Ph.D.:	Tel Aviv University, 1993
Phone:	(Office) +972-3-640-7690 (students lab) +972-3-640-6936 (fax) +972-3-6406936
E-mail:	avigdor@post.tau.ac.il avigdora@tauex.tau.ac.il
Room#:	206

Personal Information

EDUCATION

Period of study	Name of University	Subject	Degree	Date of award
1981-1984	The Hebrew University , Jerusalem	Biology	B.Sc.	1984
1985-1987	Tel Aviv University	Zoology - Marine Ecology	M.Sc. (with distinction)	1987
1987-1993	Tel Aviv University	Zoology - Marine Ecology	Ph.D. (with distinction)	1993
1993-1995	Stanford University , California , U.S.A.	Marine Ecology	postdoctoral study	-----

Title of Master's thesis:	Aggressiveness among stony corals: Is it competition for space?
Title of doctoral dissertation:	Physical principles of flow and particle behavior in the biology and ecology of sessile organisms.
Postdoctoral study:	Settlement in flow of marine organisms, Stanford University, California, USA, 1993-1995

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Period of study	Name of University	Department	Rank/Function
1985 - 1993	Tel Aviv University	Zoology	Teaching Assistant
1987 - 1988	The Open University	Oceanography course	Coordinator
1995-1999	Tel Aviv University	Institute for Nature Conservation Research	Lecturer
1999-Present	Tel Aviv University	Zoology	Senior Lecturer

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL AWARDS

Year	Name of Institution (city, country)	Occasion
1986	Prof. H. Lewinsohn award for marine-biology students	H.
1997-2000	The U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation
1997-2000	The Israel Science Foundation of the Israel Academy of Sciences
1998	The Israel Science Foundation - Equipment Fund ('Academia Tziud')
1999-2001	BMBF German-Israel Cooperation in Marine Sciences (MARS 2)
1999-2002	MERC (USAID) - the Red-Sea Marine Peace Park (RSMPP) Project
2004-2006	Italy-Israel Environmental studies Foundation
2001-2004	The U.S.-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF)
2004-2006	USAID - Coral-reef study in Eritrea
2005-2009	BMBF German-Israel Cooperation in Marine Sciences

CONSULTANCY AND OTHER EX-CURRICULUM ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVITIES

- Member of the "Marine Constructions for Artificial Reefs" Forum of the Ministry of the Environment.

- Member of a consultation committee of the Ministry of the Environment for the Environmental impact assessment of fish-cage farms in Eilat.

- Member of the thinking tank of The Heschel Center for Environmental Learning and Leadership.

- Coordinating 'academic committee of Nature Conservation (sub-committee of the board of governors of the Israeli Society for Nature Conservation).

- Organizing a 'Marine Pollution Forum' of the Israeli "green associations".

- Consultant for the Ministry of the Environment, the Society for Nature Conservation, GreenPeace and 'Adam Teva Ve-Din' in various marine and coastal issues. - Environmental consultant of artificial-reef enterprise (" Divers Island ") in the Red Sea .

Research Interests

My scientific fields of interest are:
1. Ecological processes and principles of marine benthic environments, with emphasis on human impact on marine ecosystems
2. Coral reef ecology
3. Restoration of benthic habitats, notably coral reefs
3. Artificial reefs: Design and planning
4. Settlement and recruitment of benthic organisms
5. Development and implementation of bio-monitoring methods (from molecular and cellular to community levels).
6. Scientific applications of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and community-based management
7. Connectivity among marine communities
8. Site selection and chemotaxis in marine organisms
9. The role of flow in the biology and ecology of benthic organisms
10. Marine bioinvasion: Invasion and introduction of exotic marine organisms and their environmental impact on marine communities

Students and Lab Members

Ph.D. students

Year	Name	Dissertation title
1999-2003	Anat Glazer	Recruitment and attachment of sessile marine organisms on artificial substrates in Hadera power plant. (with E. Spanier ).
1998-2004	Sigal Shefer	Factors and processes facilitating the invasion of Brachidontes pharaonis into the Levant basin. (with E. Geffen ).
1999-2004	Zohar Pasternak	Strategies of organism-location in marine environments using chemical sensing. (with Y. Achituv)
2004-	Ofer Ben-Tzvi

