School of Biology and Ecology

Graduate students from all disciplines presented their work and competed for thousands of dollars at the 2015 Grad-Expo on April 2nd & 3rd in the University of Maine’s Innovative Media Research and Commercialization Center (IMRC).Many graduate students from The School of Biology & Ecology participated in the event and emerged as winners. Maureen Correll, a […]

The School of Biology & Ecology recognized distinguished undergraduate and graduate students at the Seventh Annual Recognition Ceremony on April 22 in Murray Hall.  Congratulations to all award winners!   School of Biology & Ecology Student Awards, Prizes, and Scholarships 2015   SBE Academic Awards Highest GPA in a major within the School First Year […]

The public recently gathered in Stodder Hall to attend the Graduate Student Research Awards Competition, where selected graduate students from different majors at the University of Maine in the School of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture presented their own research on topics varying from the role of zooplankton in the biological carbon pump to eco-friendly […]

Seanna Annis, associate professor of mycology, has been awarded the 2015 Outstanding Public Service Award from the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture. Her research laboratory examines the genetic diversity, physiology and molecular biology of various fungal pathogens and applied aspects of control of fungi that attack low-bush blueberry plants. Annis maintains a network […]

Congratulations to  School of Biology and Ecology faculty members that have been approved by the University of Maine System Board of Trustees for promotion and/or tenure.  The faculty were nominated by President Susan J. Hunter based on a peer and administrative review of their teaching, research and public service.   Brian J. McGill has been […]

The University of Maine Neuroscience community celebrated Brain Awareness Week this Thursday, an international celebration of brain research, by tabling in the student union distributing educational pamphlets, stickers, pencils and other materials to anyone who wished to learn more about the brain. Brain Awareness Week is a global campaign, which aims to increase public awareness […]

A core facility at The University of Maine, widely known for its accumulation of specimen that are decades older than the university and represent a great deal of the natural world, has recently changed locations on campus. Previously located in Hannibal Hamlin Hall, The University of Maine Herbarium can now be found in room two […]

Submissions are currently being accepted for the 2014-2015 John M. Rezendes Annual Ethics Essay Contest sponsored by The Honors College. Writers are encouraged to focus on this year’s topic, “The Ethics of Energy, Ecology and the Environment” Possible topics include the Ethics of Energy, Ecology, and the Environment and… Genetic Engineering Globalization Resource Distribution Fracking […]

Hurricane Sandy, the most deadly storm of the 2012 hurricane season, not only left a lingering path of destruction for our human populations…but also dramatically impacted tidal marsh habitats of birds along the east coastline. Brian Olsen, assistant professor of biology and ecology, has begun gauging restoration of these habitats that was devastated by the […]

Four faculty positions available in the emerging focus area of Changing Ecosystems and Climate: Impact on Animal, Plant, and Human Health

Seminars will occur Mondays from 12- 1 PM in 107 Norman Smith Hall Date Speaker Affiliation Title 1/19 No Seminar – – 1/26 Olaf Jensen Rutgers University “The River Wolf and the Blue Pearl: Conservation of Endangered Salmonids in Northern Mongolia.”   2/2 Bill Sutton Tennessee State University “Vulnerability Assessments of Amphibian and Reptile Hotspots.” […]

Researchers at the University of Maine, including one of Maine’s leading bird biologists Rebecca Holberton, are interested in a feathered friend that pays a short two week visit to Maine in July, August or September.  Semipalmated sandpipers do not pass through Maine for vacation, but use their short stay as a “rest stop” for their […]

Looking for experience in the field this summer? Summer Internships available for the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge!  Internships last 12-weeks (40 hr/week) beginning mid-May through September.  Starting dates are negotiable.  See descriptions below:   Natural Resource Management Botany Intern Description: Work with refuge staff on identifying and removing invasive plants and restoring shrub-land habitats […]

According to an article published in Science Online, titled “Lectures Aren’t Just Boring, They’re Ineffective, Too, Study Finds” active learning methods are significantly more successful compared to traditional stand-and-deliver lecture techniques. Michelle Smith, assistant professor of biology and research for the STEM Education Center at the University of Maine, coauthored the meta-analysis study that contributed […]

  Seminars will be held on Fridays at 3:10 pm in Murray Hall, Room 102 unless otherwise noted.  Light refreshments served at 3:00 pm.   Jan. 16:     Dr. Mindi Summers, University of Maine, “Untangling the evolutionary history of a marine symbiosis: Diversity and relationships among crinoids and myzostomes” Hosted by: Dr. Smith Jan. […]

School of Biology and Ecology Professor Brian McGill’s Ecology blog titled “Dynamic Ecology” has been ranked one of the most influential Science Blogs, according to a University of Michigan news release.  The survey was conducted by the science blog “From the Lab Bench, a blog about all things science,” and consisted of 600 respondents. McGill is […]

Dr. Michelle Smith, assistant professor of biology and researcher for the Maine Center for Research in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Education at the University of Maine, was recently featured in an article for the National Science Foundation.  The article, titled Rules of engagement: Transforming the teaching of college-level science, explained how Smith uses […]