Undergraduate Research Projects

Corinne Alini '18
Advisers: Laura Toma and Eileen Johnson, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Efficient Computation of Flooding Scenarios for the Coast of Maine

Danielle Barnes, College of William and Mary
Adviser: Jonathan Allen, College of William and Mary
Project: Effects of Salinity on Sand Dollar Development

Robert Barron '17
Adviser: David Carlon, Award: Peter J. and Mary G. O'Connell Research Award (2016-2017 academic year)
Project: Mapping a parrotfish hybrid swarm: the world's largest hybrid zone?

Aidan Coyle '17
Adviser: David Carlon, Award: Bowdoin Research Award (2016-2017 academic year)
Project: Variation in cold tolerance of the European green crab along the eastern coast of North America

Thoman Diaz '18
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: A Game of Operation: Investigating the Modulatory Effects of Myosuppressin Isoformis on the Homaris Cardiac Ganglia

Genesis Escalante '18
Adviser: Amy Johnson and Patsy Dickinson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: The natural contraction amplitudes and stretches of the heart muscles of the American lobster

Gina Fickera '18
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Patsy Dickinson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: The role of arteries and ligaments in providing elastic recoil of the heart of the American lobster

Jenny Ibsen '18
Advisor: Jill Pearlman, Award: Phocas Family Fellowship
Project: Mapping Portland's Working Waterfront: A Spatial History 

Satya Kent '19
Advisor: Peter Lea, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Sediment Dynamics and the Stability of Maine's Largest Salt Marsh

Alana Luzzio '17
Advisor: Sarah Kingston, Award: Edward E. Langbein Sr. Summer Fellowship
Project: Assessing links between genomic and environmental variation in a population of bivalves from the Gulf of Maine

Matthew Maguire '19
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Determining how differences in orientation and sarcomere length in lobster (Homarus americanus) cardiac muscles relate to passive and active mechanical properties of the heart

Pieter Martino '17
Advisor: Sarah Kingston, Award: Peter J. and Mary G. O'Connell Research Award (2016-2017 academic year award)
Project: Linking stress phenotype of blue mussels to standing genetic variation amidst a changing climate

Alexandra Miller '18
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Comparing the relative modulation in the stomatogastric nervous system of related crab species

Maya Morduch-Toubman '18
Advisor: Sarah McMahon, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Stories of Harpswell

Emily Oleisky '20
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Do motor neurons and pacemaker neurons of the lobster cardiac ganglion respond differently to peptide modulators that activate the whole ganglion?

John Pietro '18
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Henry L. and Grace Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: The effects of pressure on stroke volume and heart rate on Homarus americanus

Meera Prasad '19
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Hughes Family Summer Research Fellowship
Project: Investigating the Migratory Patterns of American shad to Determine the Efficacy of the Brunswick-Topsham Dam's Fish Ladder in the Ecosystem Preservation of the Androscoggin River

Emily Richardson, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen, College of William and Mary
Project: Latent effects of larval food environment on juvenile performance in sea stars

Madeline Schuldt '18
Advisor: Sarah Kingston, Award: Freedman Summer Research Fellowship in Coastal/Environmental Studies
Project: Disease on the Half-Shell: Prevalence and impact of the protistan pathogen MSX on oyster population health throughout the Gulf of Maine

Aleksia Silverman '19
Advisor: Brock Clarke, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Writing Fiction About the Maine Coast

Pauline Unietis '20
Advisor: David Carlon and Sarah Kingston, Award: Life Sciences Fellowship
Project: Is Bait on the Plate? Diet Analysis of Green Crabs in the Gulf of Maine

Vanessa Van Deusen, Barnard College
Advisor: David Carlon, Bowdoin College, Award: Coastal Studies Faculty Research Grant Fellowship
Project: Investigating the Invasive Green Crab: Mechanisms of Population Growth and Decline

Abdul-Latif Armiyaw '18
Adviser: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Influencing factors on the anisotropic mechanical response of cardiac muscles in Homaris Americanus (Lobster) Hearts

Garrett Carver '17
Advisers: Laura Toma and Eileen Johnson, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship 
Project: Identifying Building Footprints in Aerial LiDar Data for Coastal Maine 

Hugh Cipparone '19 
Adviser: David Carlon, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship 
Project: A DNA barcoding approach to green crab (Carinus maenas) consumers in the Gulf of Maine 

Caroline Corban '17 
Adviser: Elizabeth Stemmler, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship 
Project: Characterization and quantification of molt-related hormones in crustaceans using mass spectrometry

