Stergios Zarkogiannis

Dr. Stergios Zarkagiannis

Guest Scientist

Programme Area: Programme Area 4 - Ecosystem Co-Design
Working Group: WG Geoecology and Carbonate Sedimentology

+49 421 23800 -56

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Office: Wiener Strasse 7
28359 Bremen
Room: 5205 (2nd floor)

Curriculum Vitae: Dr. Stergios Zarkagiannis

I am fundamentally an Oceanographer and an Architect who developed a strong passion for Earth Sciences eversince encountering dissected, polished ammonite fossil specimens. After completing my undergraduate studies in Marine Sciences at the University of the Aegean, where I specialized in eastern Mediterranean islandic beaches, I pursued a Master's degree in Environmental Coastal Engineering at the University of Southampton. It was there that I gained hands-on experience with marine fossils and discovered Paleoceanography. I later earned a PhD in Marine Micropaleontology and Foraminifera Geochemistry and currently hold a Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship in Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research.

Research interests:

My research focuses on the role of marine plankton in carbon cycling, with particular emphasis on biomineralization processes in calcifying plankton and their interaction with physical ocean properties. A central theme of my work is a newly identified relationship between planktonic calcification and seawater density, which challenges the traditional paradigm that biomineralization is controlled primarily by ocean chemistry.

I investigate how planktonic foraminifera adjust shell mass in response to density gradients in the ocean, influencing depth habitat, vertical carbon export, and long-term carbon storage. Current work examines calcification across strong hydrographic gradients and contrasting ocean basins, using the Red Sea as a natural laboratory due to its extreme salinity and pronounced density gradient toward the Arabian Sea.

My research integrates geochemical proxies, advanced imaging techniques, and physical oceanography to better constrain the controls on plankton calcification and their implications for the marine carbonate system. More broadly, I aim to improve the representation of biologically mediated carbonate cycling in climate and paleoceanographic frameworks and to understand the resilience of marine calcifiers to ongoing ocean change.

List of Publications

Monographs (1)

Stergios D. Zarkogiannis* (2010) Cliffing of replenished beaches: examples from coarse grain beaches, VDM Publishing, Saarbrücken, Germany, pp 136, ISBN: 978‐3‐639‐23113‐7

A) Accepted or Under Review (4)

  1. Wood, T.*, Zarkogiannis, S.D., Hall, I., Rickaby, R.E.M. (2025) Diatom Productivity Boosts Subpolar Carbon Pump Over the Last Millennium. (preprint)
  2. Agiadi, K., Vasiliev, I., Vite, A., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Fuster-Alonso, A., Mestre-Tomás, J., Koskeridou, E. and Quillévéré, F. (2025) Pelagic ecosystem responses to changes in seawater conditions during the Middle Pleistocene Transition in the Eastern Mediterranean. (preprint)
  3. Zeb, S.F.*, Zafar, M., Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Haq Ali, T., Siyar, S.M., Jahandad, S., Radwan, A.E., Ahmed, M.S., Fathy, D. (2024) Biomarker insights into the Chichali Formation and Petroleum Systems of the Kohat Basin, Western Himalayas. (preprint)

B) Publications (41)

