Visiting Scientist Awards   

The University of South Carolina’s Belle W. Baruch Institute for Marine and Coastal Sciences encourages scientists from other institutions to conduct research at the Baruch Marine Field Laboratory (BMFL). Each year, funds are awarded competitively to several investigators to support travel and other expenses related to their research activity on site.

Faculty level investigators who would benefit from the close proximity of a variety of salt marsh/estuarine habitats and a modern research facility are encouraged to apply for a Visiting Scientist Award. We especially encourage scientists with interests in establishing long-term research programs in the area. Proposals for field-based studies that can be supported by existing infrastructure and extant databases will be favored.  Information on the BMFL, the study site, current research projects, and faculty associated with USC’s Marine Science Program can be found elsewhere on this website. A list of previous Visiting Scientist awardees can be viewed below.

Each award provides reimbursement for research expenses and travel costs. In addition, we offer laboratory/office space, access to equipment, use of small boats, and single bedroom accommodations on site at no charge.

Applications for the 2008 Visiting Scientist Awards are due 06 March 2008. To view the 2008 announcement, please download the application information here (Adobe Acrobat Required). If you have any questions about the Visiting Scientist Program, please contact Dr. Scott Neubauer.

To download the Adobe Acrobat Reader application, select the Adobe Reader Icon.

Previous Visiting Scientist Awardees

2007

Dr. Richard Forward (Duke University Marine Laboratory, Beaufort NC) Biological rhythms of an estuarine amphipod

Dr. Benjamin Tanner (Department of Geosciences and NRM, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee NC) Carbon sequestration rates in tidal wetland soils

Dr. Daniel Thornton (Department of Oceanography, Texas A&M University, College Station TX) Processes affecting EPS production in photosynthetic biofilms

Dr. Cathy Wigand (US EPA NHEERL Atlantic Ecology Division, Providence RI) Belowground structure and soil respiration rates among salt marsh plots with varying accretion rates and fertilization status

2006

Dr. Jude Apple (US Naval Research laboratory, Washington DC) The role of bacterioplankton in the functioning of the North Inlet/Winyah Bay estuarine system

Dr. Jeremy Long (Marine Science Center, Northeastern University, Nahant MA) Biogeography of inducible defenses in Spartina alterniflora

Dr. Richard Tankersley (Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne FL) Vertical migratory behavior of Uca minax larvae and postlarvae relative to tidal currents

2005

Dr. Tom Arnold (Department of Biology, Dickinson College, Carlisle PA) Induced sink strength in Spartina alterniflora: Reallocation of carbohydrates as a first step towards herbivore defense

Dr. Melody Bernot (Department of Biological Sciences, Murrary State University, Murray KY) Nitrogen fixation rates in a coastal ecosystem under different nutrient addition regimes

Dr. Richard Tankersley (Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne FL) Selective Tidal Stream Transport (STST) behavior of fiddler crab larvae in the Winyah Bay Estuary

Dr. Carl Thurman (Department of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls IA)  Ontogeny of salinity tolerance and osmoregulatory capabilities in three species of fiddler crabs

2004

Dr. Henrietta Hampel (Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels Belgium) Nekton use of intertidal creek pools; a spatial analysis of relationships between geomorphology and nekton occupation during low tide

Dr. Peter van den Hurk (Environmental Toxicology Program, Clemson University, Clemson SC) Expression of phase II enzymes in estuarine fish species: Phylogeny, diet, and environmental pollutants

2003

Dr. Bruno Pernet (Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, Friday Harbor WA) Effects of variation in egg size on embryonic development and larval nutrition in the poecilogonous annelid Streblospio benedicti

Dr. Sandra Shumway (Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut, Groton CT)  Role of shellfish transfer as a means of transporting cells and cysts of harmful algal species

Dr. Brian Silliman (Department of Ecology, Brown University, Providence RI) Top-down grazer effects on marsh grass growth and marsh die back