Smith Coral Reef Ecology Lab

01/21/2014

Maggie Johnson is a third-year PhD student in the Smith Lab at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. This is a blog she wrote for the Smithsonian Institution's Ocean Portal describing her recent cru...

11/16/2013

Gene sequencing at sea? Researchers of the Southern Line Islands make it work!

Sequencing at sea is not a trivial task. It is even more challenging for a molecular biologist who studies human diseases and is used to clean, state of the art molecular grade laboratory equipment. However, we did it! The marine molecular lab spaces span from behind the bar at the back deck for sam...

11/13/2013

One of the final stops of the Southern Line Islands Research Cruise: Malden-an unexpectedly rare example of how reef dynamics differ from what we see in most parts of the world.

Coming to a pristine reef raises expectations. One of these expectations concerns the ways in which coral cover increases on reefs such as those of the Line Islands. Increasing coral cover is nowadays a rather rare phenomenon on most reefs, but on the reefs of Malden, corals cover most of the bottom...

11/11/2013

From Vostok to Starbuck - they may all be part of the Southern Line Islands, but they're surprisingly different! Check it out!

11/08/2013

The Southern Line Islands Research Cruise is still underway! Check out the blog to see what's been going on in Vostok & Starbuck Islands!

What an incredible experience we've all had on this research cruise so far. Reflecting on Flint as we depart, I am struck by the incredible health and beauty of the reef there - with the overwhelming coral cover with very little algae present.

10/31/2013

The persistent battle between Corals And Algae continues! See who wins the war in Flint!

10/30/2013

Smith Lab's Emily Kelly is on the current research cruise in the Southern Line Islands! Check out what she's been up to!

In the community of coral reef managers and conservation practitioners, there is general consensus that herbivores are a critical component of the reef community. The herbivorous fishes that eat seaweed help to control the growth of these fleshy algae that compete with corals for space on the bottom...

10/17/2013

Members of the Smith Lab, along with other collaborators, have begun their one month journey to the Southern Line Islands, a group of uninhabitated islands in the central Pacific, to gather more information on how coral reef ecosystems are altered by human activities.

Members of the Smith Lab, along with other collaborators, have begun their one month journey to the Southern Line Islands, a group of uninhabitated islands in the central Pacific, to gather more information on how coral reef ecosystems are altered by…

10/14/2013

PhD Student Jill Harris talks about her summer research experience with fellow Smith Lab PhD student Levi Lewis at the Korallion Lab in the Maldives. They were looking at the aftermath of a massive coral bleaching event in 1998 determining how the event…

09/19/2013

Coral Club is great opportunity to gather with fellow coral reef enthusiasts and learn about the latest trends in coral reef ecology!

The San Diego Coral Club is a monthly informal gathering of coral reef researchers visiting or working in the San Diego area. From students to established scientists, these coral reef enthusiasts h...

08/15/2013

Get updated on what the Smith Lab has been up to this summer!

Members of the Smith Lab have been hard at work in collaboration with Emily Donham from Scott Hamilton's Lab at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories to collect data from a year long ocean acidification...

07/23/2013

Smith Lab isn't taking a break for summer! Come check out what adventures the lab is embarking on!

Master's student Samantha Clements summarizes the ongoing summer activities of the Smith Lab. From research travels around the world to data processing right here at home, there's no such thing as summer break from science... and it's awesome! Continue…