Lab members
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| On board R/V Connecticut, September 2019. Photo by Daniel Hentz (WHOI). |
Marine biologist
Most of the ocean floor is blanketed by soft sediments, so hard-bottom habitats are usually isolated and island-like. Any solid object - be it a reef, a lone rock, or a shipwreck - will inevitably be colonized, and these substrata provide habitats for diverse and abundant communities of sponges, anemones, crabs, mussels, and fish. As a benthic ecologist, I study the colonization and connectivity of island-like hard-bottom habitats.
In order to collect samples and conduct experiments, I embark on frequent expeditions to the field. I use SCUBA and small boats to reach near-shore habitats and participate in oceanographic expeditions on larger research ships to sample off-shore or deep-sea habitats with remotely operated vehicles. Much of my work involves collection of high-resolution imagery - either video or photos - from the seafloor, and so image analysis is a staple of my research. I am fortunate to travel frequently, both domestically and internationally.
The Meyer-Kaiser lab is a place where researchers of all kinds can contribute their own perspectives on marine organisms and the habitats they call home. If you are interested in joining the lab, reach out to me at kmeyer@whoi.edu.
Calvin Mires
Maritime archaeologist
Dr. Calvin Mires has almost 20 years of experience in maritime archaeology and underwater cultural heritage. He is a Research Associate III at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He has led and worked on more than 30 maritime archaeology projects around the world, including Greek and Roman shipwrecks and harbors, Sweden's iconic warship Vasa, Confederate Blockade Runners in North and South Carolina, ship graveyards in Bermuda, and various sites in the Caribbean Sea, Pacific Ocean, and the Great Lakes. He is co-founder and instructor of SEAMAHP, a training program that leverages the concept of a ship's life-cycle to provide hands-on experiential learning to the public in maritime archaeology. Since 2015, he has co-directed the only maritime archaeology field schools in Massachusetts with cooperation of the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources, the Trustees of Reservations, and the National Park Service, and has run maritime archaeological summer programs for middle and high school students. He is a Senior Tutor for the Nautical Archaeology Society for the New England region, a group that provides maritime archaeological training for the public. He has received grants from the National Park Service Maritime Heritage Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and has published in The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, The Society for Historical Archaeology, and Bermuda Maritimes. He is currently involved in several projects in Massachusetts, including archaeological investigation of the 1626 Sparrow Hawk and deep-sea research on shipwrecks in Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.
I always tell people that the ocean and its inhabitants have
a really positive way of getting under your skin. For me, the organisms that
really drew me in to a career in marine biology were invertebrates. I love that
they are so wildly different from us, and have adaptations that stretch beyond
anything my childhood imagination may have dreamed up. I completed my Marine
Biology Master’s in Charleston, South Carolina where I studied white shrimp (Penaeus
setiferus) and their parasite populations. I was primarily interested in a
condition called black gill which occurs as part of an immune response in
shrimp, and how that condition related to parasite infections and proxies for
shrimp health. During my thesis research I developed a love of fieldwork, and
was privileged to participate in otter trawl surveys, freshwater wetland
sampling regimes, zooplankton collections, and crab-pot surveys. I also became
very comfortable behind a microscope while dissecting hundreds of white shrimp.
I was fortunate to spend time in the science education sector after grad
school, and loved the look of wonder students wore when learning something new
about the natural world. I taught in a variety of experiential learning
settings before moving on to a husbandry-research position in the aquaculture
sector. I worked in a Maine shellfish hatchery learning spawning and larval
rearing protocols, and executed several research projects aimed at developing
aquaculture-ready techniques to raise challenging shellfish species in a
hatchery setting. I also assisted with shellfish recruitment fieldwork on
mudflats and worked on a demonstration oyster farm housed in a lobster pound.
My position at WHOI heavily leverages my
background in microscopy and zooplankton. In Kirstin’s lab, I am processing a
complex zooplankton sample set from Palau to examine the diversity of species in the Palau National Marine Sanctuary. I also support research projects on the environmental impacts of offshore wind, sustainability of the scallop fishery, and the ecological role of shipwrecks. I am always excited to discuss all things weird and
wonderful in the world of invertebrates, and I can be reached at sarah.zuidema@whoi.edu.
My undergraduate research experience began in a lab monitoring Red-backed salamander populations. I love being physically immersed in the natural world, however I also crave being able to view it from a small - often molecular - scale. I therefore found myself working on a molecular ecology project, investigating genetic population structure and gene flow between salamander populations. Having grown up in a small coastal town, the ocean has always held a special place in my heart. As I stumbled across the fascinating emerging coral reef research, I felt immediately connected. From differential gene expression, to symbiotic relationships, and promoting biodiversity, coral reefs have such a profound effect on both marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Continuing on my pursuit of discovery, I realize that the field of biology extends beyond the source and resources of my undergraduate program at Bridgewater State University; therefore, I sought an opportunity at WHOI to further advance my passion and dedication to the world of scientific research. In the WHOI Meyer-Kaiser lab, I am working to analyze coral reef communities on shipwrecks, airplanes, and coral reefs in Palau. Using visual identification guides, I identify corals from a photo dataset from 2022 and 2023 and aim to answer the overarching scientific question, "Do shipwrecks and plane wrecks enhance biodiversity in coral reef environments?" Additionally, I am involved in the analysis of reproductive isolation among corals. Three cryptic lineages of Porites cf. lobata corals were used in cross-fertilization trials in 2023, and this analysis will determine whether lineages are reproductively isolated and should be considered different species. I am incredibly excited to be embarking on my educational and professional journey into the world of oceanographic studies, and I can be reached at olivia.quintin@whoi.edu.
