NEWS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
DECEMBER 2016 
Walt Boynton honored for career in Chesapeake Bay science

Growing up in Massachusetts, Walter Boynton joined his father and brother for occasional trips to the coast just to watch the ocean. The fond memories evolved over the years into a devotion and storied career in marine science. Now on the brink of his retirement, the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science professor who has already earned the rank of "Admiral of the Chesapeake"  is due to receive the Mathias Medal, a prestigious award presented to only six other scientists in nearly three decades.

Scientists join coastal science education effort in Puerto Rico
  
Puerto Rico is home to many natural treasures including unusual coastal bays that glow in the dark. Now, more students will get a chance to explore these marine resources thanks to a partnership between Maryland Sea Grant and  several universities in Puerto Rico and the U.S. mainland, including the  University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. Federal funding will create a collaborative research-and-education center that will provide new opportunities for Hispanic undergraduate students in coastal science.

White-nose syndrome killing bats

Populations of bat species are disappearing as a silent killer called white-nose syndrome emerges in caves and other winter refuges across the country. S cientists at the   Appalachian Laboratory  have been trekking to three Maryland caves and a limestone mine to monitor bat populations before and after the disease first arrived here in 2010. Their numbers, they found, have been dropping dramatically.    MORE
Science in the First Person:
Jamie Pierson
Horn Point Laboratory 

"I study copepods, one of the smallest multicellular animals in the Chesapeake Bay. They are crustaceans, so they are related to crabs, but they eat mostly algae, or single-celled plants.

Copepods are right in the middle of the food chain, and that's why we are interested in what they are doing. You have phytoplankton at the bottom end.  At the top you have fish, which are very important to us.  T he baby fish and forage fish in the middle eat lots of copepods."

Next Generation: 
Graduate student Leah Maurer on blue crabs

"I'm studying the early development of the blue crab. Dietary conditions influence how crustaceans grow. In aquaculture, we want animals to reach maturity--or a good size for sale--as soon as possible to make a profit. I am studying if changing dietary conditions may help crabs reach maturity faster or bigger."

 MORE
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