	Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre
	Canada's premier coastal and marine facility for teaching and research

Life History Strategies of Marine Organisms 2009

Dr. Don Levitan from Florida State University returns to conduct research and teach the Life History Strategies of Marine Organisms course.

Don and students enjoying ice cream

The photos say it all! Check out the photo gallery.

Dr. Don Levitan, Instructor, writes:

"Marine Life Histories 2009 had a great bunch of motivated students who learned how to integrate population ecology and evolution into a conceptual understanding of how organisms adapt to various environments through strategies aimed at maximizing fitness. We combined lectures on theory with guest lectures, paper discussions and group projects to show how these theories can be tested. Our work was conducted in the lab, intertidal and shallow subtidal habitats surrounding Bamfield. We took advantage of the new snorkeling gear to show how the intertidal can be a very different place when the tide is high. The students put this knowledge into practice as they developed their independent projects that examined different life history stages in a variety of marine organisms. Examples include testing ideas on how spawning strategies can influence the degree of sexual conflict in sea urchins, the degree to which kelp spores and ascidian larvae respond to related or non-related individuals in their choice of settlement site, and looking at how barnacles and limpets alter resource use in response to environmental conditions. I hope most of all the students learned that working hard - is easy - when your mind is engaged and you become passionate about testing ideas."

Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre
100 Pachena Rd, Bamfield, BC
Canada, V0R 1B0
Phone: (250) 728-3301
Fax: (250) 728-3452

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