Amelia 'Mimi' Smith, Summer Student Fellow, 2020
Calvin Mires
Maritime archaeologist
Dr. Calvin Mires has almost 20 years of experience in maritime archaeology and underwater cultural heritage. He is a Research Associate III at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He has led and worked on more than 30 maritime archaeology projects around the world, including Greek and Roman shipwrecks and harbors, Sweden's iconic warship Vasa, Confederate Blockade Runners in North and South Carolina, ship graveyards in Bermuda, and various sites in the Caribbean Sea, Pacific Ocean, and the Great Lakes. He is co-founder and instructor of SEAMAHP, a training program that leverages the concept of a ship's life-cycle to provide hands-on experiential learning to the public in maritime archaeology. Since 2015, he has co-directed the only maritime archaeology field schools in Massachusetts with cooperation of the Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources, the Trustees of Reservations, and the National Park Service, and has run maritime archaeological summer programs for middle and high school students. He is a Senior Tutor for the Nautical Archaeology Society for the New England region, a group that provides maritime archaeological training for the public. He has received grants from the National Park Service Maritime Heritage Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and has published in The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, The Society for Historical Archaeology, and Bermuda Maritimes. He is currently involved in several projects in Massachusetts, including archaeological investigation of the 1626 Sparrow Hawk and deep-sea research on shipwrecks in Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.
Sarah Zuidema
Research Assistant II
I always tell people that the ocean and its inhabitants have
a really positive way of getting under your skin. For me, the organisms that
really drew me in to a career in marine biology were invertebrates. I love that
they are so wildly different from us, and have adaptations that stretch beyond
anything my childhood imagination may have dreamed up. I completed my Marine
Biology Master’s in Charleston, South Carolina where I studied white shrimp (Penaeus
setiferus) and their parasite populations. I was primarily interested in a
condition called black gill which occurs as part of an immune response in
shrimp, and how that condition related to parasite infections and proxies for
shrimp health. During my thesis research I developed a love of fieldwork, and
was privileged to participate in otter trawl surveys, freshwater wetland
sampling regimes, zooplankton collections, and crab-pot surveys. I also became
very comfortable behind a microscope while dissecting hundreds of white shrimp.
I was fortunate to spend time in the science education sector after grad
school, and loved the look of wonder students wore when learning something new
about the natural world. I taught in a variety of experiential learning
settings before moving on to a husbandry-research position in the aquaculture
sector. I worked in a Maine shellfish hatchery learning spawning and larval
rearing protocols, and executed several research projects aimed at developing
aquaculture-ready techniques to raise challenging shellfish species in a
hatchery setting. I also assisted with shellfish recruitment fieldwork on
mudflats and worked on a demonstration oyster farm housed in a lobster pound.
My position at WHOI heavily leverages my
background in microscopy and zooplankton. In Kirstin’s lab, I am processing a
complex zooplankton sample set from Palau to examine the diversity of species in the Palau National Marine Sanctuary. I also support research projects on the environmental impacts of offshore wind, sustainability of the scallop fishery, and the ecological role of shipwrecks. I am always excited to discuss all things weird and
wonderful in the world of invertebrates, and I can be reached at sarah.zuidema@whoi.edu.Olivia Quintin
Guest Student
Kraken
Golden Doodle
Kraken comes to the lab with Kirstin a few days a week. His research interests include environmental smells, creative and alternative tug toys, and optimized sleeping positions on the lab couch. Kraken's dissertation, entitled "Investigations in misbehavior: methods for optimizing treat output in a Homo sapiens household," was heralded by the Canine Research Society as "the most comprehensive experiment in puppy misbehavior in several years." Since completing his education, Kraken has stayed on in the Meyer-Kaiser lab as a researcher in the global OCEM network (Olfactory Cues for Environmental Monitoring). His data collection involves daily walks along a set route in Woods Hole to monitor changes in environmental conditions along monthly, seasonal, and annual time-scales.
Former lab members
Kharis Schrage, PhD student in the MIT-WHOI Joint Program, 2020-2025
Dissertation: Early life-history ecology of Arctic benthic invertebrates
Next steps: Adjunct professor at Stonehill College
Johanna Weston, Postdoctoral Scholar, 2022-2025
Project: Development of a low-cost, full-ocean-depth zooplankton sampler
Martyna Kowalska, Summer Student Fellow, 2024
Project: Distribution of meroplankton in a high Arctic fjord
Currently: Undergraduate student, Eckerd College
Maikani Andres, Guest Student, 2023
Project: Recruitment of corals in Palau
Next steps: Researcher at Palau International Coral Reef Center
Kimberly Nuñez, Summer Student Fellow, 2022
Project: Long-term changes in the Arctic deep sea: benthic community structure at HAUSGARTEN-I 2002-2022 Paper
Next steps: Lab Coordinator at Columbia University Medical Center
Hanny Rivera, Postdoctoral Investigator, 2018-2021
Project: Population connectivity and adaptation for thermal tolerance among corals in Palau Paper
Next steps: Associate Director of Business Development at Gingko Bioworks (biotech start-up)
Project: Ontogenetic development of the crinoid Poliometra prolixa in the Arctic deep sea. Paper
Next steps: Energy and Sustainability Analyst at ICF (environmental consulting firm)
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