Graduate Students

Graduate students come to the SDRP from a variety of institutions in the US and abroad.

Thesis and dissertation research has greatly added to our understanding of the ecology of bottlenose dolphins.

Many of these graduate projects have led to later peer-reviewed publications, or been the foundation for subsequent research. Heading into 2011, seven dissertation projects are on-going.

Some graduate students are trained at the SDRP and do their research in Sarasota or in their home country. Program Manager Dr. Randy Wells has been the program adviser or on Doctoral and Thesis committees at multiple universities in the US and abroad.

In some cases, aspiring graduate students, come to the SDRP, serve as interns to help prepare themselves for their doctoral work elsewhere or for their career.

For example, SDRP staff member Katie McHugh recently completed her University of California, Davis dissertation based on the study of juvenile Sarasota Bay dolphins.

SDRP staff member Brian Balmer is completing his University of North Carolina at Wilmington (UNCW) dissertation on bottlenose dolphins and pollution in Georgia.

The most graduate students have come from University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of South Florida, and the UNCW.

All photos © Sarasota Dolphin Research Program under NMFS permit #522-1785

back to top ↑