Institute for Ocean Conservation Science

IOCS M.S. student Tess Geers has been selected by the Stony Brook University Chapter of Sigma Xi for a Sigma Xi Travel Award. The travel award is in recognition of the quality and importance of her research, and is to be used to offset the expense of attending the 142nd Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries Society in Minneapolis-St. Paul in August. During this meeting, Tess will give a presentation on the research she conducted on the menhaden fishery in the Gulf of Mexico to support her thesis. Read more

The Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force conducted the most comprehensive worldwide analysis of the science and management of forage fish populations to date. Its report, "Little Fish, Big Impact: Managing a crucial link in ocean food webs," concluded that in most ecosystems at least twice as many of these species should be left in the ocean as conventional practice. Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch, executive director of the Institute, who convened and led the Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force, said: "As three-fourths of marine ecosystems in our study have predators highly dependent on forage fish, it is economically and biologically imperative that we develop smarter management for these small but significant species." More

Counting Reef Sharks With Cameras: “Chum Cam” Underwater Video Survey Shows That Reef Sharks Thrive in Marine Reserves. Study led by scientists from the Institute uses video cameras to count reef sharks, showing that marine reserves benefit these top predators on the world’s second largest barrier reef. More

Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch, the Institute’s executive director, was interviewed during NPR’s Weekend Edition on February 4, about the listing of Atlantic sturgeon under the U.S. Endangered Species Act by NOAA’s Fisheries Service. Read more and Listen

The Institute applauds the listing of Atlantic sturgeon under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. In response to the announcement by NOAA Fisheries Service, Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch, the Institute’s executive director, said, “A U.S Endangered Species Act listing for these sturgeon will provide the mechanism needed to implement additional and better informed restoration efforts.” Read more...

A zebra shark in a Dubai aquarium experiences multiple virgin births. According to Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s assistant director for science, who was interviewed for an article in National Geographic Daily News about this phenomenon, virgin births “could give sharks a bit of an edge when colonizing new habitats—they don't necessarily have to look for males in a place they want to live.” Read more...

First-ever hybrid shark found off the coast of Australia. Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s assistant director for science, was interviewed about the discovery of a hybrid shark that is the result of the mating of two different species of blacktip shark Read more...

Institute Ph.D. student Konstantine Rountos has been chosen to receive the 2011 Evan R. Liblit Memorial Graduate Scholarship. The scholarship will be announced at the 14th annual Evan R. Liblit fundraiser breakfast on Thursday, November 17. In 1997, the State University at Stony Brook recognized teacher Evan Liblit’s contributions to solid waste management and recycling, and established a memorial scholarship in his name.

Hope for sharks in Fiji. Earlier this year, Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s assistant science director, spent a week in Fiji promoting shark conservation. Dr. Chapman is quoted in a recent article about newly proposed legislation that would ban the commercial fishing and trade of sharks and their parts, including fins, in Fiji. Read more...

Changing human activities coupled with a dynamic environment over the past few centuries have caused fluctuating periods of decline and recovery of corals reefs in the Hawaiian Islands, according to research funded by the Institute, published in the journal PLoS ONE. Read more...

Institute Ph.D. student Natasha Gownaris has been awarded a $5,000 Young Explorers grant by the National Geographic Society through its Committee for Research and Exploration. Congratulations to Natasha for receiving this grant and for receiving the maximum amount given by the program. The grant was given to Natasha to support the acoustic tagging component of her graduate fellowship research on fisheries of Lake Turkana in East Africa. Read more about Natasha’s Turkana Basin Institute fellowship.

Institute Executive Director, Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch, and other Institute scientists are in Seattle this week (9/4-9/8/11), to participate in the American Fisheries Society 141st Annual Meeting. Their participation will include presentations of several relevant papers, and Dr. Pikitch will be the keynote speaker of the panel session, “Global Conservation, Trophic Relationships and Ecology of Forage Fish in Marine Ecosystems.” (Read More)

Research conducted by Institute scientists is featured in the recently published report, Stony Brook University Research 2007-2010, which includes milestones, awards and selected research activities during that time period (see pages 20-21 & 23). The research highlighted in this report includes studies demonstrating that undesirable evolution of fish can be reversed through ecosystem-based fisheries management; that sharks tend to stay near their coastal birthplace for more than half of the time of their development to adulthood; and that female virgin sharks can produce healthy offspring.

