Students Present Research at USCB Summer Symposium
From mapping the genome of the Port Royal Sound to studying animals and analyzing water quality, undergraduate researchers spent the summer tackling questions that matter to the region— and on July 31, they shared their discoveries at the University of South Carolina Beaufort's inaugural Summer Research Symposium.
Held at the Center for the Arts on the Beaufort Campus, the symposium brought together students, faculty mentors, community partners, and supporters to celebrate a summer of hands-on research and experiential learning in ecology, marine science, conservation biology, environmental health, data science and wildlife management.
"For many of the students, this is the first time they've presented in a setting like this," said Dr. Tye Pettay, USCB assistant professor of biological oceanography, who organized the symposium.
David Wise presented his research about terrapin road mortality.
Presentations included:
- Sequencing the Port Royal Sound's Genome
Lynette Wyant
Research Partner: USCB & SC INBRE - Vegetation Biodiversity Promoted by Pineywoods Cattle Management in Pine and Hardwood
Pastures
Gray Ward
Research Partner: Nemours Wildlife Foundation - Quantifying Human-Wildlife Interactions on Fripp Island
Dalin Sebree
Research Partner: Fripp Island Golf & Beach Resort - Searching for Tick-Borne Pathogens
Nadine Cole
Research Partner: USCB & SC INBRE - Nutrient Analysis in the Port Royal Sound
Cassidy Hutto
Research Partner: USCB Water Quality Lab - Alligator Research at Nemours Wildlife Foundation
Abby Luna (Texas A&M University)
Research Partner: Nemours Wildlife Foundation - Spatial Ecology of Wildlife in Beaufort County
Loren Quintana
Research Partner: Pritchards Island & Nemours Wildlife Foundation - The Cultivation of Diatoms in the Lowcountry
Kadi Hunter
Research Partner: USCB Water Quality Lab - Creating Subwatershed Profiles for HUC12 Locations in the Port Royal Sound
Madeline Jones
Research Partner: Port Royal Sound Foundation - Diamondback Terrapin Road Mortality on a South Carolina Causeway
David Wise
Research Partner: USCB & Pritchards Island - Oldfield Outfitters Summer Internship
Brianna Margioni
Research Partner: Oldfield Outfitters Center - "R" You Certain? An Overview of Using RStudio to Analyze Water Quality Data
Matthew Richmond, St. Mary's College of Maryland
Research Partner: Port Royal Sound Foundation - Wildlife Monitoring in Nemours' Ecopastures
Rylie Swinford (Illinois State University)
Research Partner: Nemours Wildlife Foundation - Data Analysis for USCB River Sampling
Ariel Avant
Research Partner: USCB Water Quality Lab - Evaluating Novel Biologging and Videography Methods to Study Snake Behavior and Space
Use in a Small Barrier Island Landscape
Chloe Mullinax
Research Partner: USCB & Pritchards Island
Dr. Mercer Brugler and Dr. Ryan Hanscom served as moderators.
Many of the projects were supported by Carolina IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research
Excellence (SC INBRE), Pritchards Island Research, Spring Island Trust, Brays Island Stewardship Fund, Port
Royal Sound Foundation, Beaufort County, USCB Marine Biology and Coastal Conservation
and Ecology, the Nemours Wildlife Foundation, the S.C. Sea Grant Consortium, and the
Town of Bluffton.
Community partners including Fripp Island and Oldfield Outfitters also provided students with valuable internship opportunities in environmental education
and stewardship.
The inaugural event let students practice communicating their findings to an audience
in a professional setting. It also created a forum for sharing ideas and strengthening
collaborations among organizations working to better understand and protect the Lowcountry's
natural resources and underscored USCB's commitment to undergraduate research and community-engaged scholarship.
Sponsors of USCB summer research experiences for undergraduates.
- USCB -
CW 08/04/2026