September 2018
Kieran Cox, University of Victoria, Canada
Project: The relationship between habitat complexity and species diversity across marine ecosystems
Research Advisors: Valerie Paul and Emmett Duffy
Kieran Cox is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Victoria who is interested in global patterns of marine biodiversity. Kieran's Link Fellowship aims to investigate the relationship between habitat complexity and species diversity using 3D reconstructed models of coral reef ecosystems and well-established Reef Life Surveys. Conducting this research along a range of habitat degradation will further our understanding of how reductions in habitat complexity and biodiversity loss may alter vital ecosystem processes.
Abigail Engleman, Florida State University
Project: Assessing synergy of chemical and physical stimuli on coral settlement
Research Advisor: Valerie Paul
Abigail Engleman is a Ph.D. candidate from Florida State University studying the roles both structures and chemicals play in coral recruitment. She is particularly interested in identifying structural features and chemical components that attract larvae and enhance coral survival. During her Link Fellowship, Abigail is testing how compounds extracted from coralline red algae known to attract coral larvae can work to enhance larval settlement on artificial substrates.
Meredith Diskin, University of South Alabama
Project: The impacts of black mangrove expansion into salt marshes on sensory ecology and predator-prey interactions
Research Advisor: Jessica Lunt
Meredith Diskin is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of South Alabama studying mangrove ecosystems. A distribution shift is occurring in Florida where mangroves are expanding further north along the coast, often at the expense of existing coastal wetlands like saltmarshes. As a Link Fellow, Meredith is studying predation intensity in salt marshes and black mangroves using tethering experiments and conducting field sampling to illuminate some of the unknown effects from this shift in vegetation species. She is also setting up manipulative experiments to determine if there are any differences in predator and prey behavior between mangroves and salt marsh habitats.
ABOUT THE PROGRAM:
The Smithsonian Marine Station (SMS) has a long history of supporting the academic pursuits of students at all levels of education. One of the most successful programs is the 12-week Graduate Student Fellowship program, supported by a grant from the Link Foundation.
The association between the Smithsonian and the Link Foundation extends back to 1953, soon after the Foundation was established by Edwin A. and Marion C. Link. Mr. Link was a skilled aviator and is recognized as a mechanical genius. He is best known for his invention of the first Flight Simulator in 1929, and he later shifted his interest to ocean engineering and marine science and developed the Johnson-Sea-Link submersibles.
The Link Foundation aims to support individuals and nonprofit institutions with research goals and interests that align with those of the founders, namely modeling, simulation and training, ocean engineering and instrumentation, and energy resources conservation and development.
The SMS at Fort Pierce, FL, received its first award from the Link Foundation in 1998 in support of graduate student fellowships in the marine sciences. Annual awards from 1998-2018 have totaled $322,500, and have supported 68 graduate students.
The Link Foundation/Smithsonian Institution graduate student fellowships are offered on a competitive basis through the Smithsonian Institution’s Office of Fellowships, and supports the research efforts of three to four graduate-level students each year.
During the 12-week program, Fellows work in association with members of the Smithsonian professional research staff who are either Marine Station investigators, or marine scientists from other Smithsonian entities who carry out a part of their research at the Station. Students are provided with work space at the station, full access to all the Station’s resources, as well as the guidance and expertise of their appointed research advisor during their fellowship.
Several Link Fellows have gone on to complete doctoral degrees and have returned to SMS as postdoctoral fellows. Others maintain a relationship by continuing to collaborate with SMS researchers or by bringing students of their own.
The staff of SMS looks forward to continuing to provide research opportunities to students through on-going support from the Link Foundation. Graduate students interested in the program should visit www.sms.si.edu/graduate_fellowships.html for information on application requirements. The deadline for the 2019 cycle is February 15, 2019.