  1. Zarkogiannis, S.D., Rae, J.W.B., Shipley, B.R., Mortyn, P.G. (2025) Planktonic foraminifera regulate calcification according to ocean density, Communications Earth & Environment 6, 605, doi: 1038/s43247-025-02558-w (I.F. 8.9)
  2. Ziveri, P. *, Langer G., Chaabane, S., de Vries, J., Gray, W.R., Keul, N., Hatton, I.A., Manno, C., Norris, R., Pallacks, S., Young, J.R., Schiebel, R., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Anglada-Ortiz, G., Bianco, S., de Garidel-Thoron, T., Grelaud, M., Lucas, A., Probert, I., Mortyn, P.G. (2025) Calcifying plankton: From biomineralization to global change, Science 390, eadq8520, doi: 1126/science.adq8520 (I.F. 45.8)
  3. Zarkogiannis, S.D., Wood, T., Miller, G., Stukins, S., Clark, B. (2025) Reassessing the HMS Challenger collection as a late 19th century surface ocean indicator using X-ray micro-computed tomography, Frontiers in Marine Sciences, Volume 12, doi: 3389/fmars.2025.1454260 (I.F. 2)
  4. Zarkogiannis, S.D.* (2024) Calcification and ecological depth preferences of the planktonic foraminifer Trilobatus trilobus in the central Atlantic, Royal Society Open Science, doi: 1098/rsos.240179 (I.F. 2.9)
  5. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Day, C., Kontakiotis, G. (2024) Impact of diagenesis on the Calcium Isotopes and Mg/Ca ratios of Globigerinoides ruber shells in the eastern Mediterranean, Journal of the Geological Society, doi: 1144/jgs2024-019 (I.F. 2.7)
  6. Agiadi, K.*, Hohmann, N., Gliozzi, E., Thivaiou, D., Bosellini, F., Taviani, M., Bianucci, G., Collareta, A., Londeix, L., Faranda, C., Bulian, F., Koskeridou, E., Lozar, F., Mancini, A. M., Dominici, S., Moissette, P., Bajo Campos, I., Borghi, E., Iliopoulos, G., Antonarakou, A., Kontakiotis, G., Besiou, E., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Harzhauser, M., Sierro, F. J., Camerlenghi, A., and Garcia-Castellanos, D. (2024) Late Miocene transformation of Mediterranean Sea biodiversity, Science Advances, doi: 1126/sciadv.adp1134 (I.F. 20.9)
  7. Agiadi, K.*, Hohmann, N., Gliozzi, E., Thivaiou, D., Bosellini, F., Taviani, M., Bianucci, G., Collareta, A., Londeix, L., Faranda, C., Bulian, F., Koskeridou, E., Lozar, F., Mancini, A. M., Dominici, S., Moissette, P., Bajo Campos, I., Borghi, E., Iliopoulos, G., Antonarakou, A., Kontakiotis, G., Besiou, E., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Harzhauser, M., Sierro, F. J., Camerlenghi, A., and Garcia-Castellanos, D. (2024) The marine biodiversity impact of the Mediterranean salt giant, Science, doi: 1126/science.adp3703 (I.F. 44.7)
  8. Agiadi, K.*, Hohmann, N., Gliozzi, E., Thivaiou, D., Bosellini, F., Taviani, M., Bianucci, G., Collareta, A., Londeix, L., Faranda, C., Bulian, F., Koskeridou, E., Lozar, F., Mancini, A. M., Dominici, S., Moissette, P., Bajo Campos, I., Borghi, E., Iliopoulos, G., Antonarakou, A., Kontakiotis, G., Besiou, E., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Harzhauser, M., Sierro, F. J., Camerlenghi, A., and Garcia-Castellanos, D. (2024) A revised marine fossil record of the Mediterranean before and after the Messinian Salinity Crisis, Earth System Science Data, doi: 5194/essd-16-4767-2024 (I.F. 12.1)
  9. Chauhan, N.*, Barton, S., Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Rickaby, R.E.M. (2024) Light quality induces a shift in coccosphere morphology in Scyphosphaera apsteinii, Journal of Plankton Research, fbae032, doi: 1093/plankt/fbae032 (I.F. 2.2)
  10. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Iwasaki, S., Clark, E.G., Guenser, P. (2024) Virtual paleobiology—advances in X-ray computed microtomography and 3D visualization of fossils (Editorial), Frontiers in Earth Science, Volume 9, doi:3389/feart.2024.1357880 (I.F. 2)
