Bahamas Marine EcoCentre will sponsor three summer interns at Bimini Biological Field Station (BBFS) in 2020: Evette Roach, Morgan Bower and Frankiesha Wright, all from
January 2020 saw the return of Dr. Erich Mueller to Little Darby Island. Erich and his wife Marta are spending the winter months in the
At the invitation of local resident Aiden Burrows, habitat restoration specialist Gary Milano and a group from Darby Island Research Station visited Little Farmers Cay
In July 2019, Jamie Foster, University of Florida, and Pamela Reid (University of Miami) used a new DNA sequencing technique called Nanopore MinION sequencing to examine microbial mats in
Daniela Brown (left) and Paloma Cartwright (right) have been selected to receive the 2019 Alf Thompson Memorial Scholarship, sponsored by Bahamas Marine EcoCentre. Daniela, from
In May 2019, Lidya Tarhan and Noah Planavsky from Yale University continued their bioturbation experiments at Darby Island Research Station. Bioturbation studies investigate how animals
An international symposium to honor the legacy of carbonate sedimentologist Robert Nathan Ginsburg was held at Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science January 10-12
Bahamians Melissa Ingraham (left) and Hydie Knowles (right) have been selected to receive the 2018 Alf Thompson Memorial Scholarship, sponsored by Bahamas Marine EcoCentre. Hydie
In March 2018, Rich Findley and Peter Ortner successfully installed a new Vaisala weather station (WXT530) on Darby Island using the original tower set up
In January 2018, BME research fellows Erica Suosaari and Sara Swaminathan traveled to northern Chile to conduct fieldwork in small lagoons with ‘stromatolite-like’ gypsum deposits.
Researchers Lidya Tarhan and Noah Planavsky from Yale University, together with colleagues from University of Miami, Georgia Tech and University of Alberta, are studying modern
In October, BME Research Fellow Amanda Oehlert traveled to western Australia to conduct fieldwork in Hamelin Pool, Shark Bay, with colleagues Dr. Erica Suosaari (Bush
Bahamians Silia Woodside and Franchesca Palomino have been selected to receive the 2017 Alf Thompson Memorial Scholarship. They will spend four weeks at the Bimini
June was a busy month at the research station, with scientists John Stolz (Duquesne), Amanda Oehlert (RSMAS), Al Piggot (Gulliver), Julie Bartley and Sarah Bruihle
In March, we were able to complete some much-needed repairs. The Dock House, which was sand-blasted by Hurricane Matthew in Oct 2016, was painted, outside
Students from the Department of Marine Geosciences at RSMAS and the Department of Geology and Geophysics at Yale participated in a graduate-level class at the
In January 2017, Dr. Amanda M. Oehlert joined Bahamas Marine EcoCentre as a post-doctoral research scientist funded by the Agouron Institute. Amanda will be investigating
Congratulations to Shuang Zhang and co-authors for new publication on boron isotopes as pH indicators in ancient oceans… based on field work at Darby Island Research
On Oct 5 – 6, 2016 Hurricane Matthew continued a northward path from Cuba and Hispanoila straight up the Exuma chain. Leaving Cuba as a Cat
Science Under Sail takes college students on live-aboard sailing expeditions to conduct innovative coral reef research and promote awareness and globally responsible management of natural
Assistant producer Joanna Barwick and Cameraman Anwar Arroyo visited Little Darby Island to capture footage for the Discovery Science Channel series ‘What On Earth?’ Focusing
After the departure of the Discovery Science film crew, there was time for some science with Amanda Oehlert, the soon-to-be BME post doc. Amanda has
Jewel Thompson (left) and Bianca Barone have been selected as the Alf Thompson Memorial Scolarship interns for summer 2016. Twenty-five year old Jewel is a
December and January were busy months at the Research Station. Noah Planavsky and Lidya Tarhan (Yale University) and Jamie Foster (University of Florida) brain stormed
THE NOVA mini series Making North American premiers on Nov 4, 11 and 18. Stromatolites, Earth’s first macroscopic fossils, are highlighted in Episode 2. Pamela
Mark Hixon (University of Hawaii), Chris Stallings, and Tim Pusack (University of South Florida), supported by dive master Kevin Buch (University of Oregon), surveyed fishes
University of Miami students Brooke Vitek, Thalles Araujo, and Jacob Norry spent two weeks at the Darby Island Research station studying sedimentation in tropical marine
Anaconda is the large salt pond on the south end of Little Darby Island. It has organic rich sediments with abundant precipitation of calcium carbonate.