M.Sc. students

Year	Name	Dissertation title
1995-1997	Micha Rosenfeld	Boundary zones between hard and soft substrates: an assessment tool for the role of sediments in coral reefs.
1997-1999	Zohar Pasternak	Host-location strategies by larvae of symbiotic barnacles.
1998-2000	Ronen Olinky	Characteristics of the recruitment process in the reefs of Eilat: Effects on stony coral population dynamics and reef conservation.
2000-2002	Avi Shemla	Environmental factors shaping artificial-reef communities.
2001-2003	Limor Barak	Cellular defense mechanisms against xenobiotics in Patella caerulea as biomonitoring markers of marine environments. (with O. Mokady).
2002-2004	Lee Shaish	Growth patterns of the stony coral Stilophora pistillata. (with B. Rinkevich).
2002-2004	Ofer Ben-Tzvi	A new monitoring index for the determination of coral reef health. (with Y. Loya).
2002-2004	Assaf Zvuloni	Intra-specific genetic variability of the corals Stylophora pistillata and Heteroxenia fuscescens from the northern tip of the Gulf of Eilat . (with O. Mokady).
2003-2005	Ilil Atad	The limpet Cellana rota as a Lessepsian migrant model: arrival, establishment and competition with local species. (with O. Mokady).
2004-2007	Karnit Bahartan	Turf algae takeover in the Eilat coral reefs: ecological indications and implications.
2005-	Stephane Martinez
2005-	Daniel Sharon
2006-	Rotem Shani
2006-	Leor Korzen
2006-	Yulia Taslitsky
2006-	Rami Zadok
2006-	Tamar Ben-Moshe

