ALUMNI CORNER
MEES RESEARCH CENTER
Haoran Liu Photo Courtesy: UMES
Haoran Liu is a fourth year MEES doctoral student at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Haoran first joined the MEES in Fall 2018 as a Master’s student, but after only one year, switched to the doctoral program in Fall 2019. Under the advisement of Dr. Meng Xia, Hoaran’s research focuses on the eutrophication and harmful algal bloom (HAB) dynamics in estuarine and coastal systems, particularly in the Maryland Coastal Bays (MCBs) which have been facing degraded water quality issues and declining biodiversity in past decades due to the active human development and land-use activities in the surrounding watershed.
Danielle Quill Photo Courtesy: UMCES/CBL
Danielle Quill (‘24, M.S.) graduated with her Master’s in MEES from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science this past Spring 2024. Advised by Dr. Ryan Woodland, Danielle’s thesis focused on the spatial distribution of mysids, which are small shrimp-like crustaceans that feed on algae, detritus, and zooplankton, and are also preyed upon by fish. Mysids hold high ecological importance particularly in the food chain, due to their migration pattern as they act as a biological transfer mechanism between food webs in different layers of the water and are a key food source for many species.
water quality & Climate change indicators: chesapeake bay mysid population dynamics
danielle quill (M.S. ‘24)
Danielle Quill Photo Courtesy: UMCES/CBL
Danielle Quill (‘24, M.S.) graduated with her Master’s in MEES from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science this past Spring 2024. Advised by Dr. Ryan Woodland, Danielle’s thesis focused on the spatial distribution of mysids, which are small shrimp-like crustaceans that feed on algae, detritus, and zooplankton, and are also preyed upon by fish. Mysids hold high ecological importance particularly in the food chain, due to their migration pattern as they act as a biological transfer mechanism between food webs in different layers of the water and are a key food source for many species. Mysids are also sensitive to water pollution and respond quickly to ecosystem changes, which makes them useful bioindicators to monitor water quality and predict climate change. Danielle’s research scope spatially focused on the movements and seasonal migration of Chesapeake Bay mysids in the Choptank and Patuxent Rivers and aimed to strengthen ecosystem-based management strategies for those areas. Born and raised in Southern Maryland, Danielle graduated from the College of Southern Maryland with an Associates of Arts & Sciences in 2012. During her time there, Danielle through a tropical biology class completed three different research projects, traveling abroad to Belize to study leaf-cutter ant (Atta sp.) cutting strategy in response to leaf toughness, herbivore abundance and substrate cover on two patch reefs in Glover’s Atoll, Belize, and the frequency and intensity of lesions from an unknown dermal parasite on Acanthurus spp. across a habitat depth gradient in Glover’s Atoll, Belize. According to Dr. Eierman, who co-taught the tropical marine biology class with Dr. Billeter, Danielle took the lead on data collection and analysis spending long hours in the Belizean rainforests studying the ants. Danielle later co-authored a paper with Dr. Billeter entitled “Science and Religion Since Darwin: The “Fairness” Issue in the Evolution-Creation Debate, Voices from an American Community College and the Blogosphere”, published by the Forum on Public Policy (2009). Danielle continued her studies at St. Mary’s College of Maryland, earning a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in Environmental Science in 2016. Under the advisement of Dr. Christopher Tanner, Danielle’s undergraduate thesis, which was originally designed as a class lab project, was converted into a combination of a literature review and a funding proposal that would investigate the discrepancies in the relative availability of literature on captive breeding and aquaculture of marine food fish compared to marine ornamental fish. Through Dr. Billeter, Danielle was introduced to Dr. Ryan Woodland through a former pupil, and had the opportunity to join the Woodland lab at the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory as volunteer research assistant and then formally as a Laboratory Technician. Danielle joined the MEES program in Fall 2018 to pursue a Master of Science degree within the Ecological Systems Foundation. Danielle’s thesis aimed to understand the intricacies of population dynamics of important prey such as mysids within nursery areas for ecologically and economically important predators should strengthen ecosystem-based management strategies for those areas. For more information on Danielle, please click here.