Nicholas Funnell '17
Adviser: Amy Johnson, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Population density and distribution of the Atlantic Horseshoe Crab (Limulus polyphemus) during breeding season on Cape Cod

Helen Gandler '17
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Differential responses to neuromodulator allatostatin-C (AST-C) in the central pattern generator (CPG) of the lobster, Homarus americanus, explored through transcriptomics

Angus Gorman '18
Advisers: Laura Toma and Eileen Johnson, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Creating Flood Risk Maps with Sea Level Rise

Scout Gregorson '18
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Modulatory effects of neuropeptides on the stomatogastric nervous system of Hyas araneus

Lydia Grote, College of William and Mary
Adviser: Jonathan Allen

Catherine Liu '19
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Myosuppression's effect on the stretch-sensitive dendrite feedback system in the crustacean cardiac neuromuscular system

Alana Luzzio '17
Advisers: Ivy Ozmon, Maine Coastal Program, David Carlon and Sarah Kingston, Bowdoin
Project: Assessing the genotypic variation in a population of bivalves from the Gulf of Maine

Pieter Martino '17
Adviser: Sarah Kingston, Award: Student Faculty Summer Research Fellowship
Project: Linking stress phenotype of blue mussels to standing genetic variation amidst a changing climate

Alexandra Miller '18
Advisers: Patsy Dickinson and Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Do interneurons and motor neurons in the cardiac ganglion of Homaris americanus differ in their response to a neuropeptide?

Xuan (Circle) Qu '17
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Identification of stretch-sensitive ion channels in the American lobster, Homarus americanus using a physiological approach

Emily Richardson, College of William and Mary Master Candidate
Adviser: Jonathan Allen
Project: Latent effects of larval feeding on seastar development and ecology

Kharis Schrage '17, College of WIlliam and Mary
Adviser: Jonathan Allen
Project: Hemichordate ecology and larval biology

Devlin Shea '18
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Transcriptome analysis of neuropeptide receptor expression in the cardiac neuromuscular system of the American lobster

Meredith Stanhope '18
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Investigating the molecular underpinnings of peptidergic signaling in the cardiac ganglion of the American lobster, Homaris americanus through the in silicoanalysis of small cell and large cell transcriptomes

Vanessa Van Deusen, Barnard College
Adviser: David Carlon, Award: Coastal Studies Research Grant Fellowship
Project: A DNA barcoding approach to green crab ()Carcinus maenas) consumers in the Gulf of Maine

Patrick Walsh '17 
Adviser: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Characterization of the mechanisms underlying the differing responses to the neuropeptide, C-AST, by the American lobster, H. Americanus, central pattern

Summer 2015

Alana Luzzio '17, and Dana Bloch '17
Advisors: Ivy Ozmon and Emily Norton
Awards: Maine Mapping Initiative (Alana) and Cooke Environmental Research Fellowship (Dana)
Project: Maine Mapping Initiative

Sabine Berzins, '16
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Restoration and recovery of eelgrass (Zostera marina) to green crab (Carcinus maenas) invasion

Sam Mayne '16
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Evaluation of sturgeon populations in the lower Kennebec and Androscoggin estuary

Simonetta Harrison '16
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Hughes Family Summer Research Fellowship
Project: Quantification of juvenile alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus, populations

Jillian Burk '16
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Permeability of the cardiac ganglion sheath to endogenous concentrations of neuropeptides in the American lobster, Homaris americanus

Devlin Shea '18, Meredith Stanhope '18, and Megan Chi
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Mechanisms underlying differential responses to neuropeptide allatostatin-C (AST-C) in the cardiac ganglion (CG) of the lobster, Homaris americanus

Katelyn Suchyta '16
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Mechanisms of stretch feedback and interactions with neuromodulators of the American lobster's cardiac ganglion

Steve Cho '16
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: The contribution of sarcomere length to the passive mechanical properties of cardiac muscles in the lobster Homarus americanus

Kendra Novak '16, and Do Yeum Kim '18
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Characterization of the locomotion of Asterias forbesi based on body size

Abby Roy '16
Advisor: Charles Dorn, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Thinking about College in a Coastal, Rural Community

Pieter Martino '17
Advisors: David Carlon, and Sarah Kingston, Award: Biology Life Science
Project: Linking stress phenotype of blue mussels to standing genetic variation amidst a changing climate

Robert Barron '17
Advisor: David Carlon, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Mapping a parrotfish hybrid swarm: the world's largest hybrid zone

Charlotte Rutty '16
Advisor: Clark Brock, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Sardines: A Novella

Erin Voss '16
Advisor: David Carlon, Award: Freedman Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Examining the hybrid zone between two subspecies of invasive green crab in Harpswell Sound

Emily Harmon '16, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Predator-prey interactions on the coast of Maine

Karina Brocco French '16, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Phenotype plasticity in juvenile echinoderms on the coast of Maine

Stacy Trackenberg '16, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: How do changes in egg provisioning influence larval and juvenile development in seastars?

