Marine Biology

School of Marine Sciences

The University of Maine’s School of Marine Sciences (SMS) is one of the nation’s largest marine research and education programs. SMS offers both graduate and undergraduate degrees; its faculty and students conduct basic and applied research on a wide variety of topics, and perform public service related to scientific policy for marine resource and coastal zone management. More than 50 faculty are affiliated with SMS, including full-time, part-time, and cooperating appointments. By its very nature, SMS is an interdisciplinary unit. Areas of expertise and research include physical, biological and chemical oceanography; aquaculture; marine biology; marine geology; marine resource development and policy; seafloor ecology; physiology and biochemistry; fish biology; fish pathology; fisheries science; seaweed biology; maritime studies; population genetics; molecular biology and toxicology; marine optics and acoustics and ocean engineering.

SMS faculty provide leadership in research programs that encompass all the world’s oceans, with emphasis on the Gulf of Maine. Faculty are headquartered at both the Orono campus of UM and its coastal marine laboratory, the Ira C. Darling Marine Center (see Research Resources), and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. Further information on SMS is on the web at: www.umaine.edu/marine. Further information on the Darling Marine Center is on the web at: http://server.dmc.maine.edu.

The School of Marine Sciences offers the following graduate degrees:

M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Oceanography;
M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Marine Biology;
M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Marine Bio-Resources (administered jointly with The School of Food and Agriculture);
M.S. degree in Marine Policy; and
Dual M.S. degree in Marine Policy and either Oceanography or Marine Biology.

The School of Marine Sciences offers core and advanced courses in all degree areas. Most specialized courses of study in the subdisciplines of marine science are also provided by various associated departments. Financial support for graduate students is primarily in the form of research assistantships. Some teaching assistantships are available.

Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Marine Biology

The Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Marine Biology are designed to provide students with a broad knowledge base in marine biology in areas including, but not restricted to taxonomy/systematics, comparative morphology, evolution, genetics, physiology, cell and molecular biology, development and ecology. Marine Biology is a dynamic field, and our programs are flexibly designed to accommodate new discoveries and technologies.

M.S. and Ph.D. Programs in Marine Biology are research-oriented, leading to completion of a thesis. To succeed, students will be required to learn to

formulate valid scientific questions
design appropriate experiments to answer those questions
develop the necessary technical skills to conduct the experiments
examine and interpret the results of the experiments.

Although some of the groundwork for this will be provided through formal course work, considerably more training will occur in less formal situations in which students work closely with one or more faculty members on focused topics. Marine Biology faculty of SMS provide expertise in an extensive range of phyletic groups of marine organisms from bacteria and viruses, through planktonic organisms, to marine algae, marine invertebrate and vertebrate animals. Their specialties encompass levels of biological organization from population biology, ecology and systematics, through physiology and biochemistry, to molecular biology.

Required/Elective Courses:

There will be a wide variety of course options that can be pursued by students in the Marine Biology program, under the direction of the student’s advisory committee. To provide continuity within the program, however, there are certain requirements for all students.

Program Requirements

To maintain maximum flexibility, the majority of courses comprising a student’s Program of Study will be determined by the student in consultation with his/her major advisor and advisory committee.

A basic knowledge of descriptive oceanography equivalent to SMS 302. Coursework taken prior to matriculation must be approved by Graduate Program Coordinator.

SMS 500 - Marine Biology Credits: 4
SMS 691 - Marine Science Seminar Credits: 1
Participation in SMS Graduate Student Symposium during each year of full-time study.

One semester of graduate level statistics.

Examples of existing elective courses include

INT 510 - (BSC, SMS) Marine Invertebrate Zoology Credits: 5
INT 563 - (BSC, SMS) Marine Benthic Ecology Credits: 3
SMS 422 - Biology of Fishes Credits: 3
SMS 425 - Applied Population Genetics Credits: 3
SMS 501 - Biological Oceanography Credits: 3
SMS 514 - Ecology of Marine Sediments Credits: 2-3
SMS 525 - Marine Biogeochemistry Credits: 3
SMS 531 - Coral Reefs Credits: 3
SMS 550 - Fisheries Oceanography Credits: 3
SMS 562 - Fisheries Population Dynamics Credits: 3
SMS 598 - Special Topics in Marine Science Credits: 1-3

Graduate Faculty

James Acheson, Ph.D. (Rochester, 1970), Emeritus Professor. Area: Cultural Anthropology. (Marine Policy)

Emmanuel Boss, Ph.D. (Washington, 1996), Professor. Area: Particle Dynamics, Optical Oceanography. (Oceanography)

Damian Brady, PhD. (University of Delaware, 2008), Research Assistant Professor. Marine Biology and Biochemistry.