Full Publications

LIST OF PUBLICATIONS

1. Abelson, A., B. Galil, and Y. Loya. 1991. Skeletal modifications in stony corals caused by indwelling crabs: Hydrodynamical advantages for crab feeding. Symbiosis, 10: 233-248.
2. Abelson, A., T. Miloh, and Y. Loya. 1993. Flow patterns induced by substrata and body morphologies of benthic organisms, and their roles in determining food particle availability. Limno. Oceanogr. 38:1116-1124.
3. Abelson, A., D. Weihs, and Y. Loya. 1994. Hydrodynamic impediments to settlement of marine propagules, and adhesive-filament solutions. Limno. Oceanogr. 39:164-169.
4. Abelson, A. and Y. Loya. 1995. Cross-scale patterns of particulate-food acquisition in marine benthic environments. Am. Nat, 145: 848-854.
5. Ilan, M. and A. Abelson. 1996. The life of a sponge in a sandy lagoon. Biological Bulletin 189: 363-369.
6. Stone, L., E. Eilam, A. Abelson and M. Ilan. 1996. Modelling coral reef biodiversity and habitat destruction. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 134: 299-302.
7. Abelson, A. 1997. Settlement in flow: upstream exploration of substrata by weakly swimming larvae. Ecology 78: 160-166.
8. Abelson, A. and M. Denny. 1997. Settlement of marine organisms in flow: mechanisms, problems, solutions and ecological interpretations. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 28:317-339.
9. Bresler, V., L. Fishelson and A. Abelson. 1998. Anti-xenobiotic defense mechanisms and environmental health. Rapp. Comm. Intl. Mer. Medit. 35:338-340
10. Abelson, A. and M. Rosenfeld. 1998. Boundary zones between soft and hard substrates and their ecological implications. Proceeding of the International Symposium on Environmental Management in the Mediterranean Region, Vol. 2: 723-731
11. Abelson, A., B. Shteinman, M. Fine and S. Kaganovsky. 1999. Mass transport from pollution sources to remote coral reefs in Eilat (Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea). Mar. Poll. Bull. 38:25-29.
12. Bresler, V., L. Fishelson and A. Abelson. 1999. A proposed fluorescent microscopic methodology for distinguishing of dioxin-like biological effects in wild animals. Organohalogen Compounds 44: 385-388.
13. Bresler V., Bissinger V., Abelson A., Dizer H., Sturm A., Kratke R., Fishelson L. and Hansen P-D. 1999. Marine molluscs and fish as biomarkers of pollution stress in littoral regions of the Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea and North Sea. Helgol. Mar. Res. 53: 219-243.
14. Abelson, A. and Y. Loya. 1999. Interspecific aggression among stony corals in Elat, Red Sea: A hierarchy of aggression ability and related parameters. Bull. Mar. Sci. 65:851-860.
15. Rosenfeld, M., V. Bresler, and A. Abelson. 1999. Sediment in coral reefs - a disturbing factor or a source of food? Ecology letters 2:345-348.
16. Sultan, A., A. Abelson, V. Bresler, L. Fishelson and O. Mokady. 2000. Biomonitoring marine environmental quality at the level of gene-expression-texting the feasibility of a new approach. J. Water Sci. 42: 269-274.
17. Bresler V. M., Fishelson L. and, Abelson A. 2001. Determination of primary and secondary responses to environmental stressors and biota health. In: Assessment and Management of Environmental Risks: Methods and Applications", p: 57-70, eds: I. Linkov and J. Palma-Oliveira. Kluwer Academic Press.
18. Pasternak, Z., A. Rix and A. Abelson. 2001. Episymbionts as possible anti-fouling agents on reef-building hydrozoan. Coral Reefs 20:318-319.
19. Abelson, A. and Y. Shlesinger. 2002. Development of coral-reef community on artificial reefs in Eilat, Gulf of Aqaba, red sea: aggregates of limestone rocks. J. Mar. Sci. 59: S122-S126.
20. Fishelson, L., V. Bresler, A. Abelson, L. Stone, E. Gefen. M. Rosenfeld and O. Mokady. 2002. The two sides of man-induced changes in littoral marine communities: Eastern Mediterranean and the Res Sea as an example. Sci. Total Env. 296: 139-151.
21. Pasternak, Z., A. Abelson and Y. Achituv (2002). Orientation of Chelonibia patula on the carapace of its crab host is determined by the feeding mechanism of the adult barnacle. J. Mar. Biol. Ass. U.K. 82:4026/1-6
22. Bresler, V., Abelson, A., Fishelson, L., Feldstein, T., Rosenfeld, M., Mokady O. 2003. Using marine molluscs for environmental monitoring. I. Cellular and molecular reponses. Helgoland Mar. Res. 57: 157-165.
23. Bresler, V., Mokady O., Fishelson, L., Feldstein, T., Abelson, A. 2003. Using marine molluscs for environmental monitoring. II. Experimental exposure to selected pollutants. Helgoland Mar. Res. 57: 206-211.
24. Feldstein, T., Kashman, Y., Abelson, A., Fishelson, L., Mokady O., Bresler, V., Erel, Y. 2003. Using marine molluscs for environmental monitoring. III.Chemical characterization of animal tissue and sediments. Helgoland Mar. Res. 57: 212-219.
25. Ben-Tzvi, Y. Loya and A. Abelson. 2004. Deterioration Index (DI): a suggested criterion for assessing the health of coral communities. Mar. Poll. Bull. 48:954-960.
26. Shefer, S., A. Abelson, O. Mokady and E. Geffen. 2004. Red- to Med-Sea bioinvasion: natural drift through the Suez Canal, or anthropogenic transport? Mol. Ecol. 13: 2333-2343.
27. Pasternak, Z., A. Bachar, A. Abelson and Y. Achituv. 2004. Initiation of symbiosis between the soft coral Heteroxenia fuscescens and its zooxanthellae. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 279:113-116.
28. Pasternak, Z., B. Blasius and A. Abelson. 2004. Host Location by Larvae of a Parasitic Barnacle: Larval Chemotaxis and Plume Tracking in Flow. J. Plankton Res. 26: 387-393.
29. Pasternak, Z., B. Blasius, Y. Achituv and A. Abelson. 2004. Host-location in flow by larvae of the symbiotic barnacle Trevathana dentata using odor-gated rheotaxis (2004). Proc. Royal Soc. Lond. B UK 271: 1745-1750.
30. Fine, M., Y. Aluma, E. Meroz-Fine, A. Abelson, Y. Loya. 2005. Acabaria erythraea (Octocorallia: Gorgonacea) a successful invader to the Mediterranean Sea? Coral reefs 24: 161-164.
31. Abelson, A., R. Olinky, S. Gaines. 2005. Coral recruitment to the reefs of Eilat, Red Sea: temporal and spatial variation, and possible effects of anthropogenic disturbances. Mar. Poll. Bull. 50: 576–582.
32. Abelson, A. 2006. Artificial reefs versus coral transplantation as restoration tools for mitigating coral reef deterioration: benefits, concerns and proposed guidelines. Bull. Mar. Sci. 78; 151-159.
33. Abelson, A. and S. Gaines. 2006. A call for a standardized protocol of coral recruitment research and outlines for its conception. Mar. Poll. Bull. Dec;50(12):1745-8.
34. Shaish, L., A. Abelson and B. Rinkevich. 2006. Branch to colony trajectory in a modular organism: Pattern formation in the Indo-Pacific coral Stylophora pistillata. Developmental Dynamics 235:2111-2121
35. Pasternak, Z., B. Blasius, Abelson A. and Achituv Y., 2006. Host-finding behaviour and navigation capabilities of symbiotic zooxanthellae. Coral Reefs 25:201-207.
36. Pasternak, Z., A. Diamant, Abelson A. 2007. Co-invasion of a Red Sea fish and its ectoparasitic monogenean, Polylabris cf. mamaevi into the Mediterranean: observations on oncomiracidium behavior and infection levels in both seas. Parasitology Research 100:721-727.
37. Ben-Tzvi, A. Abelson, S. D. Gaines, M. S. Sheehy, G.L. Paradis and M. Kiflawi. The inclusion of sub Detection Limit (DL) LA-ICPMS data, in the analysis of otolith microchemistry by use of a "Palindrome Sequence Analysis" (PaSA). Limnol. Oceanogr. – methods 5:97-105.
38. Shaish, L., A. Abelson and B. Rinkevich. 2007. Branch to colony trajectory in a modular organism: Pattern formation in the Indo-Pacific coral Stylophora pistillata. PLoS One 7:e644(1-9)
39. Ben-Tzvi, M. Kiflawi, H. Gildor and A. Abelson. Possible effects of downwelling on the recruitment of coral-reef fishes to the Eilat coral reefs (Limnol. Oceanogr. accepted).

