systems. This is now encompassing work with industry on the ecology of man-made offshore structures (oil and gas installations and wind farms).Ìý

PhD supervision

  • TomsÌýEkmanis

Selected publications

  • Tang, G., Xie, Z., Chen, X., Ou, Z., Paterson, D. M., Luo, J., Fang, F. & Feng, Q., 15 Jan 2026, In: Water Research. 289, Part B, p. 1-9 9 p., 124924.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access
    Baxter, T. I., Paterson, D. M. & Blight, A. J., 10 Apr 2026, In: Diversity. 18, 4, p. 1-7 7 p., 224.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access
    Dal Molin, F., Hunt, D., Dewar, A., Lozach, S., Phillips, C., Thomas, B., Warford, L., Parker, J. E., Walker, J., Chocholek, M., Paterson, D. M., Woodward-Rowe, H. & Hicks, N., Mar 2025, In: Marine Pollution Bulletin. 212, p. 1-10 10 p., 117585.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access
    Dornelas, M., Antão, L. H., Bates, A. E., Brambilla, V., Chase, J. M., Chow, C. F. Y., Fontrodona-Eslava, A., Magurran, A. E., Martins, I. S., Moyes, F., Sagouis, A., Adu-Acheampong, S., Acquah-Lamptey, D., Adam, D., Ajani, P. A., Albaina, A., Almaraz, P., An, J., Anderson, R. S. & Anderson, M. J. R. & 465 others, Antunes, A. Z., Arismendi, I., Armbrecht, L., Aros-Mardones, P., Ashtamoorthy, S. K., Ayyappan, N., Badihi, G., Bailey, J. J., Baird, A. H., Baird, M. E., Balakrishnan, S. V., Barão-Nóbrega, J. A. L., Barash, A., Barbosa, M., Barlow, J., Bässler, C., Beaumont, M., Beenaerts, N., Begot, T. O., Beiroz, W., Beldade, R., Bell, D. M., Bellgrove, A., Belmaker, J., Benedetti-Cecchi, L., Benkwitt, C. E., Berkum, P.M.-V., Bestelmeyer, B. T., Betts, M. G., Billah, M. K., Bjorkman, A. D., Błażewicz, M., Bloch, C. P., Blowes, S. A., Bode, A., Bogoni, J. A., Bolger, T., Bonebrake, T. C., Bonsdorff, E., Bottarin, R., Brokensha, L. N., Brooker, R. W., Brooks, A. J., Bruelheide, H., Bueno, T. A., Laguionie, C., Campagnoli, M. L., Cant, J., Caramaschi, E. P., Caron, A., Carroll, T., Caruso, T., Carvajal-Quintero, J., Castaldelli, G., Castañeda-Moya, E., Castilho, P. V., Cechin, S. Z., Chaikin, S., Chandrashekara, U. M., Chase, T. J., Chen, C. A., Cherem, J. J., Choi, S.-W., Christensen, E. M., Christianini, A. V., Chu, J. W. F., Coad, P., Van Colen, C., Comte, L., Cooper, E. J., Cornelissen, J. H. C., Cosson, E., Cotano, U., Crevecoeur, L., Crow, S. K., Cumming, G. S., Daga, V. S., Damasceno, G., Daskalova, G. N., Davies, C. H., Davis, R. A., Day, F. P., De-La-Zerda, S., Deacon, A. E., de Castro-Arrazola, I., Degraer, S., Deonarinesingh, K., Diaz-Ricaurte, J. C., Dickman, C. R., Dirilgen, T., Dolan, C. J., Duffy, J. E., Dunn, T. E., Durigan, G., Dwyer, C., Earl, S., Edelist, D., Edgar, G. J., Edmondson, S., Elgin, A. K., Ellingsen, K. E., Elmendorf, S. C., Eriksen, R. S., Ernest, S. K. M., Escribano, R., Eterovick, P. C., Evans, B. S., Everett, J. D., Evtimova, V., Exton, D. A., Fairbairn, A. J., Fantacini, F. M., Farah, F. T., Farneda, F. Z., Favila, M. E., Fernandez-Fournier, P., Fernández-Zapata, B., Ferreira, D. F., Ferronato, C., du