Susan Brawley, Ph.D. (California, 1978), Professor. Area: Algal Physiology, Development and Ecology. (Marine Biology, Oceanography)

Ian Bricknell, Ph.D. (Lancaster, 1990) Professor. Area: Marine Aquaculture, finfish culture, parasitology, fish immunology and vaccinology and fish health. (Aquaculture)

Fei Chai, Ph.D. (Duke University, 1995), Professor and Director of Marine Sciences. Area: Ecosystem Modeling; Tropical Oceanography. (Oceanography)

Yong Chen, Ph.D. (Toronto, 1995), Professor. Area: Fisheries Population Dynamics and fisheries stock assessment and management. (Marine Biology, Marine Policy)

Laurie Connell, Ph.D. (North Carolina, 1988), Research Professor. Area: Molecular Ecology. (Marine Biology)

Kevin Eckelbarger, Ph.D. (Northeastern, 1974), Professor, Darling Marine Center. Area: Invertebrate Biology. (Marine Biology)

William Ellis, Ph.D. (Univ. of Rhode Island, 1992), Associate Director and Associate Professor. Area: Marine and Atmospheric Chemistry. (Oceanography)

Keith Evans, Ph.D. (Iowa State University, Ames, 2011), Assistant Professor. Area: Environmental and Natural Resource Economics, Applied Econometrics. (Marine Policy)

Heather Hamlin, PhD. (University of Florida, 2007), Assistant Professor. Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences.

Teresa Johnson, Ph.D. (Rutgers University, 2007), Associate Professor. Area: Fisheries Management. (Marine Policy)

Peter A. Jumars, Ph.D. (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 1974), Professor. Area: Benthic Biological Oceanography, Organism-Environment Interactions at the Level of Individuals, Deposit Feeding. (Oceanography, Marine Biology)

Lee Karp-Boss, Ph.D. (Washington, 1998), Associate Professor. Area: Biological Oceanography. (Oceanography)

Irv Kornfield, Ph.D. (Stony Brook, 1974), Professor. Area: Population Biology, Ecology and Systematics. (Marine Biology, Oceanography, Aquaculture)

Sara Lindsay, Ph.D. (South Carolina, 1994), Associate Professor. Area: Sensory Biology and Ecology of Marine Invertebrates, Benthic Ecology. (Marine Biology, Oceanography)

Lawrence M. Mayer, Ph.D. (Dartmouth, 1976), Professor. Area: Marine Biogeochemistry. (Oceanography)

James D. McCleave, Ph.D. (Montana State, 1967), Emeritus Professor. Area: Migratory and Transport Mechanisms of Fishes, Fisheries Oceanography, Eel Biology. Associate Director, School of Marine Sciences. (Oceanography, Marine Biology)

Mary Jane Perry, Ph.D. (Scripps Institution of Oceanography/California, San Diego, 1974), Professor and Interim Director of Darling Marine Center. Area: Phytoplankton Physiology and Ecology, Primary Productivity, Bio-optics. (Oceanography, Marine Biology)

Andrew J. Pershing, Ph.D. (Cornell Univ., 2001), Associate Professor. Area: Ecology and Environmental Biology.

Neal R. Pettigrew, Ph.D. (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution/M.I.T., 1981), Professor. Area: Near-shore, Estuarine and Continental Shelf Circulation. (Oceanography)

Paul Rawson, Ph.D. (South Carolina, 1996), Associate Professor. Area: Quantitative Genetics, Evolutionary Biology. (Marine Biology, Aquaculture)

Warren Riess, Ph.D. (New Hampshire, 1987), Associate Research Professor. Area: History; Underwater Archeology. (Marine Policy)

John Riley, Ph.D. (Cornell Univ., 1971), Emeritus Professor. Area: Aquacultural Engineering.

Jeffrey A. Runge, Ph.D. (Univ. of Washington, 1981), Professor. Area: Biological and Fisheries Oceanography.