Dr. Keith Eshleman Photo Courtesy: UMCES/CBL
Dr. keith EshlEman
watershed & wetland Hydrology: long-term water quality & best management practices
Keith Eshleman is Professor at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science based at Appalachian Laboratory in Frostburg, Maryland. Dr. Eshleman has published more than 60 peer-reviewed papers and dozens of technical reports in his career and is co-author of an undergraduate textbook entitled Elements of Physical Hydrology (with former colleagues from the University of Virginia where Dr. Eshleman served on the faculty from 1988 through 1995). Prior to returning to academia, Dr. Eshleman was employed at the USEPA Environmental Research Laboratory in Corvallis, Oregon and at The Ecosystems Center in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Dr. Eshleman's research interests are in the areas of watershed and wetlands hydrology; groundwater/surface water interactions; biogeochemical processes in upland and wetland ecosystems; hydrochemical modeling; and ecosystem responses to natural disturbances, energy development, and land use change. Recent research projects have focused on the hydrological impacts of acid deposition, forest disturbances, and surface mining in the Appalachian Mountain region, as well as on detecting and understanding long-term improvements in water quality across the Upper Potomac River Basin. In 2012, Dr. Eshleman led a major report on recommended best management practices for Marcellus shale gas development in Maryland at the behest of the Governor’s Safe Drilling Commission and served on a National Research Council committee on uranium mining in Virginia. In 2013, Dr. Eshleman was awarded the President's Award for Excellence in Application of Science by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science in recognition for his leadership in preparing this landmark report on best management practices for unconventional natural gas extraction. Dr. Eshleman has advised and mentored many MEES students over the years, and students note Dr. Eshleman’s versatility as an instructor who actively engages students and is always available to help. Eshleman completed his Ph.D. in Water Resources at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1985. He holds a B.A. degree in Environmental Sciences from the University of Virginia and an S.M. degree in Civil Engineering from M.I.T. For more information on Dr. Eshleman, please click here.
MEES RESEARCH CENTER
sustainable solutions for coastal management: an analysis of Harmful algal blooms (HAB) in Maryland coastal bays (MCB)
Haoran Liu Photo Courtesy: UMES
Haoran Liu is a fourth year MEES doctoral student at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Haoran first joined the MEES in Fall 2018 as a Master’s student, but after only one year, switched to the doctoral program in Fall 2019. Under the advisement of Dr. Meng Xia, Hoaran’s research focuses on the eutrophication and harmful algal bloom (HAB) dynamics in estuarine and coastal systems, particularly in the Maryland Coastal Bays (MCBs) which have been facing degraded water quality issues and declining biodiversity in past decades due to the active human development and land-use activities in the surrounding watershed. Prior to joining the MEES Graduate Program, this Tangshan, China native was fascinated by fish breeding and behavior and pursued opportunities in aquaculture. Haoran first entered South China Agricultural University in 2013 with no real plan except to seek diverse learning experiences and joined the Aquatic Animal Association participating in discussions on fish related topics as well as field collecting. In October 2014, Haoran was invited by his Biochemistry instructor to join a year-long project studying the Genetic Diversity of Siniperca Scherzeri and Pseudohemicultur Dispar Geographical Population. Siniperca Scherzeri, or the leopard mandarin fish, is a freshwater popular game fish native to Eastern Asia and is used in aquaculture both for food and the aquarium trade. However, there are currently no records quantifying the number of individuals traded, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) ranks it as an uncertain risk and recommends additional evaluation and a more in-depth assessment before utilizing the species in trade. Its possession is regulated in Alabama, and prohibited in Japan. Pseudohemicultur Dispar, or Madder sea perch, is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish from south east Asia believed to have experienced naturally occurring mutagenesis from DNA changes caused by thermal or chemical pollution by power plants. According to Dr. Liu Li, Associate Professor and Director of the Department of Agriculture Science at the South China Agricultural University and Haoran’s undergraduate advisor, Haoran conducted various experiments including DNA extraction, reproduction and purity testing and was partly responsible for data analysis and writing the research report. At the conclusion of the research project, Haoran was introduced through Dr. Li to an internship at the Marine Fisheries Development Center in the Guangdong Province of China. Haoran recalls this as one of the many experiences that greatly sharpened his skills in conducting experiments while taking advantage of advanced research facilities, as well as attending lectures on fish structure and embryos by top experts in the field. Haoran credits those two experiences as ones that helped him gain a better perception of lab-based and industry-oriented research settings, and inspired him to pursue a career in marine research. Haoran joined a research project during his junior year studying the artificial breeding of large mouth bass. Although unfamiliar with the species, Haoran helped diagnose ill parental fishes and improved the condition of drug susceptibility testing to avoid disease from spreading. Haoran earned his Bachelor’s in Aquaculture from the South China Agricultural University in Summer 2017. Since entering the MEES program first as a Master’s in 2018 before switching to the doctoral program, Haoran’s research focuses on harmful algal bloom in the Maryland Coastal Bays, coupling a hydrodynamic model with an adapted water quality model to analyze the spatial and temporal fluctuations of phytoplankton in response to changing environmental nutrient concentrations and wind and tidal conditions. The results of this research aims to help better understand and identify the influential factors on the formation of HAB’s and provide solutions to improve the water quality in this shallow lagoon system. Haoran was recently the recipient of the 2024 Reid Evans Menzer Memorial Graduate Award, a prestigious scholarship awarded eligible MEES graduate students with superior academic merit and achievement. Haoran is also set to present his study of phytoplankton dynamics and nutrient cycling in the Maryland Coastal Bays at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) conference this winter and exchange updated research information with experts in the field. Haoran plans to graduate with his doctoral degree in MEES next fall and aspires to work for environmental institutions and federal agencies like NOAA where he looks to apply his research findings to develop sustainable solutions for coastal management. For more information on Haoran, please click here.