"We have a lot of territory to cover, but 

 federal dollars support research only in the 

 state's four designated research reserves," 

 Ross notes. 



That's why the reserve staff looks to 

 optimize research efforts through partnerships 

 with programs, such as North Carolina Sea 

 Grant, and university marine studies 

 programs, including UNC-Chapel Hill and 

 UNC-Wilmington, and NC State and Duke 

 universities. Ross also is collaborating with 

 the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries to help 

 develop coastal habitat protection plans. 



For Charles "Pete" Peterson, proximity 

 to the Rachel Carson Estuarine Research 

 Reserve makes it an ideal setting for much of 

 his research. Peterson, professor of marine 

 biology at UNC-Chapel Hill's Institute of 

 Marine Sciences (IMS), describes the reserve 

 as "a natural laboratory of multiple habitats 

 that are in relatively good shape." 



The mixture of habitats enables 

 scientists to study how they relate to each 

 other. "The reserve is a place that can be a 

 control to compare with disturbed or 

 developed areas," notes Peterson, a North 

 Carolina Sea Grant researcher. 



Because the reserve is a well-protected 

 area, elaborate research equipment can be set 



up knowing it will not be disturbed. "Lots of 

 folks share the estuary. Local fishermen are 

 attuned to the scientific community and 

 respect researchers' right to be there," 

 Peterson says. 



"The reserve has stimulated research 

 that pays homage to Rachel Carson, a true 

 environmental hero," he says. "She set an 

 example for all of us." 



The reserve's land, marsh and waters 

 have spawned more than 200 scientific 

 papers and theses. 



Peterson's own research in the reserve 

 has resulted in numerous published articles 

 through the years. Recently, he published the 

 findings of nearly three decades of his clam 

 recruitment studies. "The same plots showed 

 a 60 percent decline of clam recruitment. The 

 implication, of course, is the need to manage 

 clam for breeding stock," he says. 



Graduate fellows 



One research tool Peterson and reserve 

 officials say they would like to expand is the 

 National Estuarine Research Reserve 

 Graduate Fellows Program. 



"It's hard to imagine another graduate 

 fellows program that does as good a job in 

 connecting researchers with the users and 



local interests at home in North Carolina," 

 Peterson says. 



Eileen Vandenburgh, a current fellow, 

 explains that the NOAA-funded program 

 supports research that sustains, enhances or 

 restores estuarine ecosystem. 



"My research is crucial to management 

 of shellfish populations in all estuaries in 

 North Carolina. I am investigating under 

 what conditions, and on what scale, hard 

 clam larvae recruit from areas closed to 

 harvesting," says Vandenburgh, an IMS 

 graduate student. Her work is relevant to the 

 state's hard clam fishery management plan. 



Monica Dozier Powers, another 

 graduate fellow from IMS, is conducting 

 research that could help resource managers 

 regulate red drum fisheries stock. Powers is 

 looking at how juvenile red drum use different 

 types of habitat in the Rachel Carson reserve. 



Powers is finding that, "Catchable fish 

 prefer oyster reef habitat over grass or sand 

 flats. Reef structure provides habitat for many 

 prey items for red drum." 



She also is finding that the red drum 

 diet is selective according to age. "The diet 

 changes as they grow, so that mature fish 

 don't compete with recruits, or babies," she 

 observes. 



20 HOLIDAY 2002 