Feu, C. R., Fidelis, A., Fifield, D. A., Filho, V. P., Filho, W. M., Fitt, R. N. L., Flechtmann, C. A. H., Fraser, W. R., Fraser, D. L., Freixas, L., Fryxell, J., Fundakowski, G. J., Gabara, S. S., Gallois, E., Criado, M. G., García-Berthou, E., Garrabou, J., Gates, A. R., Gatti, R. C., Gavioli, A., Gavriel, T., Gendreau-Berthiaume, B., Giam, X., Gjerdrum, C., Glemnitz, M., Godbold, J. A., Gómez-Gras, D., Gonçalves, R. B., Goold, A., Gordon, R. R., Goren, M., Goulart, F. V. B., Gould, W. A., Grabowski, M. M., Graham, N. A. J., Graipel, M. E., Grange, L. J., Greenville, A. C., Grossman, G. D., Guinder, V. A., Haase, P., Haskins, G. N., Havstad, K., Hermanutz, L., Hickford, M. J. H., Hidalgo, P., Higuchi, P., Hoey, A. S., Van Hoey, G., Hofgaard, A., Holeck, K. T., Hollister, R. D., Holmes, R. T., Hoogenboom, M. O., Hortal, J., Horton, T., Hsieh, C.-H., Huffard, C. L., Huikkonen, I.-M., Hurlbert, A. H., Hynes, J., Irz, P., Macedo Ivanauskas, N., Iwayama, A., James, D. K., Jandt, U., Jażdżewska, A. M., Jocque, M., Johnston, S. T., Jones, S. E. I., Jones, F. A. M., Jones, J. A., Jucevica, E., Kagainis, U., Kagami, M., Kang, J., Ke, X., Keeley, E. C., Kinnear, R., Klanderud, K., Klinck, U., van Klink, R., Klotz, S., Knockaert, C., Knutsen, H., Koivula, M., Kortz, A., Kriegel, P., Kuo, C.-Y., Kushner, D. J., Kyerematen, R., Lagarde, R., Lancaster, L. T., Landau, O. F., Van Landuyt, W., Larson, E. R., Lazarus, M., Lee, C. M., Lefcheck, J. S., Lembrechts, J. J., Ferreira de Lima, R. A., Lima, R. G., Lima, N. G. S., Linares, C., Lindstrom, S. C., Lloret, F., Lloyd, J. D., Lobato, C. M. C., Lodge, D. M., Long, P. R., López-Abbate, C., López-Baucells, A., Louzada, J., Louzao, M., Lugliè, A., Luiz, M. R., Macdonald, S. E., Madin, J. S., Magalhães, A. L. B., Mahabir, R., Maphisa, D., Martin, T. E., Martins, M., Martone, P. T., Matesanz, S., Matsuzaki, S.-I. S., Matthews, T. J., Matthews, I. M., Maxwell, C. J., McFarland, K. P., McGill, B. J., McKnight, D. M., McWilliam, M. J., Meador, J., Meesenburg, H., Meier, K., Melecis, V., Meserve, P. L., Meyer, C. F. J., Michelsen, A., Miiller, N. O. R., Milardi, M., Milchakova, N., Miller, R. J., Millett, J., Moens, T., Montag, L. F. A., Moore, J., Müller, J., Murali, A., Murray, S. A., Myers-Smith, I. H., Myster, R. W., Nakamura, M., Nayar, S., Neat, F., Nelson, J. A., Nelson, M. P., Nikolov, B. P., Nouioua, R., Nsor, C. A., O'Connor, M., Obodai, E. A., Offland, A. M., Ogaya, R., Ogura, H., Okey, T. A., Olden, J. D., Oliveira-Santos, L. G. R., Oliver, J. C., Olsen, E. M., Onipchenko, V. G., Oro, D., Ozolins, D., Pabis, K., Padedda, B. M., Palacio, F. X., Paquette, A., Pardede, S. T., Paterson, D. M., Pausina, S., Pélissier, R., Pennings, S. C., Penuelas, J., Pereira, F. W., Peroni, N., Picó, S., Pilotto, F., Pinheiro, H. T., Pizarro, O., Pizzolotto, R., Pomati, F., Pompeu, P. S., Ponton, D., Post, E., Poulet, N., Pöyry, J., Presley, S. J., Prins, H. H. T., Provoost, P., Prudic, K. L., Punjayil, V., Pyšek, P., Querner, P., Quimbayo, J. P., Ramnarine, I. W., Reed, D. C., Reich, P. B., Remillard, S. M., Richards, C., Richardson, A. J., van Rijn, I., Rivera-Monroy, V. H., Rixen, C., Robinson, K. P., Rocha, R., Rodrigues, R. R., Rodrigues, C., de Roos, B., de Rossa-Feres, D. D. C., Rosselli, L., Rothlisberg, P. C., Rubio, A., Rudstam, L. G., Ruz, C. S., Rybicki, N. B., Van Ryckegem, G., Rypel, A. L., Sadler, J. P., Saito, V. S., Sal, S., Salomão, R. P., Sanders, N. J., Santos, F. A. M., dos Santos, T. G., Sarker, S. K., Scanga, S. E., Schaub, M., Schmidt, J., Schmidt, I. K., Schooley, R. L., Schultz, A., Scotti, A., Serpell-Stevens, A., Serrano, F. C., Shadwick, E. H., Shaft, M., Sherry, T. W., Shimabukuro, E. M., Siciński, J., Sievers, C., da