Apostolaki Eugenia

Education Profile

• Ph.D., Marine Biology, Biology Department, University of Crete, Greece, 2008
• M.Sc., Marine Biology, Biology Department, University of Crete, Greece, 2004
• B.Sc., Biology, Biology Department, Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Greece, 2001

Professional Profile

• 2008-to date: Researcher, Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR), Greece
• 2004-2008: Research Assistant, Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR), Greece
• 2001-2003: Research Assistant, Marine Ecology & Biodiversity Department, Institute of Marine Biology of Crete (IMBC), Greece

Scientific and Professional Memberships

• World Seagrass Association member
• Mediterranean Seagrass Association member
• Hellenic Phycological Society member
• HCMR Scientific Diving Team member

Awards and Recognition

• 2004: MSc Scholar Award, State Scholarships Foundation (IKY), Greece

Research Interests

Dr. Apostolaki′s research focuses on seagrass ecophysiology and biogeochemistry. She studies the direct (e.g. eutrophication, aquaculture) and indirect (e.g. increasing temperature, acidification, alien species invasion) human impact on productivity, community metabolism and carbon and nutrient cycling in seagrass ecosystems. She is involved in studies detecting worldwide trends in seagrass status, reviewing historical data on seagrass distribution, mapping seagrass beds, intercalibrating seagrass monitoring protocols and delivering recommendations on management of seagrass ecosystems. She is also involved in environmental awareness initiatives, by raising public knowledge and interest in seagrasses.

1. Karakassis I, Dimitriou PD, Papageorgiou N, Apostolaki ET, Lampadariou N, Black KD (2013) Methodological considerations on the coastal and transitional benthic indicators proposed for the Water Framework Directive. Ecological Indicators 29: 26-33.
2. Fourqurean JW, Duarte CM, Kennedy H, Marba N, Holmer M, Mateo MA, Apostolaki ET, Kendrick GA, Krause-Jensen D, McGlathery KJ, Serrano O (2012) Seagrass ecosystems as a globally significant carbon stock. Nature Geoscience 5: 505-509.
3. Sanz-Lázaro C, Malea P, Apostolaki ET, Kalantzi I, Marin A, Karakassis I (2012) The role of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica in the cycling of trace elements. Biogeosciences 9: 2497–2507.
4. Dimitriou P, Apostolaki ET, Papageorgiou N, Reizopoulou S, Simboura N, Arvanitidis C, Karakassis I (2012) Meta-analysis of a large data set with Water Framework Directive indicators and calibration of a Benthic Quality Index at the family level. Ecological Indicators 20: 101-107.
5. Apostolaki ET, Vizzini S, Karakassis I (2012) Leaf vs. epiphyte nitrogen uptake in a nutrient enriched Mediterranean seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) meadow. Aquatic Botany 96: 58-62.
6. Apostolaki ET, Holmer M, Marba N, Karakassis I (2011) Reduced carbon sequestration in a Mediterranean seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) ecosystem impacted by fish farming. Aquaculture Environment Interactions, 2: 49-59.
7. Chatzigeorgiou G, Reizopoulou S, Maidanou M, Naletaki M, Orneraki E, Apostolaki ET, Arvanitidis C (2011). Macrobenthic community changes due to dystrophic events and freshwater inflow: Changes in space and time in a Mediterranean lagoon (Gialova lagoon, SW Greece). Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 94: 111-121.
8. Apostolaki ET, Holmer M, Marba N, Karakassis I (2011) Epiphyte dynamics and carbon metabolism in a nutrient enriched Mediterranean seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) meadow. Journal of Sea Research, 66: 135-142.
9. Duarte CM, Marba N, Gacia E, Fourqurean JW, Beggins J, Barron C, Apostolaki ET (2010) Seagrass community metabolism: assessing the carbon sink capacity of seagrass meadows. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 24: GB4032
10. Apostolaki ET, Holmer M, Marba N, Karakassis I (2010) Metabolic imbalance in coastal vegetated (Posidonia oceanica) and unvegetated benthic ecosystems. Ecosystems, 13: 459-471.
11. Apostolaki ET, Holmer M, Marba N, Karakassis I (2010) Degrading seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) ecosystems: a source of dissolved matter to the Mediterranean. Hydrobiologia, 649: 13-23.
12. Apostolaki ET, Marba N, Holmer M, Karakassis I (2009) Fish farming enhances biomass and nutrient loss in Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 81: 390-400.
13. Apostolaki ET, Marba N, Holmer M, Karakassis I (2009) Fish farming impact on decomposition of Posidonia oceanica litter. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 369: 58-64.
14. Pitta P, Tsapakis M, Apostolaki ET, Tsagaraki T, Holmer M, Karakassis I (2009) ‘Ghost nutrients’ from fish farms are transferred up the food web by phytoplankton grazers. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 374: 1-6.
15. Apostolaki ET, Tsagkaraki T, Tsapakis M, Karakassis I (2007) Fish farming effects on Mediterranean seagrass sediments and associated macrofaunal communities. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 75: 408-416.
16. Pitta P, Apostolaki ET, Tsagkaraki T, Tsapakis M, Karakassis I (2006) Fish farming effects on chemical and microbial variables of the water column: A spatio-temporal study along the Mediterranean. Hydrobiologia, 563: 99-108.
17. Karakassis I, Machias A, Pitta P, Papadopoulou N, Smith CJ, Apostolaki ET, Giannoulaki M, Koutsoubas D, Somarakis S (2006) Cross community congruence patterns in marine ecosystems: does the part reflect the whole? Marine Ecology Progress Series, 310: 47-54.
18. Cook EJ, Black KD, Sayer MDJ, Cromey CJ, Angel D, Spanier E, Tsemel A, Katz T, Eden N, Karakassis I, Tsapakis M, Apostolaki ET, Malej A (2006) The influence of caged mariculture on the early development of sub-littoral fouling communities: a pan-European study. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 63: 637-649.
19. Pitta P, Apostolaki ET, Giannoulaki M, Karakassis I (2005) Mesoscale changes in the water column in response to fish farming zones in three coastal areas in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 65: 501-512.
20. Koukouras A, Chartosia Ν, Apostolaki E (2002) New records of isopod crustaceans from the continental rise of the Aegean Sea. Crustaceana, 75(7): 915-924.