Alana Luzzio '17, and Dana Bloch '17
Advisors: Ivy Ozmon and Emily Norton
Awards: Maine Mapping Initiative (Alana) and Cooke Environmental Research Fellowship (Dana)
Project: Maine Mapping Initiative

Sabine Berzins, '16
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Restoration and recovery of eelgrass (Zostera marina) to green crab (Carcinus maenas) invasion

Sam Mayne '16
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Evaluation of sturgeon populations in the lower Kennebec and Androscoggin estuary

Simonetta Harrison '16
Advisor: John Lichter, Award: Hughes Family Summer Research Fellowship
Project: Quantification of juvenile alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus, populations

Jillian Burk '16
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Permeability of the cardiac ganglion sheath to endogenous concentrations of neuropeptides in the American lobster, Homaris americanus

Devlin Shea '18, Meredith Stanhope '18, and Megan Chi
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Mechanisms underlying differential responses to neuropeptide allatostatin-C (AST-C) in the cardiac ganglion (CG) of the lobster, Homaris americanus

Katelyn Suchyta '16
Advisor: Patsy Dickinson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Mechanisms of stretch feedback and interactions with neuromodulators of the American lobster's cardiac ganglion

Steve Cho '16
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: The contribution of sarcomere length to the passive mechanical properties of cardiac muscles in the lobster Homarus americanus

Kendra Novak '16, and Do Yeum Kim '18
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Characterization of the locomotion of Asterias forbesi based on body size

Abby Roy '16
Advisor: Charles Dorn, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Thinking about College in a Coastal, Rural Community

Pieter Martino '17
Advisors: David Carlon, and Sarah Kingston, Award: Biology Life Science
Project: Linking stress phenotype of blue mussels to standing genetic variation amidst a changing climate

Robert Barron '17
Advisor: David Carlon, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: Mapping a parrotfish hybrid swarm: the world's largest hybrid zone

Charlotte Rutty '16
Advisor: Clark Brock, Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Sardines: A Novella

Erin Voss '16
Advisor: David Carlon, Award: Freedman Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Examining the hybrid zone between two subspecies of invasive green crab in Harpswell Sound

Emily Harmon '16, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Predator-prey interactions on the coast of Maine

Karina Brocco French '16, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Phenotype plasticity in juvenile echinoderms on the coast of Maine

Stacy Trackenberg '16, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: How do changes in egg provisioning influence larval and juvenile development in seastars?

Benjamin Eisenberg, '17
Advisor: David Carlon,  Award: Student-Faculty Research Fellowship
Project: Invasive Bryozoan and Ascidian Recruitment and Growth in Harpswell Sound

Sabine Berzins, '16
Advisor: John Lichter
Project: Vulnerability of Soft-shell Clams and Eelgrass to Green Crab Invasion

Samantha Garvey, '16
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Research Fellowship
Project: A study of escape-response locomotion in Maine intertidal seastars: Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi

Sasha Kramer, '16
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: What is the relationship between nitrate concentration and phytoplankton blooms in Harpswell Sound, Maine?

Jack Mitchell, '17
Advisor: Dave Carlon, Award: NSF Faculty Student Research on Computational Sustainability
Project: Analysis of long-term trends in DNA Barcoding sets from tropical marine zooplankton from the Hawaiian Islands

Schuyler Nardelli, '15
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Using data from the LISST-100 to recreate phytoplankton size distribution and processes in Harpswell Sound, Maine

Aiden Short, '16
Advisor: David Carlon,  Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: What's for dinner? A molecular analysis of the feeding habits of the green crab Carcinus maenus in Harpswell Sound

Brendan Soane, '16
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Examining Up and Down Motions and Relative Podial Movements in Asterias rubens (common sea star)

Christine Walder, '15
Advisors: Damon Gannon, and Amy Johnson, Award: Rusack Fellowship
Project: Impact of Harvest area of Ascophyllum nodosum (rockweed) on Biodiversity

Jenna Watling, '16
Advisor: David Carlon,  Award: Student-Faculty Research Fellowship
Project: The evolutionary response of populations of the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) to climate change