  11. Agiadi, K.*, Vasiliev, I., Butiseacă, G., Kontakiotis, G., Thivaiou, D., Besiou, E., Zarkogiannis, S., Koskeridou, E., Antonarakou, A., and Mulch, A. (2024): Coupled otolith and foraminifera oxygen and carbon stable isotopes evidence paleoceanographic changes and fish metabolic responses, Biogeosciences, doi: 5194/egusphere-2024-309 (I.F. 3.9)
  12. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Iwasaki, S., Rae, J.W.B, Schmidt, M.W., Mortyn, P.G., Kontakiotis, G., Hertzberg, J.E., Rickaby, R.E.M. (2022) Calcification, dissolution and test properties of modern planktonic foraminifera from the central Atlantic Ocean, Frontiers in Marine Science 592, 110903, doi:3389/fmars.2022.864801 (I.F. 2.8)
  13. Kontakiotis, G.*, Butiseacă, G.A., Antonarakou, A., Agiadi, K., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Krsnik, E., Besiou, E., Zachariasse, W.J., Lourens, L., Thivaiou, D., Koskeridou, E., Moissette, P., Mulch, A., Karakitsios, V., Vasiliev, I. (2022) Hypersalinity accompanies tectonic restriction in the eastern Mediterranean prior to the Messinian Salinity Crisis, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 592, 110903, doi: 1016/j.palaeo.2022.110903 (I.F. 2.6)
  14. Makri *, Hermides D., Kontakiotis G., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Besiou E., Janjuhah H. T., Antonarakou, A (2022) Integrated Ecological Assessment of Heavily Polluted Sedimentary Basin within the Broader Industrialized Area of Thriassion Plain (Western Attica, Greece), Water 14(3), 382, doi: 10.3390/w14030382 (I.F. 3.0)
  15. Janjuhah T.*, Kontakiotis G., Wahid A., Khan D.M., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Antonarakou A., (2021) Integrated Porosity Classification and Quantification Scheme for Enhanced Carbonate Reservoir Quality: Implications from the Miocene Malaysian Carbonates, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9(12), 1410, doi: 10.3390/jmse9121410 (I.F. 2.7)
  16. Janjuhah H.T.*, Ishfaque M, Mehmood M.I., Kontakiotis G., Shahzad S.M., Zarkogiannis, S.D., (2021) Integrated Underground Mining Hazard Assessment, Management, Environmental Monitoring, and Policy Control in Pakistan, Sustainability 13(24), 13505, doi: 3390/su132413505 (I.F. 3.3)
  17. Ali S.K.*, Janjuhah H.T., Shahzad S.M., Kontakiotis G., Saleem M.H., Khan U., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Makri P., Antonarakou A., (2021) Depositional Sedimentary Facies, Stratigraphic Control, Paleoecological Constraints, and Paleogeographic Reconstruction of Late Permian Chhidru Formation (Western Salt Range, Pakistan), Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9(12), 1372, doi: 3390/jmse9121372 (I.F. 2.7)
  18. Khan *, Janjuhah H.T., Kontakiotis G., Rehman A., Zarkogiannis, S.D., (2021) Natural Processes and Anthropogenic Activity in the Indus River Sedimentary Environment in Pakistan: A Critical Review, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9(10), 1109, doi: 10.3390/jmse9101109 (I.F. 2.7)
  19. Kontakiotis G*, Efstathiou E, Zarkogiannis, S.D., Besiou E, Antonarakou A., (2021): Latitudinal Differentiation among Modern Planktonic Foraminiferal Populations of Central Mediterranean: Species–Specific Distribution Patterns and Size Variability, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9(5), 551, doi: 3390/jmse9050551 (I.F. 2.7)
  20. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, (2021): Disruption of the Atlantic Meridional Circulation during Deglacial Climates Inferred from Planktonic Foraminiferal Shell Weights, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9(5), 519, doi:3390/jmse9050519 (I.F. 2.7)
  21. Preiss‐Daimler, I.*, Zarkogiannis, S.D., Kontakiotis, G., Henrich, R., Antonarakou, A. (2021) Paleoceanographic Perturbations and the Marine Carbonate System during the Middle to Late Miocene Carbonate Crash ‐ A Critical Review, Geosciences 11(2), 94, doi:3390/geosciences11020094 (I.F. 1.0)
