By Nanette Wiser
JELLY BELLIES
His expertise in jellyfish is so renowned, Monty Graham, director of the Florida Institute of Oceanography and professor of integrative biology at USF, has a new species of jellyfish bearing his name. The Aurelia montyi is one of 28 Aurelia species, also known as “moon jellies,” because their pale bell resembles a full moon. Native to the Gulf of Mexico, the Aurelia montyi can grow to be the size of a dinner plate. It doesn’t pack much of a sting, like all Aurelia species, but may cause minor skin irritation in some individuals when physically encountered.
A research team, which includes Graham’s former student Luciano Chiaverano from the University of Southern Mississippi, gave the jellyfish its official name in the journal, “Aquatic Biology.” They found the new species off Dauphin Island, Alabama. The study spotlights the significance of taxonomy – the study of defining and classifying groups of biological organisms – and calls Graham a “pioneer in ecological studies with Aurelia.”
SEE SEA SOLUTIONS
The USF College of Marine Science (USF CMS) has joined the Ocean Visions Research Consortium. The mission of the Ocean
Visions Network is to remedy the disconnect between research and ocean solutions, and to mobilize research universities and institutions, professional ocean-focused societies, NGOs, IGOs, foundations, business and financial institutions, into action.
One key focus area for Ocean Visions is to build coastal resiliency, which aligns well with research priorities at the CMS, said CMS Dean Tom Frazer. The CMS also oversees the new state-funded Flood Hub for Applied Research & Innovation. Ocean Visions Network research and collaboration hopes to reverse the climate crisis in the ocean (e.g., ocean-based solutions to thermal and chemical stress, ocean-based carbon dioxide removal) and to build a climate-resilient aquatic food system (e.g., aquaculture, including microalgae and\ macroalgae, ocean-based low carbon diet).
TRICK OR TWEET
Eckerd College senior Fana Scott is a birdwatching enthusiast. “For me, it’s relaxing,” says Fana, a senior environmental studies and biology student from Washington, D.C. “It’s good to get outside and spend some time. Birding is challenging. Her hobby paid off, as she is the recipient of a $5,000 Black and Latinx Birder Scholarship, a program in its second year sponsored by Amplify the Future, a volunteer-run organization aimed at expanding equity in conservation efforts. “Birding takes practice and time. I got started by taking [Environmental Science and Biology] professor Beth Forys’s Field Ornithology class in winter term in January,” Fana says.
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