Expansion of a Seawater Facility for Marine Organisms at the Bermuda Biological Station for Research, Inc

Bermuda Institute Of Ocean Sciences (Bios), Inc., St. George'S

Investigators

Abstract

This award provides partial support for the expansion and improvement of the seawater facility at the Bermuda Biological Station for Research, Inc. (BBSR). Funds will be used to construct a new building to house tanks with flowing seawater, and to purchase equipment needed to expand the capacity of the seawater system. The project will enhance the ability of resident and visiting students and scientists to engage in research programs and educational activities that require the use of a well-controlled, high-quality seawater system. Among the research activities that will benefit from the expanded facility are programs designed to: assess human impact on Bermuda's inshore marine ecosystem; study the physiological ecology of oceanic plankton communities; examine the response of the Sargasso Sea ecosystem to global change; and understand the function of tropical marine ecosystems at the organismal, cellular and molecular levels. Among the educational activities that will benefit are the BBSR summer courses, the fall semester courses run in collaboration with the University of Rhode Island, the spring semester program run in collaboration with Duke University, the BBSR's Graduate Intern Program, and the Open Ocean and Sub-Tropical Marine Research Experiences for Undergraduates program.