Welcome to the Shark Research & Conservation Program (SRC) at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science.
We conduct conservation-relevant shark and ray research while fostering scientific literacy and environmental stewardship among youth—especially communities historically excluded from STEM—through hands-on field experiences.
Learn more here.
SRC operates at the intersection of Science · Education · Conservation:
- Science: Conducting applied research on shark and ray ecology, biology, and conservation in highly human-impacted environments. Projects include GPS tagging (“GPS for Sharks”), urban shark ecology, immune system health, fish stress, reproduction, and climate change impacts.
- Education & Outreach: Engaging over 12,000 citizen scientists, including school students, in field experiences. Offering school group trips, FINS: For Girls in STEM programs, and online resources like blogs and curricula.
- Conservation Impact: Advancing understanding of environmental change on shark behavior and health, and translating findings into effective conservation strategies.
Dr. Catherine Macdonald is SRC Director and a Research Assistant Professor at the Rosenstiel School.
Her interdisciplinary research spans shark ecology, conservation policy, human dimensions of ocean conservation, and wildlife tourism as a conservation tool.
Here you will find code from SRC student projects, including data analysis scripts, visualization tools, and methods developed as part of undergraduate and graduate research. We share these projects to promote reproducibility, and collaboration across the marine research community.
