Masters students in the MMES program at the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI) are required to completed a group capstone research project. Our 2015 cohort researched juvenile fish communities in seagrass habitats; we specifically wanted to compare juvenile fish communities between habitats composed of native seagrass species (Syringodium filiforme, Thalassia testudinum) versus the invasive species Halophila stipulacea, which is spreading around the Caribbean, especially in the US Virgin Islands. The cover picture above shows Halophila stipulacea near a coral reef in an embayment on the south side of St. Thomas. Our experiment showed interesting differences in the juvenile fish communities between native and invasive seagrasses, and we published these results in the journal PLoS ONE in 2017. My classmates also made some awesome products for science communication, including a great fact sheet and stellar video that was a finalist in the Ocean 180 video challenge - check out our publication (Olinger et al. 2017) and these communications here, and spread the word, not Halophila!
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last updated summer 2022