Research Projects

Analyzing Microplastics

 

Victoria Thompson

Mila Duong

Abbie Brunson

Bryley Lyublanovits

 

In the past, this project was created and done by Team Betta Buds. We are continuing their research by recording data for microplastics during each season. Our goal is to understand how seasonal changes affect the abundance of microplastics in our coastal waterways. As of right now, we hypothesize that the fall and spring will have more microplastics than the winter due to the amount of rainfall during those seasons.

 

 Shark Feeding Preferences

 

Noah Scoggins

Cooper Clark

Joseph Walton

Joshua Bradshaw

William Fairchild

 

We are studying the habits of sharks and what they prefer to eat over the next couple months. We will be specifically looking for Blacktip sharks in the Gulf of Mexico. This is a new project that we are starting to better understand the apex predators diet. 

 

Living Shoreline Year 6

Laurel Voeltz

Abigail Wimberly

Elizabeth Hopson

Margaret Freeman

Rachel Parker

Skylar Bell

 

The last living shorelines project thought a possible solution could be getting the community more involved with this project. They believed that with more help in propagation and installment they could have a greater impact. We hope that this year we can get more people involved and get even more done.

 

Lionfish Prey Selection

 

Chloe Paterson

Bryson O’Brien

John Reilly

Joseph Turner

Samual Figaro

 

Our goal for this lionfish prey selection research project is to determine what species of fish the lionfish are eating in the Gulf. With that information, we can determine whether or not we should keep an eye on these prey species in case of possible endangerment due to this invasive species.

 

Lionfish Feeding Habits

 

Zachary Peterson

Graham McWethy

Kobe Hall

Paxton Lamarche

 

We have discovered through research that lionfish have a tendency to avoid pinfish. In the future we plan to test whether this is a result of preference or genuine avoidance of the species.

 

Diversity and Abundance in Different Habitats

 

Carson Sistrunk

Brady Parris

Chase Johnson

James Perz

 

We have done one trip out to Shoreline to do our procedure and record the amount of fish we found in each habitat. With this research we hope to see which habitats should be better protected.