  22. Makri P.*, Stathopoulou E., Hermides D, Kontakiotis G, Zarkogiannis S.D., Skilodimou H, Bathrellos G.D., Antonarakou A., Scoullos M. (2020) The Environmental Impact of a Complex Hydrogeological System on Hydrocarbon‐Pollutants’ Natural Attenuation: The Case of the Coastal Aquifers in Eleusis, West Attica, Greece, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 8(12), 1018, doi: 3390/jmse8121018 (I.F. 2.7)
  23. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Kontakiotis, G., Gkaniatsa, G., Kuppili, V.S.C., Marathe, S., Wanelik, K., Lianou, V., Besiou, E., Makri, P., Antonarakou, A. (2020) An Improved Cleaning Protocol for Foraminiferal Calcite from Unconsolidated Core Sediments: HyPerCal—A New Practice for Micropaleontological and Paleoclimatic Proxies, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 8(12), 998, doi:3390/jmse8120998 (I.F. 2.7)
  24. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Kontakiotis, G., Antonarakou, A. (2020) Recent planktonic foraminifera population and size response to Eastern Mediterranean hydrography, Revue de Micropaléontologie 69, 100450, doi:1016/j.revmic.2020.100450 (I.F. 0.7)
  25. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Antonarakou, A., Fernandez, V., Mortyn, P.G., Kontakiotis, G., Drinia, H., Greaves, M. (2020), Evidence of stable foraminifera biomineralization during the last two climate cycles in the tropical Atlantic Ocean, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 8, 737., doi:3390/jmse8100737 (I.F. 2.7)
  26. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Fernandez, V., Greaves, M., Mortyn, P.G., Kontakiotis, G., Antonarakou, A., (2020) Supporting data for “X-ray tomographic data of planktonic foraminifera species Globigerina bulloides from the Eastern Tropical Atlantic across Termination II”. GigaScience Database, doi: 5524/100786 (I.F. n/a)
  27. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Fernandez, V., Greaves, M., Mortyn, P.G., Kontakiotis, G., Antonarakou, A. (2020) X‐ray tomographic data of planktonic foraminifera species Globigerina bulloides from the Eastern Tropical Atlantic across Termination II. Gigabyte 1: 1‐10., doi:46471/gigabyte.5 (DORA)
  28. Kontakiotis, *, Karakitsios, V., Maravelis, A.G., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Agiadi, K., Antonarakou, A., Pasadakis, N., Zelilidis, A. (2020) Integrated isotopic and organic geochemical constraints on the depositional controls and source rock quality of the Neogene Kalamaki sedimentary successions (Zakynthos Island, Ionian Sea), Mediterranean Geoscience Reviews, doi:10.1007/s42990‐020‐00045‐2 (I.F. 2.7)
  29. Kontakiotis, G.*, Karakitsios V., Cornée, J.‐J., Moissette, P., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Pasadakis, N., Koskeridou, E., Manoutsoglou, E., Drinia, H., Antonarakou, A. (2020) Preliminary results based on geochemical sedimentary constraints on the hydrocarbon potential and depositional environment of a Messinian sub‐salt mixed siliciclastic‐carbonate succession onshore Crete (Plouti section, eastern Mediterranean), Mediterranean Geoscience Reviews 2: 247 – 265, doi:1007/s42990‐020‐ 00033‐6 (I.F. 2.7)
  30. Zarkogiannis, D.*, Kontakiotis, G., Antonarakou, A. (2019) Logarithmic expression of Globigerina bulloides shell evolution through the biometric analysis: Paleoceanographic implications for the late Quaternary, Earth and Environmental Science, IOP Conference Series 362 (1): 012100, doi:10.1088/1755‐1315/362/1/012100
