By Samantha Clements. This year, during the months of March and April, I conducted coral reef benthic surveys for the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) in Chagos. Chagos is the largest archipelago in the world and lies within the British Indian Ocean Territory. The islands of the archipelago are very far from any continents and have been uninhabited … Read More
Perks of Being A Marine Ecologist
Jill Harris, a PhD student in the Smith Lab, talks about one of the many perks of being a marine ecologist. Can you spend the day looking out on the beautiful oceanic landscape of San Diego as part of your “job”
Catching up with…Susan Kram!
Susan Kram, the newest Master’s student in the Smith Lab, gives an update on what she’s been working on this quarter at SIO. From classes, projects, and continuing to develop her own research projects, a Master’s student’s work is never done.
Notes From the Field: Palmyra Atoll
Maggie Johnson, the newest Ph.D. student in the Smith Lab, talks about her experience looking at the various effects of elevated CO2 on the coral reefs of the Palmyra Atoll.
Notes From the Field: Brazil
This blog is written by Jill Harris, a PhD student in the Smith Lab, who embarked on an exploratory research expedition in Brazil.
Notes from the field: Line Islands
This is a blog post by Levi Lewis, a PhD student in our lab, that follows his diving experience at Kingman Reef in the Line Islands. “Getting it at Kingman Reef” By Levi Lewis “Okay, I get it.” Dr. Sandin (fish team) was wondering what I thought of my first dive on Kingman Reef, one of the most remote and … Read More
Notes from the Field: Hawaii
This is a blog post from Emily Kelly, a PhD student in our lab, following her current research in Hawaii. —————————————————— I’ve just returned from three months of diving and running experiments in Maui (what a great job!) and as I sit in my San Diego office pouring over datasheets, I miss the daily tropical diving and stolen underwater moments … Read More
Battle Zones
by Katie Barott, member of the Microbe Team Life on the reef is a constant battle for survival. For corals, the struggle begins as soon as the coral larva attaches itself to something on the bottom and starts to establish some space for itself. No space on the bottom is unoccupied. Every location is colonized by some kind of organism, … Read More