Malcolm Shick, Ph.D. (Texas, 1974), Emeritus Professor. Area: Marine Invertebrate Physiology. (Marine Biology)

Robert S. Steneck, Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins, 1982), Professor. Area: Benthic Marine Ecology, Lobsters, and Plant-Herbivore Interactions. (Oceanography, Marine Policy, and Marine Biology)

Andrew Thomas, Ph.D. (British Columbia, 1988), Professor. Area: Plankton Biology, Biological/Physical Interactions, Satellite Oceanography. (Oceanography, Marine Biology)

David W. Townsend, Ph.D. (Maine, 1981), Professor. Area: Biological Oceanography of Shelf Seas. (Oceanography, Marine Biology)

Rebecca Van Beneden, Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins, 1983), Professor Area: Marine Molecular Biology and Environmental Toxicology. (Marine Biology)

Richard Wahle, Ph.D. (University of Maine, 1990), Research Professor. Area: Zoology

Rhian Waller, Ph.D Southampton Oceanography Centre, 2004), Research Associate Professor. Cold Water Corals.

Les Watling, Ph.D. (Delaware, 1974), Emeritus Professor. Area: Benthic Ecology. (Oceanography, Marine Biology, Aquaculture)

Mark Wells, Ph.D. (Maine, 1989), Professor. Area: Metal-Plankton Interactions, ocean optics, and harmful algal blooms. (Oceanography)

James Wilson, Ph.D. (Wisconsin, 1971), Professor. Area: Economics and Fisheries Management. (Marine Policy, Aquaculture)

Huijie Xue, Ph.D. (Princeton University, 1991), Professor. Area: Numerical Modeling of Coastal and Oceanic Circulation. (Oceanography)

Gayle Zydlewski, Ph.D. (Univ. of Maine, 1996), Associate Professor. Area: Fish Physiology, Behavior, and Population Dynamics

Cooperating Faculty

Brian Beal, Ph.D. (University of Maine, 1994), Professor. Area: Marine Ecology.

Daniel F. Belknap, Ph.D. (Delaware, 1979), Professor. Area: Marine Geology, Sedimentology. (Oceanography)

Nick Brown, Ph.D. (Aquaculture Univ., Stirling, UK, 1998), Assistant Professor. Area: Aquaculture Technology

Adria Elskus, Ph.D. (Boston University, 1992), Associate Professor. Area: Molecular Environmental Toxicology.

Terry A. Haines, Ph.D. (Michigan State University, 1971), Area: Zoology

Joseph Kelley, Ph.D. (Lehigh, 1980), Professor. Area: Coastal Geology, Coastal Zone Management. (Oceanography, Marine Policy)

Carol Kim, Ph.D. (Cornell, 1992), Professor. Area: Zebrafish as a Model for Disease and Immune Function. (Marine Biology)

Michael Kinnison, Ph.D. (University of Washington, 1999), Professor. Area: Ecology and Environmental (Marine Biology)

Paul Mayewski, Ph.D. (Ohio University, 1973), Professor. Area: Change in Climate and Chemistry of the Atmosphere. (Oceanography)

Bryan Pearce, Ph.D. (Univ. of Florida, 1972), Professor. Area: Physical Oceanography, Numerical Modeling (Oceanography)

Henry Perkins, Ph.D. (MIT and WHOI, 1970), Research Professor. Area: Physical Oceanography.

Michael Peterson, Ph.D. (Northwestern Univ., 1994), Professor. Area: Ultrasound, Instrumentation and Biomimetic Design. (Oceanography)

John Singer, Ph.D. (Georgia, 1983), Professor. Area: Marine Microbiology. (Aquaculture, Marine Biology)

Denise Skonberg, Ph.D. (University of Washington, 1997), Professor. Area: Animal Science

Roy M. Turner, Ph.D. (Georgia Institute of Technology, 1989), Professor. Area: Computer Science

Seth Tyler, Ph.D. (North Carolina, 1975), Professor. Area: Invertebrate Biology. (Marine Biology)

John P. Wise, Ph.D. (George Washington Univ., 1994), Professor. Area: Toxicology and Environmental Carcinogenesis

Adjunct Faculty

Brian Beal, Ph.D. (University of Maine, 1994), Associate Professor. Benthic Ecology, Marine Biology. University of Maine at Machias

Christopher Davis, Ph.D. (Univ. of Maine, 2000), Assistant Professor. Molluscan Biology and Aquaculture.

Lawrence Jacobson, Ph.D. (University of Minnesota, 1986), Associate Professor. Fisheries Population Dynamics, Assessment Modeling and Management. National Marine Fisheries Service, Woods, Hole, Massachusetts

Richard Langton, Ph.D. (University of Wales, 1975), Associate Professor. Fish Relationships and Fishing Effects on Habitat, Stock Enhancement. Buccoo Reef Trust