Professor Jörg Wiedenmann is the Head of the Marine Biology and Ecology Research Group and leads the Coral Reef Laboratory at the University of Southampton. He is interested in the functioning of the coral-algal symbiosis and how changes in environmental conditions affect reef ecosystems. He has made major contributions to our understanding of how the disturbance of the nutrient environment renders corals more susceptible to bleaching. His work led to the discovery of new coral symbiont species that enable corals to survive in the hottest reef environments on our planet. He introduced novel fluorescent coral pigments as imaging tools for medical research.