Coastal Ecology
Coastal ecologists are biologists who study the plants and animals found where the land meets the sea. This discipline gives us an understanding of (1) the coastal environment, (2) how terrestrial and marine systems are intricately connected, and (3) human impacts on ecosystems.
Coastal Ecologist
My name is Herb Leedy and I am a biologist. I have been interested in plants and animals for as long as I can remember. After high school, I went to Texas A&M University, where I earned a degree in biology. It wasn’t until after I worked for five years – first as a Peace Corps volunteer teaching people to raise fish, then at a research lab studying fish diseases – that I decided on my career path in marine and coastal ecology.
At MMS, it is important to understand the coastal and marine environments and how these environments may be potentially impacted by the activities of oil and gas exploration and development. In an effort to gain a better understanding of the environment, we study such topics as water quality, salt marsh ecology, invertebrate zoology, barrier island habitats, sea turtle biology and conservation, oil-spill modeling, and wetlands loss or coastal erosion, to name a few. Additionally, over the last several years we have developed geographic information systems (GIS) to ease the retrieval of biological data and to share this information with other interested scientists. Information from these studies helps us manage our natural resources better.
Educational requirements
Basic – Read a lot! Much of my workday is spent reading about research others have conducted, so the ability to read and comprehend is really important. Not only is reading going to be important, writing is equally as important because you will be explaining the results of your research to a wide range of audiences. Biologists exist to find out stuff and then convey it to others. One of the best ways to be a successful writer is to read.
High School – A strong basic background in math and science will help prepare you for college courses. Developing strong writing skills will be of great benefit as well.
If there is a college or university near you, sometimes it is possible to volunteer to assist researchers. The subject area doesn’t really matter, it is most important to get experience in research. I grew up in a very rural setting and did not have this opportunity. However, I became friends with the local veterinarian and tagged along on numerous late night emergency calls to farms and observed a lot of surgeries. At college, I volunteered every chance I got to help professors and graduate students with their research. I went on several all-expenses-paid trips (i.e., I slept in a tent and ate beans and hotdogs all weekend) to the Texas Gulf coast for various research projects.
College – It is necessary to go to college if you want to become a coastal ecologist. In fact, you should plan on going to graduate school if you want to have advancement potential in the field. For biology majors, the first two years of college are often filled with difficult prerequisites such as organic and inorganic chemistry, calculus, introductory biology, and physics. The fun starts your junior year with courses such as ichthyology, marine ecology, zoology, and other related natural sciences.
Career Opportunities
Career choices for coastal ecologists include faculty positions at the university level, environmental consulting, research for public and private institutions, and positions with State and Federal Government.
[Meteorologist] [Coastal Ecology] [Geophysicist] [Geologist] [Environmental Scientist]
[Marine Biologist] [Micropaleontologist] [Physical Oceanographer] [Petroleum Engineer] [Underwater Archaeologist]
Last update: Thursday November 29 2007