Fall semester 2014 Advanced Independent Study: How does tube-foot coordination generate a novel bouncing gait in the Indo-Pacific seastar Protoreaster nodosus and the North Atlantic sea staff Asterias forbesi? (Johnson)

Fall semester 2014 Advanced Independent Study: Using data from LISST-100 to recreate phytoplankton size distribution and processes in Harpswell Sound, Maine (Roesler)

Marisa Browning-Kamins, '16
Advisor: Trevor Rivers,  Award: Bowdoin Life Sciences Fellowship (Biology)
Project: A study of escape-response locomotion in Maine intertidal seastars: Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi

Christine Hayes, '14
Advisor: Trevor Rivers,  Award: Rusack Fellowship
Project: Anthropogenic Light Pollution and the Settlement of Benthic Fouling Communities in a Gulf of Maine Ecosystem

Academic Year 2013-2014 Advanced Independent Study: Anthropogenic Light Pollution and the Settlement of Benthic Fouling Communities in a Gulf of Maine Ecosystem (Rivers)

Academic Year 2013-2014 Independent Study: Molecular analysis of the feeding habits of the green crag Carcinus maenun in Harpswell Sound, Maine (Carlon)

Ryan Peabody, '14
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Connecting inland waters to the Gulf of Maine: Impacts on stratification and phytoplankton blooms

Karl Reinhardt '15
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Determining and Modeling Alexandrium Fundyense Growth Patterns in Harpswell Sound

Christine Rholl, '14
Advisor: Trevor Rivers, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Role of vision in predator response to luminescence of Harmothoe imbricata and LED mimic displays 

Garbiella Serrato Marks
Advisor: Michele LaVigne
Project: Investigation of whether barium concentration change with PP via removal during blooms

Academic Year 2013-2014 Biology Honors Research: Role of vision in predator response to luminescence of Harmothoe imbricata and LED mimic displays (Gannon)

Academic Year 2013-2014 Advanced Independent Study: Short-term effects if Ascophyllum nodosum harvesting on ecological community health (Walder)

Academic Year 2013-2014 Advanced Independent Study: Connecting inland waters to the Gulf of Maine: Impacts on stratification and phytoplankton blooms (Roesler)

Academic Year 2013-2014 Advanced Independent Study: Anthropogenic Light Pollution and the Settlement of Benthic Fouling Communities in a Gulf of Maine Ecosystem (Rivers)

Anna Chase, '13
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Effects of Photopollution on the Settlement of Marine Fouling Communities in the Gulf of Maine

David Dietz, '14
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Hydrographic Structure in Cundy's Harbor, New Meadows, Harpswell Sound, and Middle Bay: Why is Harpswell Sound the sentinel site for Alexandrium fundyense blooms?

Claire Ellwanger, '12
Advisor: Daniel Thornhill
Project: An investigation of the symbiosis between the temperate coral Astrangia poculata and single-celled photosynthetic algae that live within their tissues

Katherine Guttenplan, '12
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Howard Hughes Medical Institute Postbac Summer Fellowship
Project: The Effects of climate change on the growth of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Margaret Lindeman, '15
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Identifying transitions from diatoms to dinoflagellates in Harpswell Sound as an early detection of Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning-inducing Alexandrium fundyense blooms

Julia Livermore '13
Advisor: Trevor Rivers, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Effects of photopollution on the settlement of marine fouling communities in the Gulf of Maine

Alana Menendez, '15
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: The Distribution of Phytoplankton Biomass in Harpswell Sound and its Adjoining Bays

Ryan Peabody, '14
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Transport of Coastal Water Masses in the Gulf of Maine

Tamara Perreault '12
Advisor: Trevor Rivers, Award: Howard Hughes Medical Institute Postbac Summer Fellowship
Project: Predation Response Behavior of the Luminescent Scale Worm Harmothoe imbricata

Emily Powers
Advisor: Trevor Rivers
Project: Anthropogenic Light Pollution and the Settlement of Benthic Fouling Communities

Noelle Schoettle
Advisor: Damon Gannon
Project: Foraging ecology of harbor porpoises

Holly Blackburn, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: The Effect of Maternal Investment on Cloning Frequency in the Sea Star Asterias forbesi

Mark Smithson, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Size-based differences in performance of Strongylocentrotus drobachiensis

Shelby Ziegler, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Rates and costs of cloning in Echinoderms

Academic Year 2012-2013 Advanced Independent Study: The Effects of Anthropogenic Light on Maine Fouling Communities (Johnson/Rivers)

Academic Year 2012-2013 Advanced Independent Study: Effects of luminescent behavior on survivorship of the scale worm Harmothoe imbricata (Rivers)