This summer of the shark, it’s all about saving them. The Institute’s executive director, Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch, was quoted in this op-ed by Juliet Eilperin of the Washington Post, which explains why sharks have much more reason to fear humans than the other way around. Read more...

Congratulations to Institute M.S. student, Jimiane Ashe, who successfully completed the presentation of her thesis, “Population genetic structure of Lemon Sharks in the Western Atlantic: is there evidence of gender-biased dispersal and differences between neutral and adaptive loci?” By delineating the population genetic structure of the lemon shark through extensive DNA sampling of 580 individuals from 12 locations, her thesis supports the growing evidence that fine-scale local genetic structure driven by adult females returning to their own birthplace to breed, makes this species and others like it much more vulnerable to local fishing or habitat destruction.

Shark Week: Four Unique Technologies Saving Sharks from Extinction: This treehugger article mentions the study led by the Institute that demonstrates that scientists can track the origin of shark fins using “zip codes” in their DNA. Read more...

Conducting shark research at Glover’s Reef marine reserve in Belize. Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s assistant director for science, participated with volunteers in an Earthwatch project aimed at collecting data for a long-term study that could help save shark populations around the world. Read more...

Loss of Top Animal Predators Has Massive Ecological Effects: Impacts include increases in infectious diseases and invasive species, as well as changes in soil, water, vegetation, and the atmosphere. “Trophic Downgrading of Planet Earth,” a review paper to be published on July 15, 2011, in the journal Science, concludes that the decline of large predators and herbivores in all regions of the world is causing substantial changes to Earth’s terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems. The research was funded primarily by the Institute and the paper is co-authored by the Institute’s executive director, Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch. Read more...

In response to the deteriorating situation in Shinnecock Bay off Long Island, the Institute is working to restore the health of this ecosystem. As co-principal investigator of the Shinnecock Bay Restoration Program, the Institute’s executive director, Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch, and her students are engaging with local stakeholders to achieve the long-term goal of turning this “brown tide bay” back into an estuary of thriving wildlife, productive fisheries, lush seagrass meadows and clear water. Read article

The Bahamas steps up to shark conservation challenge. The Institute applauds the government and people of the Bahamas as the Bahamas Department of Fisheries announced on July 5, new protection for sharks within their Exclusive Economic Zone. In the late 1990s the Bahamas prohibited longline fishing in order to protect sharks, which are worth more to the local economy as living tourist attractions. The new law builds on this by adding a specific ban on the export of shark products, such as fins. “The Bahamas has always been a leader in global shark conservation and sustainable use,” said Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s assistant science director. “The new law cements their position and will ensure that the healthy shark populations living in these clear blue waters will be safe for generations to come.” Dr. Chapman has worked on shark biology in the Bahamas since 1996, and provided key scientific information to government officials at the launch of the Pew Environment Group/Bahamas National Trusts campaign that led to these new regulations. Washington Post article

Congratulations to Institute M.S. student, Anna Webb, who successfully completed the presentation of her thesis on June 20. Anna’s thesis, “Understudied species in coastal U.S. waters: Issues, Solutions, and Implications for Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management,” was based on an analysis of federal survey data. Her work quantifies, for the first time, the extent of the understudied species problem in the U.S., and considers various responses. Anna is now preparing her results for publication.

Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s assistant science director and head of shark research, assures residents that basking sharks, spotted off the shores of Long Island, pose no risk to humans during a television news interview. See video...

IOCS student Tess Geers provides an update on her work in the Gulf of Mexico with the support of the Phil Zwickler Charitable and Memorial Foundation TrustGeers, a second-year candidate for a Master of Marine Science, was awarded a grant from the PZ Foundation last fall to support her thesis work in the Gulf. The grant is the first award ever given by the foundation for an environmental project, as well as the first award from the foundation to the Institute through which Geers is conducting her research. Read more...

The Institute’s assistant science director and head of shark research, Dr. Demian Chapman worked with a team of scientists in the Bahamas to capture and tag a large number of oceanic whitetip sharks with pop-up satellite archival transmitters for a long-term study of their movements and habitat use. More...

Natasha Gownaris awarded graduate fellowship. Natasha Gownaris, a second year doctoral student at the Institute, has been awarded a three-year graduate fellowship from the Turkana Basin Institute (TBI) in Kenya, Africa. More...

