Scallop gonads may seem like fun and games to Skylar Bayer given that her missing samples landed her on “The Colbert Report” in 2013. But scallops are no laughing matter to Bayer. “When I was deciding on a Ph.D. project to pursue, I chose to work on a species that is commercially important and relevant […]
Read more
For Stephen Norton, lakes hold a treasure trove of precious scientific information. For the past 40 years, Norton, professor emeritus at the University of Maine, has studied lakes by evaluating sediment cores from around the world. Using the cores taken from the bottom of lakes, he is able to determine the age of the sediment […]
Read more
University of Maine staff members Mark Hutton, Sean Birkel and John Rebar were cited in Portland Press Herald and Bangor Daily News articles about the impact of the drought in southern Maine. The Portland Press Herald piece indicated some fruits and vegetables — including tomatoes and watermelon — are faring well during the drought, but […]
Read more
Locals and tourists flocking to the coast to eat fresh shellfish may not know about costs and risks that aquaculturists encounter getting the seafood to the table. One of the biggest issues for aquaculture farmers is selecting lease sites without knowing the physics and biology of the estuary environment, which can result in unpredictable productivity. […]
Read more
Students, researchers, fishermen, aquaculturists and other marine professionals will gather at the University of Maine’s marine laboratory, Darling Marine Center (DMC), on Thursday, Aug. 11 for the SEA Fellows Summer Science Symposium. The SEA (Science for Economic Impact and Application) Fellows program is a new initiative developed by UMaine and the University of Maine at […]
Read more
Eight students from Maine universities delved into the science and practice of marine aquaculture last week, thanks to an innovative new program developed by the University of Maine and University of Maine at Machias. Students visited sites from Walpole to Eastport under the leadership of UMaine Darling Marine Center director Heather Leslie and UMM professor […]
Read more
Glacial ice core records indicate that humans have significantly altered the atmosphere in Central Asia during the 20th century, say climate scientists from the University of Maine. Climate Change Institute researchers say evidence from ice cores extracted from Inilchek Glacier in the Tien Shan Mountains in Kyrgyzstan reveals that rapid growth of industry and agriculture […]
Read more
An international research team led by Heather Leslie found fishers’ decisions are shaped by differences in both natural and social environments. The team discovered the community with stronger fishing rights exerted more control over fishers’ decisions than communities with weaker rights, and did so in a way consistent with the impacts of climate variability on […]
Read more
Intoxicated people aren’t alone in engaging in risky behavior. Intoxicated tiny crustaceans in the ocean — or copepods — do too. And it can get them killed. Rachel Lasley-Rasher studies small shrimp-like animals that become intoxicated from grazing on blooms of toxic phytoplankton. The University of Maine marine researcher said the common calanoid copepods Temora […]
Read more
Stephen Colbert introduced millions to Skylar Bayer’s marine reproductive ecology research. When “The Colbert Report” aired a mock crime story about missing scallop gonads and a lonely lady scientist performing experiments, the audience laughed while it learned. That funny, true, personal stories can both inform and entertain resonates with Bayer, a doctoral candidate based at […]
Read more