University of California, Santa Cruz
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INSTITUTE OF MARINE SCIENCES University of California, Santa Cruz |
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Gary B. Griggs, Institute Director Institute
Headquarters (831) 459-2464, fax (831) 459-4882 Web site: http://ims.ucsc.edu Rebecca Bard, Administrative Manager (831) 459-2464; rbard@ucsc.edu Rob
Franks, Analytical Laboratory Manager Joseph M. Long Marine Laboratory 100 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060 (831) 459-2883, fax (831) 459-3383 Steve Davenport, Assistant
Director Maria Choy, Administrative Assistant (831) 459-2928, mjchoy@ucsc.edu
Steve Clabuesch, Diving Safety Officer Pete
Dal Ferro, SCUBA and Boating Technician
Keith
Skaug, Facilities Operation (831) 459-5567, msteele@ucsc.edu Seymour
Marine Discovery Center at Joseph M. Long Marine Laboratory Julie Barrett Heffington, Director (831) 459-5343, jbheff@ucsc.edu INSTITUTE OF MARINE SCIENCES IntroductionWith the dynamic combination of university scientists, analytical equipment, facilities, collaborative research, and an over-riding commitment to quality in education and research, the University of California, Santa Cruz is on the forefront of marine science research and education. Because of its location on the biologically rich and diverse Monterey Bay, and adjacent to the nations largest National Marine Sanctuary the marine sciences have long been recognized as an area of special strength for the Santa Cruz campus. The Institute of Marine Sciences, an organized research unit of the University of California, has the responsibility to encourage, develop, and support university endeavors in marine science research and education as well as public outreach. The Institute of Marine Sciences is composed of 42 affiliated faculty, over 50 researchers and post-docs,120 support staff, and about 135 graduate students. Marine scientists from the departments of Ocean Sciences, Biology, Earth Sciences, Environmental Toxicology, Chemistry, Physics and Environmental Studies conduct their research under the shared focus of the institute. The Earth and Marine Sciences Building on campus houses the expanding program with centrally located laboratories and computer facilities, and office space to support research by marine scientists. Located on a coastal terrace ten minutes from campus is the Long Marine Laboratory, the Institutes research facility that provides pools, running seawater, and office and lab space for scientists whose work requires a closer proximity to the ocean and work with large marine mammals. UCSC and the Institute have played a vital role in the development of the Monterey Bay region as an internationally recognized center for excellence in marine research, and in the attraction of other programs and agencies to the area. As of 2000 there were 21 marine institutions or agency programs around the bay, with 1850 scientists and support staff and an annual budget in excess of $150,000,000. Collaborative ResearchIMS provides opportunities and support for collaborations among scientists within the Institute and with other marine research institutions. The Institutes facilities on campus and at Long Marine Lab are becoming a magnet to which other marine programs are attracted to advance cooperative research projects. In 1997, the California Department of Fish and Game opened a $5.5 million Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center located on the lab property which is jointly used by university scientists. A combined state and privately funded Oiled Seabird/Raptor Research Center is being developed on site and will be completed in late 2000. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is relocating its Tiburon Lab to the Long Marine Lab site. This 53,000-square-foot facility will accommodate over 50 NMFS scientists and staff and will be completed in late 2000. The U.S. Geological Survey has fifteen scientists on the UCSC campus who collaborate with faculty and graduate students on diverse projects including coastal and nearshore processes, shoreline erosion and coastal hazards, and nearshore ecology. In 2000 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the new Coastal Waters Program of The Nature Conservancy which has relocated to the campus. Marine Research Cluster GroupsThe Institute is composed of faculty and researchers who are grouped into informal clusters according to their general area of research. The cluster groups frequently conduct collaborative research on related topics, share equipment and facilities, and attract new researchers, post-docs and graduate students to the Institute. Interaction between colleagues is facilitated by membership in a research group. There are seven IMS research clusters, each one consisting of both faculty and associated research scientists. Cluster Groups:
The institute has facilities both on and off campus that are designed to support the diverse group of scientists and their research programs. Institute staff are equipped to provide technical support for intensive laboratory research and in remote field locations throughout the world. On-campus FacilitiesLocated on the UCSC campus, the Earth and Marine Sciences Building houses the Institute of Marine Sciences and many of its affiliated faculty and researchers. Scientists have their own departmental laboratories to support their groups of researchers, graduate, and undergraduate students. The IMS director and staff have offices in this building, as does the Diving Safety Program. Shared-use facilities for all faculty, researchers, and students associated with IMS are available. These include:
An essential resource of the Institute of Marine Sciences is the Joseph M. Long Marine Laboratory. The oceanside research facility is located on 100 acres overlooking the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and provides facilities for scientists who require running seawater, large marine mammal tanks, and seawater labs to conduct their research. The close proximity of the lab, only a ten-minute drive and connected to campus by shuttle service, permits ease of integration of activities with the campuss instructional and research activities. Over 130 UC Santa Cruz scientists, researchers, visiting scientists, graduate students, and undergraduate students utilize the facilities at Long Marine Laboratory each year. Long Marine Lab is known throughout the greater scientific community for innovative marine mammal research in areas such as diving physiology, physiological ecology, bioacoustics, and cognition. A prominent feature at the marine lab is the marine mammal pool complex. Researchers and staff at Long Marine Lab have developed specially designed concrete and fiberglass tanks and analytical equipment for research on captive marine mammal physiology, energetics, bioacoustics, and cognition which complements the wide variety of field research done on marine mammals throughout the worlds oceans. Active research at the lab is also conducted in the areas of nearshore invertebrate marine biology, ecology, and issues surrounding ocean health. The lab continues to expand to incorporate new faculty and researchers and their programs, in particular research that is designed to address critical environmental questions in the near future. As part of this expansion a 23,000-square-foot Center for Ocean Health will be completed at the lab in early 2001 to provide laboratory and office space for scientists. Long Marine Lab has historically specialized as a marine biology and environmental toxicology support facility. In the future it will support a broad disciplinary cross-section of marine science research in the newly built Center for Ocean Health. Research under way at the lab is supported by numerous state and federal granting agencies, including the National Science Foundation, Office of Naval Research, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the National Marine Fisheries Service. Marine Lab Education Programs- Over 35,000 school children and visitors come to Long Marine Laboratory each year. They participate in the labs public education program that focuses on interpreting marine research under way within the institute. To encourage these inquisitive minds and accommodate the expanding education and visitor programs, a new center was built in 1999. The 18,000-square-foot Seymour Marine Discovery Center houses an aquarium, interpretive exhibits, wet and dry laboratories for K-12 programs, a university wet teaching lab, and a large auditorium. Visitors travel to the Center to learn about marine science, about how marine research is conducted, why ocean exploration is intriguing to scientists, and about on-going research within the institute. The Center's K-12 school program features innovative hands-on wet and dry lab curricula tailored to address scientific concepts appropriate for each grade level. Visitors, particularly schoolchildren, are stimulated to consider the importance of studying, understanding, and protecting the oceans. The Centers theme is a Window to Discovery, a window open to all who share the desire to investigate below the oceans surface. Diving and Boat Support- The institute manages the University Diving Safety Program (DSP) in offices on campus and at Long Marine Lab. The program supports scuba diving and small boats used by UCSC classes, faculty, researchers, and staff in Monterey Bay and worldwide. In order to ensure safe scuba diving and scientific boating practices, the DSP provides training and oversight for all scuba diving (scientific and recreational) and scientific boating activities conducted under UCSC auspices. IMS also maintains a fleet of boats and dive equipment for researchers to gain access to nearshore, open coastal, bay and inland habitats. Kayaks, inflatables, fiberglass and aluminum vessels ranging from 11 to 25 feet in length are available. Portable scuba compressors and a variety of underwater sampling gear are also available for researchers and classes. The 42-foot research vessel R.V.David Johnston is owned by the United States Geological Survey and operated by IMS. It is docked at the Santa Cruz Small Boat Harbor and available for nearshore oceanographic research expeditions undertaken by IMS scientists and their students. Additional research facilities- Scientists affiliated with the Institute of Marine Sciences have opportunities to conduct their field research at four unique field locations affiliated with IMS. Long Marine Laboratory overlooks Younger Lagoon, one of 33 protected reserves in the University of California Natural Reserve System. Access to the lagoon is restricted to research purposes. Younger Lagoon is one of the few remaining natural wetlands along the California coast and is an important stop for migrating birds. The campus is responsible for scientific management of Aퟎuevo Island Natural Reserve, also part of the University of California Natural Reserve System. Aퟎuevo Island is an eight-acre reserve located about 20 miles north of Santa Cruz, one-quarter mile from the mainland. The California Department of Parks and Recreation manages the Aퟎuevo State Reserve, located on the mainland. A unique reserve heavily colonized by four species of pinnipeds numbering in the thousands, the island also supports a diverse bird population and rich intertidal zone, all of which are studied by university scientists. Buildings on the island house a field kitchen, bunk rooms, open indoor space for animal holding or temporary laboratory use, and an electrical generator. IMS provides access to the reserve by way of small boats that cross the mainland channel. Big Creek Natural Reserve, located on the spectacular Big Sur coast south of Monterey, is an important instructional and research site for studies extending from the subtidal zone to mountain ridges. A field station on San Nicolas Island, the outermost of the Channel Islands in southern California, is operated in cooperation with the UCSC unit of the Biological Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey (formerly the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service).
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