Institute Ph.D. student Konstantine Rountos has been selected to receive two awards -- the SBU Sigma Xi Chapter Travel Award and the Distinguished Travel Award by the SBU Graduate Student Organization and Graduate School. He was also featured in the National Herald, the nation’s leading Greek American newspaper, about his experience as a Fullbright Scholar. More... \| pdf

Keeping the Green Economy Blue On April 29, Dr. Ellen Pikitch, the Institute’s executive director, presented on the current state of the oceans and marine environment at the workshop “Keeping the Green Economy Blue” at the United Nations headquarters in New York City. The workshop was co-organized by the Permanent Mission of Australia and the Pew Environment Group. More...

Scientists can track origin of shark fins using “zip codes” in their DNA. Studies show that coastal sharks have “DNA zip codes” that can reveal where they were born; underscores potential of DNA testing to monitor fin trade. More...

Saving the Ocean, a new PBS series hosted by marine biologist Carl Safina, documents positive efforts around the world focused on ocean conservation. The first episodes in the series were filmed in Belize, and will profile the shark conservation efforts at Glover's Reef Marine Reserve where the Institute for Ocean Conservation Science has been conducting a shark survey and monitoring project for more than a decade. More...

“Use of pop-up satellite archival tags to identify oceanic-migratory patterns for adult Atlantic Sturgeon,” a study of which Institute scientists were co-authors, was published in the February 2011 issue of the Journal of Applied Ichthyology. More...

New study using DNA Identification techniques provides valuable information on Madagascar's shark fisheries.A study that used genetic techniques to study remote shark fisheries in northeastern Madagascar has demonstrated the presence of at least 19 species there, and the most commonly encountered species include those that are considered to be endangered, threatened, or vulnerable. More...

This past December, the Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force held its fourth meeting in New York City. During this pivotal meeting, the task force members reviewed the results of its research over the past 18 months, and drafted management recommendations for forage fish. More...

Putting teeth into a law to save sharks may sound like a bad pun, but it's a good idea. Dr. Ellen Pikitch was interviewed for this editorial. More...

View "For Sturgeons, the Journey is Long," the American Museum of Natural History Bio Bulletin based on a study co-authored by Dr. Ellen Pikitch that demonstrates adult Atlantic sturgeon move vast distances in the Atlantic Ocean.

Dr. Demian Chapman, the Institute’s Assistant Director of Science, is turning his attention to white sharks, especially the population seasonally present in the Northeast, and attempting to fill in some knowledge gaps, and perhaps debunk some myths, about this near-mythical animal. See Dr. Demian Chapman’s lecture on white sharks on YouTube. More

Institute for Ocean Conservation Science Helps Launch Stony Brook University's Master of Arts Program in Marine Science Conservation and Policy. New M.A. program is the first of its kind in New York and among only a few such programs nationwide. More...

Institute for Ocean Conservation Science Receives Grant from Phil Zwickler Charitable and Memorial Foundation Trust First-ever environmental grant from the foundation will support analysis of effects of oil spill on menhaden fishery in the Gulf of Mexico. More...

Sharks, Mantas, and Turtles to be protected in Raja Ampat, Indonesia Misool Eco Resort and Shark Savers announced today that a Shark Sanctuary has been declared for the entire 17,760 square miles of Raja Ampat, Indonesia. More...

Is Your Dinner Endangered? DNA Detectives Investigate Scientists deploy genetic forensics to protect overhunted animals. Dr. Demian Chapman was interviewed for Popular Science. More...

Dr. Ellen Pikitch Comments at NOAA Fisheries Service Sturgeon Hearing Stony Brook, New York More...

Study Provides Data That Can Inform Atlantic Sturgeon Recovery Efforts Study of ocean migration indicates that local management of the population may be insufficient and supports recently proposed listing for Atlantic sturgeon under U.S. Endangered Species Act. More...

Deep Water Sharks: A New Wave of Ocean Exploration in the Bahamas The Shark Research and Conservation Program at the Cape Eleuthera Institute initiated a new research program this week aimed at investigating the diversity and abundance of deep ocean sharks.. More...

Wild Caspian Caviar Returns Decision by five Caspian Sea countries prompts outcries from environmentalists. More...