Giselle Deane and Tyler Knowles spent one month at the Bimini Biological Field Station in summer 2015, working with other interns from around the world
The Darby Island Research Station is deeply saddened by the loss of our dear friend and caretaker, Wendell Mckenzie. who died at his home in
Three interns were selected for the 2014 Alf Thompson Memorial Scholarships: Fran Rahming and Luke Johnson from Freeport, and Brynton Johnson from Nassau. The students
The 2013 recipients of the Alf Thompson Memorial Scholarship were 25-year-old Vanielle Rabier and 24 year old Christopher Ferguson, both from Nassau. These students interned
Deb Gochfeld (University of Mississippi) and Julie Olson (Univeristy of Alabama) have been following the dynamics of an infectious sponge disease, Aplysina Red Band Syndrome, in
A monumental improvement to Dock House infrastructure resulted from the addition of a solar electric system. We no longer need to run the diesel generator
Oil companies are interested in modern carbonate depositional environments as models for carbonate reservoirs. Christophe Mercadier, from Shell Oil Brazil, is part of a large
Justin Lockhart (left) and Oliver Lundy (right) interned at the Kennedy Space Center’s Life Sciences Lab after being selected as 2012 recipients of the Bahamas
In 2012, BME scientific advisor, Michael Lombardi was awarded an NGS/Waitt grant to test a new concept in underwater portable habitats that could potentially save lives, allow
The Dock House gets much needed restoration in January 2012 to repair the damage caused by Hurricane Irene in August 2011! A new roof, new
Stromatolites are commonly assumed to grow only in extreme animal-excluding environments. However, recent work in the Exuma Cays has revealed that stromatolites coexist with thriving
Vardo Mckenzie, age 17, from Barraterre Exuma, was awarded the first Alf Thompson Memorial Scholarship by the Bahamas Marine EcoCentre. This scholarship was created to
Little Darby Island was in the path of Hurricane Irene, which passed to the east of the island in August 2011. Most of the buildings
Achim Herrmann (University of Arizona) and PhD student Stephen Romaniello are conducting field work at the Darby Island Research Station to test the application of
The sedimentary record of windward margins of carbonate banks has the potential to record high-frequency sea level fluctuations that accompanied glaciations during the past million
Many thanks to Bruce and Kelly Griffin of Normans Cay Exuma for the donation of a Junior Bauer Dive Compressor to Darby Island Research Station.
A great turn out November 11 for “Islands of the Sun’ book signing and art show at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.
Dr. Jamie Foster, University of Florida, and Nikita Shiel Rolle (Danguillecourt Project, now BME) hosted a week of science education at Darby Island Research Station
A much needed dinghy dock was built by Wendall Mckenzie and family in early June. The main Darby dock is very high and not suitable
What an evening it was: the public release of ‘Islands of the Sun’, with a magnificent exhibition of art from the book, at Doongalik Gallery
Darby Island Research Station welcomed its first visiting scientists in September: Gudrun Radke, Wiesbaden Germany; Stjepko Golubic, University of Boston; and Jamie Foster, University of
Introducing marine science to Bahamian youth is a passion for Nikita Shiel Rolle, who started the Young Bahamian Marine Scientist program as part of The
After much deliberation, the location for the new lab was set- it would be built in the dock area, north of the caretaker house. Materials
Thanks to Sean Norman, Craig Grossenbacher, and Jamie Foster for assistance in setting up the solar powered weather station we moved to Darby from Highborne
The Highborne Cay lab, which housed our research for five years of an NSF Biocomplexity grant studying stromatolites, was relocated to Little Darby Island, in