Submitted manuscripts
1. Zvuloni, A., O. Mokady, G. Bernardi, S. Gaines, A. Abelson. Local scale genetic structure in coral populations in Eilat, Red Sea: an indication of selection? (submitted).
2. Ben-Tzvi, O., M. Zibdeh, Y. Ahmed, V. Bresler, and A. Abelson. Coral reef monitoring: Examination of the reliability of coral community indices based on comparisons with cytological tests. (submitted)
3. Ben-Tzvi, M. Kiflawi, M. El-Zibdah, M. S. Sheehy , G.L. Paradis and A. Abelson. Otolith-based indication of the different routes followed by Chromis viridis recruiting to the coral reefs of the northern Gulf of Aqaba (submitted)

My Theme

Scientific activities
My research interests lie within the field of marine biology and ecology, focusing on coral-reef ecology, human impact on the marine environment and science-based solutions for environmental problems in marine ecosystems. The uniqueness of my research activities is reflected in integration of various tools and methodologies into a multidisciplinary approach, whose aim is to improve our understanding of complex systems (e.g. coral reefs) and complicated processes (e.g. species invasion and connectivity among benthic communities). Specifically, my current research activities encompass three main areas:
- Connectivity among benthic populations/communities. Understanding connectivity and the role of different sites as source or sink of recruits is of immense importance in the evaluation of coastal marine habitats. To study questions related to connectivity and source-sink values of larval supply, we employ two methods: first, a micro-chemical study of fish otoliths using Laser Ablation - Inductively Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS); second, molecular techniques that are applied to the study of genotype composition and maladaptation frequency in fish and stony coral populations. Overall, although there is much more work still to be done in both directions, significant achievements have been made, contributing to our knowledge of connectivity among coral reef sites in the northern Gulf of Aqaba, and setting the stage for more sophisticated work in the future.
- Marine bioinvasion. The negative impact of invading species on local species and habitats may lead to species extinction, loss of biodiversity, alteration of ecosystem function and economic damage. We monitor population dynamics and obtain life history parameters of invasive species and their indigenous co-taxa, and compare the environmental conditions between seemingly vulnerable sites and resistant sites using biogeochemical analyses. We also use field experiments to evaluate direct competition between the invading and the indigenous species, and use molecular markers to investigate the genetic variability of invading populations at different sites along the presumed invasion route. Using the data collected, we are attempting to construct quantitative, predictive models to describe spatial and temporal aspects of the invasion process based on environmental and biological parameters. Unraveling biological and environmental characteristics that render certain species good invaders and certain sites vulnerable is crucial for designing sound coastal management policies. The combined approach we have adopted is expected to provide significant progress in this direction.
- Human impact on marine habitats: Problems and solutions. Because the marine environment is becoming increasingly impaired by adverse anthropogenic effects, a detailed knowledge of the biological processes involved is essential in order to facilitate their regulation and to tailor sound solutions. My research in this regard is two-fold: first, development of cross-scale, reliable biomonitoring tools that can serve for early-warning assessment; and second, spotting candidate solutions for ecological problems (e.g. coral-reef deterioration) such as artificial reefs and species rehabilitation of grazers.