Silva, F. R., da Silva, A. C., Silveira, J. M., Siqueira, T., Sivadasan, A. K., Sivan, P. T. P., Skuja, A., Slaughter, A. L., Slingsby, J. A., Smith, J. R., Soares, B. E., Solan, M., Souza, F. M., Souza, G. B. G., Sprague, J. L., Stachow, U., Stadt, J. J., Stallings, C. D., Stanchev, R. H., Stanley, E. H., Starzomski, B. M., Sterza, J. M., Stevens, M., Stiles, F. G., Stoll, S., Stuart-Smith, R. D., Súarez, Y. R., Super, L., Supp, S. R., Sutela, T., Suthers, I. M., Suuronen, A., Swadling, K. M., Szydlowski, D. K., Taki, H., Taylor, S. J. S., Tedesco, P. A., Teichert, N., Terui, A., Thiede, G. P., Thimonier, A., Thomas, O., Thompson, P. A., Thorn, S., Tiemann, J. S., Toledo, L. F., Tolvanen, A., Toniato, M. T. Z., Torre, I., Tortato, M. A., Totsu, K., Trant, A., Twilley, R. R., Urabe, H., Valade, P., Valdivia, N., Vallejo, M. I., Valone, T. J., Vanaverbeke, J., Vasconcelos, T. S., Vehanen, T., Venturoli, F., Verheye, H. M., Vermeulen, H. J. W., Verstraeten, A., Vianna, M., Vieira, R., Vieira-Alencar, J. P. S., Vilella, M., Vitule, J. R. S., Van Vu, L., Waide, R. B., Warren, P. S., Wayman, J. P., Webb, S. L., Weigel, B., Welti, E. A. R., West, F., Westermann, F., Whalen, M. A., White, E. P., Widdicombe, C. E., Williams, R., Williamson, M., Willig, M. R., Wipf, S., Woehler, E. J., Woldering, A., Woods, K. D., Xu, W.-B., Yahel, R., Yang, Z., Zawada, K. J. A., Zornosa-Torres, C. & Zvuloni, A., May 2025, In: Global Ecology and Biogeography. 34, 5, p. 1-18 18 p., e70003.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Yang, Y., Liang, Q., Peng, Y. & Paterson, D. M., Feb 2025, In: Marine Pollution Bulletin. 211, p. 1-12 12 p., 117431.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Rimmer, J. E. V., Blight, A. J., Chocholek, M. & Paterson, D. M., 15 Dec 2025, In: Environmental Pollution. 387, 127285.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Hu, X., Yu, C., Li, X., Zou, J., Du, Y. & Paterson, D. M., 5 May 2024, In: Journal of Hazardous Materials . 469, p. 1-11 11 p., 134049.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access
    Knights, A. M., Lemasson, A. J., Firth, L. B., Bond, T., Claisse, J., Coolen, J. W. P., Copping, A., Dannheim, J., De Dominicis, M., Degraer, S., Elliott, M., Fernandes, P. G., Fowler, A. M., Frost, M., Henry, L.-A., Hicks, N., Hyder, K., Jagerroos, S., Jones, D. O. B. & Love, M. & 19 others, Lynam, C. P., Macreadie, P. I., Marlow, J., Mavraki, N., McLean, D., Montagna, P. A., Paterson, D. M., Perrow, M., Porter, J., Russell, D. J. F., Bull, A. S., Schratzberger, M., Shipley, B., van Elden, S., Vanaverbeke, J., Want, A., Watson, S. C. L., Wilding, T. A. & Somerfield, P., Feb 2024, In: Journal of Environmental Management. 352, 16 p., 119897.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

  • Open access
    Fortune, I. S., Madgett, A. S., Bull, A. S., Hicks, N., Love, M. S. & Paterson, D., 18 Apr 2024, In: PLOS Sustainability and Transformation. 3, 4, 32 p., e0000104.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

  • Open access
    Armitage, P., Burrows, M. T., Rimmer, J. E. V., Blight, A. J. & Paterson, D. M., 27 Aug 2024, In: Global Change Biology. 30, 8, 19 p., e17482.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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