Associate Professor
חבר/ת סגל אקדמי בכיר
Eilat Campus
קרוואן כיתות - E4C קמפוס אילת
Prof. Gidon Winters
Departments
Staff member contact section
About
I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Life Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, based at the Eilat campus, on the shores of the Red Sea, where much of my research takes place. My work explores how seagrasses cope with environmental stress in marine environments, bridging fundamental ecology with applied marine biotechnology. My journey to seagrass research began with coral reefs, studying their photophysiology at Tel Aviv University, then investigating coral bleaching in the crystal waters of Puerto Morelos, Mexico. I completed my Ph.D. in Israel working on corals with Professors Sven Beer and Yossi Loya, developing methods for physiological monitoring of coral stress. A postdoctoral position in Germany with Prof. Thorsten Reusch allowed me to work on thermal stress in temperate seagrasses, before I returned to Israel in 2011 to establish my lab. For over a decade now, I've been captivated by Halophila stipulacea, a remarkable little seagrass with a big story. Native to the Red Sea, it's become one of the ocean's most successful colonizers, spreading throughout the Mediterranean and recently establishing itself in the Caribbean. My research combines field-work with laboratory experiments and molecular techniques to understand how these plants respond to climate change, how they interact with microbial communities, and how they might be harnessed for biotechnology applications and ecosystem restoration. Through collaborative partnerships spanning Israel, the Mediterranean, and beyond, our lab works to advance the conservation, management, and biotechnological potential of these critical marine ecosystems. Whether diving in seagrass meadows or working at the molecular level in the lab, the goal is generating knowledge that helps protect these vital ecosystems while unlocking their potential for innovative applications.The University bears no responsibility for the content displayed on this page or on any other faculty members’ pages. Full responsibility for the content rests solely with the faculty members themselves, who independently update and manage the information on their pages
