Marine Biology Program in Bermuda
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
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EEB Undergraduate Marine Biology Summer Program
 
Scuba diving
For one lab some of the data will come from a video survey of the reef too deep for snorkeling. Students will compare this against the distribution of flora and fauna on shallower parts of the reef.
Marine Biology Program in Bermuda
EEB and PEI (Princeton Environmental Institute) offered EEB/PEI 312: Marine Biology, which is taught on Bermuda in collaboration with the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS). The instructors are James Gould of EEB and Samantha de Putron of BIOS. This intensive four-week course runs the month of June, covering all aspects of marine biology, with a special focus on coral reefs.
    The course includes significantly more lecture and lab time than Princeton on-campus courses. Generally, there will be two lectures (totaling about 2.5 hours) daily, weekly precepts, and a 3-6 hour lab nearly every teaching day, Monday-Saturdays. Many of the labs will require snorkeling; others will involve field trips; the rest will focus on in-lab experiments and measurements (usually of data or organisms collected in the field).
    The topics will include the ecology, physiology, and behavior of a wide variety of organisms in a series of habitats, from sandy shores to the deep ocean. The habitats will include rocky shores, mud flats, mangroves, marshes, seagrass beds, open ocean, and, in particular, coral reefs. Organisms will range from plankton to whales, with special attention to corals, marine plants, and reef fish.

Prerequisites: EEB 210 or 211 (our introductory biology courses covering ecology, evolution, physiology, and behavior), or a score of 5 on the biology AP, is a prerequisite. You must also be able to swim; if you have not snorkeled, we will teach you. Open to rising sophomores or juniors;  your intended major is irrelevant.

Information Sessions: Two (identical) information sessions will be held, one in early December and the other in early February. Announcements of the specific information dates will be placed in The Daily Princetonian and, in addition, emailed to all sophomores.

Evaluation: Three exams, two presentations, 500+ pages of reading and regular lab reports.

Application: The class is limited to 16 students. Applications, which include a questionnaire and a short essay, and a transcript are due in mid-February; we will also consult with your Residential College Dean and Director of Studies. In mid-November, the application and information for the course will be posted on Blackboard. Contact Lolly O'Brien to have your name added to the Blackboard list. Acceptances to the program are announced in early March.

Bio station from the water Bermuda Biological Research Station from the water.

night snorkeling
Night snorkeling.

This anemone feeds using tentacles covered with stinging cells. Much larger than coral polyps, this animal can easily paralyze and consume small fish.

The hawksbill turtle is one of the least rare marine reptiles in Bermuda. It’s seen here swimming through a patch of seagrass in Castle Harbor, one of the habitats students will work on.


Examining the fauna in a tide pool.

Examing the planton in tow
After a night tow of a plankton net in the first week, students get a close look at the organisms that feed the entire oceanic food chain.

Prof. Gould (left) and Dr. Gould (right) helmet diving in Great Sound. Students will try this classic method of studying reefs on the first Friday of the course. The snapper in the foreground is named Stormin' Norman.
 
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