Protected Resources Branch at the Beaufort Lab

Research conducted by the Protected Resources Branch is governed largely by mandates in:

Marine Mammal Protection Act, which protects all marine mammal species
Endangered Species Act, which encompasses threatened and endangered marine species

These laws, in essence, legislate that people occupying coastal areas balance their interests with those of the marine mammals and sea turtles dependent on the same environments.

Research in our lab focuses on how marine mammals and sea turtles use the coastal ecosystems and how human activities affect these animals.

Projects range from using novel techniques to elucidate the stock structure of bottlenose dolphins to long-term assessment of sea turtle populations using local waters as an index site for in-water demographic and health assessment studies.

This research includes:

an active field program
advancement of laboratory techniques
development of spatial and explanatory models

Although our primary geographic focus is in the waters along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States, we are involved in national and international projects, with research conducted collaboratively with federal, state, academic, and other partners.

Bottlenose Dolphin
Photo Credit: SEFSC Beaufort Lab

Loggerhead Turtle
Photo Credit: SEFSC Beaufort Lab

Protected Resources Branch at the Beaufort Lab

Protected Resources

Fisheries Service