Academic Year 2012-2013 Advanced Independent Study: Foraging and prey availability for harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) on the mid-atlantic coast of the United States (Gannon)

Spring Semester 2012 Advanced Independent Study: The Distribution of Phytoplankton Biomass in Harpswell Sound and its adjoining Bays (Roesler)

Spring Semester 2012 Advanced Independent Study: Anthropogenic Light Pollution and the Settlement of Benthic Fouling Communities (Rivers)

AY 2011-2012 Advanced Independent Study: Modeling nutrient dynamics at the Harpswell Sound Buoy: Nitrate and Nitrite and how they relate to Alexandrium fundense (Anderson)

Maren Askins, '12
Advisor: Amy Johnson
Project: Marking and recapturing of the green sea urchin,  Stronglyocentrotus droebachiensis, to determine growth rates in an environment with fluctuating temperatures and pH levels

Holly Blackburn, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Tricking the embryo: Blastomere separations in deuterostomes

Anna Chase, ‘13
Advisor: Trevor Rivers, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Effects of Temperature on Growth Rate of the Green Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Spring 2012 semester Advanced Independent Study: The effects of Anthropogenic Light on Maine Fouling Communities (Johnson)

Sarah Davenport, 13
Advisor: Amy Johnson
Project: Effects of temperature on growth rate of the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Melissa DellaTorre, '14
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Remote Assignment of algai functional groups in the absence of extreme blooms: Application to Alexandrium fundyense in the Gulf of Maine

Alexandra Fahey '12
Advisor: Amy Johnson
AY 2012-2013 Advanced Independent Study: Effects of temperature and pH on skeletal growth and thickness in the green sea urchin, Stronglyocentrotus droebachiensis

Katherine Guttenplan, '12
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: The Effects of Climate Change on the Growth of the Sea Urchin Strongylocentrotus Droebachiensis

AY 2011-2012 Advanced Independent Study Project: The influence of oceanographic and hydrological factors on blooms of the harmful phytoplankton Alexandrium fundysesnes in Harpswell Sound

Kelly Hoolihan, College of William and Mary (Graduate Student)
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Developmental plasticity and invasive species

Daniel Lipkowitz, '14
Advisor: '14
Project: Remote Assignment of algal functional groups in the absence of extreme blooms: Application to Alexandrium fundyense in the Gulf of Maine

Julia Livermore '13
Advisor: Trevor Rivers
Spring 2012 semester Independent Study: Effects of luminescent behavior on survivorship of the scale worm Harmothoe imbricata 

Gina Lonati '12
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Using the green sea urchin, Stronglyocentrotus, as an environmental indicator on its response to global climate change

AY 2011-2012 Advanced Independent Study: Simultaneous comparison of green sea urchin growth in the field and lab using flourochome markers (Johnson)

Danika Loucks, '13
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Remote Assignment of algal functional groups in the absence of extreme blooms: Application to Alexandrium fundyense in the Gulf of Maine

Fall semester 2011 Independent study: Remote Assignment of algai functional groups in the absence of extreme blooms: Application to Alexandrium fundyense in the Gulf of Maine

Tamara Perreault '12
Advisor: Trevor Rivers, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Luminescence as a response to predators in the scale worm Harmothoe imbricate

AY 2011-2012 Advanced Independent Study: Predation Response Behavior of the Luminescent Scale Worm Harmothoe imbricata (Rivers/Johnson)

Jordan Salyers, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Estimating Predation Rates in Juvenile Sea Urchin

Daniel Schwab '12, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: The effect of maternal size on reproduction and larval development in the mud snail Ilyanassa

Jacob Shorty '12
Advisor: Damon Gannon
Project: Microhabitat selection and intertidal range of the rock gunnel

AY 2011-2012 Independent Study: Geographic range and intertidal microhabitat selection of the Rock Gunnel, Pholis gunnellus (Gannon)

Brittany Vernon, '14
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Remote Assignment of algai functional groups in the absence of extreme blooms: Application to Alexandrium fundyense in the Gulf of Maine

Amy Anderson, '12
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Investigation of Nitrate Values at the Harpswell Sound Buoy: The Sources of Nitrate and How it Affects Alexandruim fundyense Blooms

AY 2010-2011: Modeling nutrient dynamics at the Harpswell Sound Buoy: Nitrate and nitrite and how they relate to Alexandrium fundyense (Roesler)

Francis Armstrong, College of William and Mary
Adviser: Jonathan Allen
Project: Testing the consequences of environmentally induced multiples in the sand dollar Echinarachnius parma

