Sclerochronology, the study of patterns in the hard parts and skeletons of marine organisms, provides a window into the ocean’s past. My current research focuses primarily on banding patterns in long-lived tropical corals, including the microscopic pieces of skeleton formed each lunar month, annual density bands, and anomalous high-density “stress bands” that signify past extreme climate events. Skeletal cores collected from massive corals across the tropics have revealed previously unknown coral “bleaching” events pre-dating direct scientific observations, the increasing frequency of marine heatwaves in the Anthropocene, as well as evidence of acclimatization to a warmer world. But corals are just one branch in the tree of life. Clams, coralline algae, and even fish preserve intricate records of both their own growth history and the conditions in the ocean around them. Sclerochronology is the reading of those stories. At HPU, I will be seeking motivated students to work with me on various applications of sclerochronology to unraveling the environmental history of Hawai’i and beyond. These projects are inherently interdisciplinary as students will gain experience in oceanography, biology, petrology, and chemistry.