  31. Kontakiotis, G.*, Besiou, E., Antonarakou, A., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Kostis, A., Mortyn, P.G., Moissette, , Cornée, J.‐J., Schulbert, C., Drinia, H., Anastasakis, G., Karakitsios, V. (2019) Decoding sea surface and paleoclimate conditions in the eastern Mediterranean over the Tortonian‐Messinian Transition, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology: 534, 109312, doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2019.109312 (I.F. 2.6)
  32. Vasiliev, I.*, Karakitsios, V., Bouloubassi, I., Agiadi, K., Kontakiotis, G., Antonarakou, A., Triantaphyllou, M., Gogou, A., Kafousia, N., de Rafélis, M., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Kaczmar, F.arinos, C., Pasadakis, N. (2019) Large Sea Surface Temperature, Salinity, and Productivity‐ Preservation Changes Preceding the Onset of the Messinian Salinity Crisis in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology: 34 (2), 182‐202, doi:1029/2018PA003438 (I.F. 2.6)
  33. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Antonarakou, A., Tripati, A., Kontakiotis, G., Mortyn, P.G., Drinia, H., Greaves, M., (2019), Influence of surface ocean density on planktonic foraminifera calcification, Scientific Reports 9 (1): 533, doi:1038/s41598‐018‐36935‐7 (I.F. 3.8)
  34. Antonarakou, A.*, Kontakiotis, G., Karageorgis, A.P., Besiou, E., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Drinia, H., Mortyn, P., Tripsanas, E. (2019) Eco‐biostratigraphic advances in Late Quaternary geochronology and palaeoclimate: The marginal Gulf of Mexico analogue, Geological Quarterly: 63 (1), 178‐191, doi:10.7306/gq.1457 (I.F. 0.9)
  35. Antonarakou, *, Kontakiotis, G., Vasilatos, C., Besiou, E., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Drinia, H., Graham Mortyn, P., Tsaparas, N., Makri, P., Karakitsios, V. (2019) Evaluating the Effect of Marine Diagenesis on Late Miocene Pre‐Evaporitic Sedimentary Successions of Eastern Mediterranean Sea, Earth and Environmental Science, IOP Conference Series 221 (1): 012051, doi:10.1088/1755-1315/221/1/012051
  36. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Kontakiotis, G., Antonarakou, A., Graham Mortyn, P., Drinia, H. (2019) Latitudinal Variation of Planktonic Foraminifera Shell Masses during Termination I, Earth and Environmental Science, IOP Conference Series 221 (1): 012052, doi:1088/1755‐1315/221/1/012052
  37. Antonarakou, A.*, Kontakiotis, G., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Mortyn, P.G., Drinia, H., Koskeridou, E., Anastasakis, G. (2018) Planktonic foraminiferal abnormalities in coastal and open marine eastern Mediterranean environments: A natural stress monitoring approach in recent and early Holocene marine systems, Journal of Marine Systems: 181, 63‐78, doi:1016/j.jmarsys.2018.02.004 (I.F. 2.7)
  38. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Kontakiotis, G., Vousdoukas, M.I., Velegrakis, A.F., Collins, M.B., Antonarakou, A. (2018) Scarping of artificially‐nourished mixed sand and gravel beaches: Sedimentological characteristics of Hayling Island beach, Southern England, Coastal Engineering: 133, 1‐12, doi:1016/j.coastaleng.2017.12.003 (I.F. 4.2)
  39. Kontakiotis, G.*, Antonarakou, A., Mortyn, P.G., Drinia, H., Anastasakis, G., Zarkogiannis, S.D., Möbius, J. (2018) Morphological recognition of Globigerinoides ruber morphotypes and their susceptibility to diagenetic alteration in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, Journal of Marine Systems: 174, 12‐24, doi:1016/j.jmarsys.2017.05.005 (I.F. 2.7)
  40. Zarkogiannis, S.D.*, Henrich, R. (2009) Photometric properties of microfossil shells. Nature Precedings 1756‐0357, doi:1038/npre.2009.4037.1 (I.F. n/a)
  41. Vousdoukas, M.*, Velegrakis, A.F., Karambas, Th., Valais, G., Zarkogiannis, S.D. (2006) Morphodynamics of beachrock infected beaches: Vatera Beach, Northeastern Mediterranean, Coastal Dynamics: 2005, 1‐14, doi:1061/40855(214)48

* = Corresponding author