Courtney Bell, '10
Advisor: Daniel Thornhill
Project: Invertebrate fauna associated with marine mammal decomposition in the Gulf of Maine, and symbiosis between the temperate coral Astrangia poculata and single-celled photosynthetic algae that live within their tissues

John Roger Brothers, '11
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Dan Thornhill, Award: HHMI
Project: Effects of Climate Change on the Growth and Calcification of the Green Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Spring 2011 semester Advanced Independent Study: Effects of Climate Change on the Growth and Calcification of the Green Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Jeff Cook, '11
Advisor: Amy Johnson
Project: When to Run: The Underwater Walk-to-Run transition

AY 2010-2011 Independent Study: Staying Grounded: Locomotion Along the Benthos (Johnson)

Rachel Eveleth '11
Advisor: Rachel Beane
Project: Geochemical Analysis of Elongated Gamets Exposed in Coastal Outcrops of Harpswell, Maine

Connor Gallagher, '12
Advisor: Jonathan Allen and Amy Johnson, Award: HHMI
Project: Ocean Acidifications Effect in Marine Calicifier Skeletal Structure and Predation Rates

Will Hatleberg, '11
Adviser: Dan Thornhill  Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Diversity and Phylogenetics in Marine Siboglinid Worms

AV 2010-2011 Advanced Independent Study: Diversity of Host/Symbiont Endosymbiosis in Marine Siboglinid Worms (Thornhill)

Laura Newcomb, '11
Advisor: Daniel Thornhill and Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: The Effects of Climate Change on the Calcification of the Temperate Coral Astrangia poculata

AY 2010-2011 Advanced Independent study: Elevated temperature compensates for the effects of ocean acidification on calcification in Astrangia poculata (Thornhill)

Molly Rose '13
Advisor: Trevor Rivers
Independent Research Summer 2010, Fall 2010: Anthropogenic light pollution and the settlement of benthic fouling communities

Jordan Salyers, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Estimating Predation Rates in Juvenile Sea Urchin

Daniel Schwab, College of William and Mary
Adviser: Jonathan Allen
Project: The Effects of Maternal Quality on Egg Deposition in the mud snail Ilyanassa obsolete

Jacob Shorty, '12
Advisor: Damon Gannon
Project: Habitat preference and site fidelity of rock gunnels

Caitlin Stratton '13
Advisor: Collin Roesler
Project: Investigating the relationship between phytoplankton fluorescence and bloom composition in Harpswell Sound

Elsie Thomson, '12
Advisor: Damon Gannon
Project: Soft shell clam, mya arenaria, burrow depth response to European Green Crab, Carcinus maenas, predators in different sediment types

Lisa Walsh, '11
Advisor: Daniel Thornhill
Project: Analyzing Free-Living Symbiodinium

AY 2010-2011 Advanced Independent Study: Symbiosis between temerate coral Astrangia poculata and single-celled photosynthetic algae that live within their tissues

Connor White, College of William and Mary
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: The effect of egg capsule clustering on embryonic survival in the dogwhelk Nucella lapillus

Courtney Bell '10
Advisor: Dan Thornhill
AY 2009-2010 Advanced Independent Study: Invertebrate fauna associated with marine mammal decomposition in the Gulf of Maine, and symbiosis between the temperate coral Astrangia poculata and single-celled photosynthetic algae that live within their tissues

Alexandria Brasili ‘10
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Rusack Fellowship
Project: Temperature and growth in the green sea urchin Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Roger Brothers '10
Advisor: Amy Johnson
Fall 2009 semester Independent Study Project: Effects of Climate Change on the Growth and calficication of the Green Sea Urchin Stronglyocentrotus droebachiensis

Cara Carne, Randolph Macon College
Adviser: Jonathan Allen
Project: The Effect of temperature stress on maternal investment in the sea star Asterias forbesi

Jill Dixon, '09, Randolph Macon College
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: The role of encapsulation in the marine gastropod, Nucella lapillus

Katharine Doubleday ‘11
Advisor: Dan Thornhill, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Effects of coral hybridization on specificity of coral-Symbiodinium symbiosis in Caribbean reef-building corals

Claire Ellwanger '12
Advisor: Dan Thornhill
Spring 2010 semester Independent Study: Symbiosis between the temperate coral Astrangia poculata and single-celled photosynthetic algae that live within their tissues

AY 2009-2010 Advanced Independent Study:

Will Hatleberg, '11
Advisor: Dan Thornhill
Project: Diversity of Host/Symbiont Endosymbiosis in Marine Siboglinid Worms

