The first-ever Marine Symposium comes to the science center this week. This is a great multi-day event to learn about what’s going on in our oceans and skies. This symposium aims to provide a platform for undergraduate students, graduate students, and professionals in the field of marine science to showcase their work, share insights, and build connections within the marine science community in the Mid-Atlantic. See the schedule below – we hope to see you there! Sign up at capemaypointsciencecenter.org/marine-science-symposium
Thursday, May 30, 2024
- Wine and cheese ice-breaker including at wine tasting (21+ only) and an opening address by Dr. Sean Burcher, Director of Science at the Cape May Point Science Center
Friday, May 31, 2024
- Bird Walk with NJ Audubon’s Brett Ewald, Director of the Cape May Continental breakfast/ check-in
- Welcoming Remarks by Cape May Point Science Center President, Bob Mullock
- Keynote speaker Captain Melissa Laurino of the Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center –
- Oral presentations:
- Brooke van de Sande – Identifying Relationships Between Visual Sightings and Environmental DNA Detection of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) Along the Coast of New Jersey
- Megan Fielding – eDNA Diet Analysis of Harbor Seals in Southern New Jersey
- Glen Davis – A Photographic Primer on Shipboard Surveys
- Coffee Break
- Keynote speakers Michael Academia from Virginia Peninsula Community College and Jack Darrell from Alaska radio station KRBD-FM discuss the relationship between menhaden distribution and Osprey success
- Oral presentations –
- Mia Zeringo – 52 Blue-Hz Whale
- Mike Furrey – PFAS in Sea Water
- Dana Christensen – Surveying the Practices of Saltwater Anglers in New Jersey: Bridging the Gap Between Anglers and Researchers
- Lunch break
- Keynote speaker Amanda Lyons from The Wetlands Institute – Turtles at two scales: Where have they been, and where are they now? Examining regional population genetics and local habitat selection of the diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin)
- Oral presentations –
- Leonard Jankauskas – What are you Asterias forbesi (aka Forbes Sea Star, Eastern Starfish) and how do you wear your pants?
- Toni Rose Tablante – Radio Tags and Horseshoe Crabs: A Pilot Project Using Radio Telemetry
- Kathryn Marshall – Assessing Nesting and Reproductive Risks of Diamondback Terrapins at Sandy Hook National Recreation Area
- Coffee Break
- Discussion Panel with keynote speakers
- Presentation of student and professional posters, information tables of NJ environmental groups and networking
- Closing remarks with awards for best student oral and poster presentation
Saturday, June 1, 2024
- 10:00 am – Whale and Dolphin Watch with Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center
