MAY SPEAKER: Krista Laforest, Coral Spawning Research

Spawning Synchrony and Fertilization Cues

PhD student Krista LaForest is from Quincy, Massachusetts and received her B.S. in Marine Biology from UNCW. During this time, she earned her PADI Divemaster certification and completed her AAUS Scientific Diver training. Her PhD research at the Coral Reef Lab of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, NC, focuses on how climate change, development, and pollution influence spawning synchronization cues and fertilization success. In early 2025, Krista Laforest and Nikki Foggarty, UNCW authored the Spawning Prediction Calendar — see at the bottom of blog, and the button is a link to the Facebook page

Krista received her M.S. in Marine Science at Nova Southeastern University’s Marine Larval Ecology and Recruitment Laboratory, examining how temperature and nighttime light pollution impact the spawning synchrony of staghorn coral. Looking to combine her love of scientific diving and conservation, she interned with the Coral Restoration Foundation maintaining coral nurseries, outplanting corals, and monitoring coral spawning.