AY 2009-2010 Independent Study: Diversity of Host/Symbiont Endosymbiosis in Marine Siboglinid Worms (Thornhill)

Gina Lonati '12
Advisor: Dan Thornhill
AY Independent study research: Simultaneous comparison of green sea urchin growth in the field and lab using flouroichrome markers

Laura Newcomb '11
Advisor: Dan Thornhill, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Investigating the Nature of a Temperate Coral Symbiosis Coral

AY 2009-2010 Advanced Independent Study: Elevated temperature compensates for the effects of ocean acidification on calcification in Astrangia poculata 

Emily Norton '10
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Mathematical modeling of underwater walking in three species of intertidal crabs: Carcinus maenas, Hemigrapsus sanguineus, and Cancer irroratus

AY 2009-2010 Advanced Independent Study: Mathematical Modeling of Underwater Walking in the Green Crab, Carcinus maenas

Molly Rose '13
Advisor: Trevor Rivers
Spring 2010 semester independent research: Anthropogenic light pollution and the settlement of benthic fouling communities
 
Amanda Santoni, Randolph Macon College
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Predator induced plasticity in maternal investment of the mud snail Ilyanassa obsoleta

Lisa Walsh '11
Advisor: Dan Thornhill
AY Spring 2010 Independent Study: Symbiosis between temperate coral Astrangoa poculata and single-celled photosynthetic algae that live between their tissues

Rachel Dicker ’09
Advisor: Jonathan Allen, Award: Doherty Coastl Studies Fellowship 
Project: Egg capsule distribution in Nucella lapillus as a strategic maternal investment

Ashton Bunce, Juniata College
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project: Maternal investment in egg capsule distribution in Nucella lapillus

Nick Alcorn '08
Advisor: Jonathan Allen, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: How do changes in parental investment influence larval development in Gulf of Maine echinoids?

Ian Haight ’08
Advisor: Jonathan Allen and Marney Pratt, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Effects of temperature changes on the larval growth and development of two local seastar species, Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi

Julia Kleederman, Wesleyan University
Advisor: Jonathan Allen
Project:Measuring hermit crab feeding preferences in the Gulf of Maine

Kat Anderson ’08
Advisor: Kurt Bretsh
Project: Comparing chemical and structural induced defenses of Ascophyllum nodosum and Fucus vesiculosus in response to damage by herbivory and wave action

Nick Alcorn ’08
Advisor: Jonathan Allen, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: How do changes in parental investment influence larval development in Gulf of Maine echinoids?

Ian Haight ’08
Advisor: Jonathan Allen and Marney Pratt, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Effects of temperature changes on the larval growth and development of two local seastar species, Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi

Rebecca Selden ’06
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: Beckman Fellowship
Project: Growth and Metabolism of the Green Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis: Flow environments and predation pressure

Eric Robinson ’07
Advisor: Jonathan Allen, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Measuring the palatability of marine invertebrate embryos to predators including lobsters, green crabs, and rock crabs in Harpswell Sound

Bobbi Robinson ’08
Advisor: Marney Pratt, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project:Feeding strategies and growth patterns of two sea star species, Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi, in relation to temperature, competition, and cannibalism

Orissa Moulton, Wheaton College
Advisor: Marney Pratt
Project: Feeding strategies and growth patterns of two sea star species, Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi, in relation to temperature, competition, and cannibalism

Ben Lake ’07
Advisor: Bob Mauck and Amy Johnson, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: The influence of orientation and water velocity on the feeding behavior and metabolism of Semibalanus balanoides

Rebecca Selden ’06
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: Beckman Fellowship
Project: Growth and Metabolism of the Green Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis: Flow environments and predation pressure

Molly Wright ‘05
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: INBRE Postgraduate Fellowship
Project:Growth and metabolism in the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Kiersa Benson ‘06
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Growth and behavioral response of hard shell clam Mercenaria mercenaria in response to crab predation cues

Amelia Fiske '06
Advisor: Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Selling the Maine Coast: A comparative study of the effects of tourism

Kim Stevens '05
Advisor: Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Class, place, and community: Class identities and LNG plant debates in Harpswell

Freeland Church '05
Advisor:  Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Merrymeeting Bay Archaeology Survey Project

Peter Benjamin Stranges ‘05
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Boundary layer fluid dynamics effects on oxygen metabolism and growth rates in green sea urchins, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Molly Wright ‘05
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: Rusack Fellowship
Project: Growth and metabolism in the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Amy Hodges '05
Advisor: Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: The effect of human selection pressure on the size of Mya arenaria

