Dear SML Community,

In this month’s newsletter, we are attempting to summarize what effectively constitutes eight months of pre-season planning followed by four months of rapid-paced implementation. A slightly daunting task indeed! During the 16 weeks of our season which included academic courses, visiting and undergraduate research projects, and public programs, our staff managed to pull together an amazing 57th summer of operations for Shoals Marine Laboratory. Below you will learn a bit more about a few special highlights from the summer.

 

In addition to the new R by the Sea course that you will read about below, we also welcomed back our Field Animal Behavior and Applied Science Communications courses. Our curriculum this summer was diverse and included topics ranging from marine parasites to marine mammals. Overall, more than 220 students took courses at the lab, making it another hugely successful summer for our academic programs!

 

One personal favorite from our academic season included the return of an SML tradition, the end-of-course banquet. SML faculty member Amy Fowler planted the seed of an idea into SML Programs Coordinator Kelly Morgan’s mind and voila - a 2023 version of the class banquet was born. During the final Sunday evening of each course block, the Commons became filled with creative energy that included students playing instruments, performing stunts, reading poetry, and lots and lots of laughter and joy. It showcased the many talents outside of academics that our students have and highlighted the strong sense of community that our students, faculty, TAs, and staff are able to build during their time on Appledore.

 

As always, thank you for continuing to be a part of the Shoals community. We appreciate your interest and involvement in all that we do.

 

Cheers,

 

P.S. Fortunately, Hurricane Lee stayed offshore. The Kingsbury and Heiser are secure at the UNH pier in New Castle and at first glance via the webcam, our facilities weathered the storm.

This year, Shoals Marine Laboratory is proud to have launched a new and unique class, R by the Sea. Taught by Dr. Easton White and Dr. Emily Malcolm-White of Middlebury College, the course included one week of remote classroom time followed by a field-intensive in-person week on Appledore. Students received instruction in an advanced statistical software called R and its applications to marine sciences. R is used to communicate data effectively and can be applied to analyze large datasets such as SML’s long-term rocky intertidal dataset. 

The class started out virtually on May 30th…

Enjoy a magical evening of art and history, celebrating the legacy of Celia Thaxter’s Appledore Island Salon.

 

You are invited to “Appledore Revisited: Cigar Box Painting Returns to Celia’s Salon,” a benefit exhibition by past SML Artist-in-Residence (AIR) artists featuring cigar box paintings and framed studio works all either painted on or inspired by Appledore.

 

The event will be held Nov. 1st, 5-7pm at Hotel Thaxter, Portsmouth, NH. Ticketholders will enjoy complimentary hors d’oeuvres, beer, wine and specialty cocktails courtesy of Nichinan. A brief talk about Appledore, past and present, will be given along with a screening of a short documentary about the project.

This is a truly rare chance to support the important dialogue between scientific exploration and the arts as 50% of the proceeds will benefit Shoals Marine Lab, its invaluable research and educational programming. Limited tickets are available, so learn more about the event here and click the button below to purchase tickets. If you can’t make the event, paintings will be available for purchase online on November 2nd.

Perhaps you’ve seen Bob Meadows at Shoals Marine Lab. Tall, kindly, and sporting a most excellent mustache, Bob can regularly be found washing dishes in the kitchen or brandishing his weed whacker out on the trails. 

 

If you’ve ever had the pleasure of conversing with Bob, you’ll know he’s warm, passionate, and selfless. He’s a Shoaler through and through, but what you might not know is that he has a history with SML that predates the lab itself. He’s one of the true Shoals originals.

 

We hope you enjoy this exclusive interview with the amazing Bob Meadows. 

Our partnership with the NH Audubon offers the opportunity to explore the island as over 200 species of songbirds, seabirds, and waterfowl begin to migrate during the Isle of Shoals birding trips. Our final week of programming on Appledore welcomed two different birding groups for some truly special birdwatching.

Led by Becky Suomola and Pam Hunt, two veteran birders and bird experts at NH Audubon, our program participants enjoyed daily bird walks, visits to the bird banding station (complete with demonstrations), and presentations about bird migration and the SML Tern Conservation Program. Special species such as Cedar Waxwing, Cape May Warbler, Barred Owl, and Common Nighthawk were all witnessed during these trips. At the end of the day, the group would gather and review the day’s species list and reflect on all that they saw.

 

Interested in learning more about our birding programs?