Grace Cho '05
Advisor:  Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: From City Lights to Crashing Surf: a historical and photographic survey of Maine's coastline

Alexis Rea '04
Advisor:  Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Cross species survey of brood parasitism by the brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) within Brunswick

Rebekah Metzler '04
Advisor:  Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Cultural Study of Acadia National Park

Aliza Marks '04
Advisor: Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Seeing the Sea: a study of the Maine Coast

Jeremy Katzen '04
Advisor:  Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: The creation of fish: a historical examination of Maine's salmon aquaculture industry

Kurt Jendreck '04
Advisor:  Award: Rusack Coastal Studies Fellowship
Project: Bedrock controls on submarine groundwater discharge in eastern Casco Bay

Lynne Davies ’04
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Olaf Ellers, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: An analysis of diet, spine length, competition and mutable collagenous tissues as indicators of somatic and gonadal growth in the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Benjamin Ming Fei Chan ‘05
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: Gibbons Fellowship
Project: Exploring tensile attributes of mutable collagenous tissue in Eucidaris tribuloides spines with respect to muscle and ligament properties

Angela Senese ’04
Advisor: Amy Johnson
Project: The hydrodynamics of schooling behavior in the Marsh Killifish, Fundulus heteroclitis

Emily Grason ‘04
Advisor: Marney Pratt
Project: Influence of an invasive bryozoan on Onchidoris muricata prey selection in the Gulf of Maine  

Jon Harris ‘05
Advisor: Lindsay Whitlow, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Effects of Littorina littorea (periwinkles) on algal and green crab populations in the rocky intertidal in and around the Coastal Studies Center

Laura Windecker ‘03
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Mechanisms of size-specific growth in the sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis

Kara Podkaminer ’03
Advisor: Amy Johnson
Project: Hydrodynamic benefits of schooling as measured by tail beat and opercular frequency in killifish, Fundulus heteroclitus

Dave Donnelly ‘03
Advisor: Greg Teegarden, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Zooplankton grazing, harmful algal blooms and toxic accumulation kinetics in planktonic food webs

Stephen Carpenter ‘03
Advisor: Greg Teegarden, Award: Rusack Fellowship
Project: Zooplankton grazing, harmful algal blooms and toxic accumulation kinetics in planktonic food webs

Louis Plough ’03
Advisor: Lindsay Whitlow
Project: The effects of green crab Carcinus maenas predatory cues on the burrowing depth and morphology of the soft-shelled clam Mya arenaria

Elizabeth Bryson ’03
Advisor: Lindsay Whitlow
Project: The effects of crab cues and clam density on Mya arenaria : burrowing depth and resource allocation

Michelle Weaver ‘03
Advisor: David Guay, Award: Gibbons Fellowship
Project: Development of the Coastal Studies Center Marine Organism database

Dean Anson ‘03
Advisor: Greg Teegarden, Award: Rusack Fellowship
Project: Copepod feeding response to varying Alexandrium spp. cellular toxicity and cell concentration among natural plankton samples

Stacy Barron ‘03
Advisor: Greg Teegarden, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Phycotoxin accumulation in zooplankton feeding on Alexandrium fundyense

Michael Butler ’02
Advisor: Amy Johnson and Olaf Ellers
Project: The biomechanics of the color of the feathers of ospreys

Michelle Weaver ‘03
Advisor: David Guay, Award: Gibbons Fellowship
Project: Development of the Coastal Studies Center Marine Organism database

Jeff Rubens ‘03
Advisor: Dean McCurdy, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: The impacts of trematode parasites on growth, survivorship, and anti-predator defenses of the blue mussel Mytilus edulis

Todd Forsgren '03
Advisor: Dean McCurdy and Mike Palopoli, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Microparasites and sex-ratio biases in populations of intertidal amphipods

Bridgid Moran '02
Advisor: Dean McCurdy and Amy Johnson, Award: Howard Hughes Fellowship
Project: Can parasites influence community structure?

Michael Pesa-Fallow ‘02
Advisor: Dean McCurdy, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: The impacts of trematode parasites on growth, survivorship, and burying behavior of the soft-shell clam Mya arenaria

Anjali Dotson ‘04
Advisor: Greg Teegarden
Project:Zooplankton feeding behavior and selectivity based on Alexandrium spp. Toxicity

Angela Dubois ’01
Advisor: Greg Teegarden
Project:Investigation of toxic algal species

Erin Giggey ’01
Advisor: Greg Teegarden
Project:Investigation of toxic algal species

Rachel Sanders ’00
Advisor: Amy Johnson, Award: Doherty Fellowship
Project: Living materials that flow as they grow