CMAST - NC State University Center for Marine Sciences and Technology

09/01/2026

Eclair was stranded June 7, 2026 at Caswell Beach suffering from boat strike injury. The turtle was rescued by Caswell Beach Sea Turtle Watch and brought to the The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Center for treatment. The turtle was transported to CMAST June 29 so Dr. Harms and team could perform flipper amputation surgery, then returned to KBSTC for ongoing rehabilitative care. Kemp’s ridley sea turtles are the most endangered sea turtle species.

More boats and sea turtles are sharing the water at the NC coast in the summertime, which is leading to sea turtle injuries.

High speed impacts from boats cause fractures of the shell and skull and internal damage from blunt trauma (boat hull) and sharp trauma (propeller) which can be fatal.

📞If you see a sea turtle in distress call the NC Wildlife Resources Commission sea turtle hotline (252-241-7367) to initiate a rescue to save the turtle.

🌊 What you can do:

-Wear polarized sunglasses to make it easier to see sea turtles (and other animals) in the water.

-Designate a spotter to watch for sea turtles and other wildlife

-Keep a sharp eye out because sea turtles are hard to see and you might not even feel the impact.

-Go slow when you don’t have to go fast

-Avoid boating near sea turtle feeding grounds (e.g., seagrass meadows) and nearshore areas where nesting sea turtles are likely to come ashore

08/31/2026

🌊 NC State Undergraduates: Spend your spring semester on the coast!

Interested in marine science, hands-on research, and living by the beach? Join CMAST Director Dr. Dave Eggleston for an info session to learn all about the Semester at CMAST program.

📍 Where: Jordan Hall, Room 1220
⏰ When: 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM
📅 Dates: Monday, Sept 14 OR Tuesday, Sept 15

What to Expect:
- Semester-long research projects & Friday seminars
- Full semester of NC State courses right on Bogue Sound in Morehead City
- Marine science classes & week-long field courses
- Housing provided right near the beach- A close-knit faculty and student community

Ready to trade the classroom for the coast? Get full details and apply here: https://cmast.ncsu.edu/programs-at-cmast/semester-cmast/

Spots fill on a rolling basis

08/29/2026

From testing salmon skin chip recipes to understanding sea turtle hearing, raising frogs, and investigating coral bleaching, our summer fellows at NC State’s Center for Marine Sciences and Technology (CMAST) had an unforgettable season on the coast!

🧪 For many of these undergrads, the CMAST summer program is their very first taste of hands-on marine science research.

🪸 It’s an invaluable experience that shapes their career goals and college journeys, read more about their summer projects here: https://cmast.ncsu.edu/2026/08/undergraduates-spend-the-summer-conducting-research-at-nc-states-marine-lab/

08/28/2026

Big news for our neighbors! NOAA Beaufort Lab is right down the road, and many of our faculty and students rely on our close partnership with their scientists. Excited to see this rebuild underway!

NOAA is investing funds to build a new laboratory facility in Beaufort, North Carolina, following structural damage that forced the permanent closure of the original 62-year old building. The new lab space will allow NOAA to continue its mission of providing state of the art research and resource management tools in coastal North Carolina and across the United States. https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/news/noaa-to-build-new-laboratory-building-at-research-facility-in-beaufort-north-carolina/

08/25/2026

Did you know NC State has a specialized program dedicated to training the next generation of aquatic veterinarians? 🌊

Through the Marine Health Program at NC State’s Center for Marine Sciences and Technology (CMAST), College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) faculty members mentor aquatic-focused veterinarians as part of the Zoological Medicine Residency. Dr. Laura Martinelli completed her residency in July and reflected on her experience and opportunities at CMAST.

Dr. Laura Martinelli’s favorite animals to work on are sea lions, but that is a difficult decision when the list of animals she has worked with includes sea turtles, baby otters, and even a rhinoceros!

Read more about Dr. Martinelli’s incredible journey and her time at CMAST here:
https://cmast.ncsu.edu/2026/08/training-the-next-generation-of-aquatic-veterinarians-at-nc-states-marine-lab/

🐋 Activities authorized by delegation from the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program (MMHSRP) Permit No. 24359.

🐢 Activities authorized under endangered species permit 26ST29 and equivalent prior year permits issued by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.

🌊 Activities conducted under Scientific or Educational Activities Permit 1791359 issued by the NC Division of Marine Fisheries.

NC State College of Veterinary Medicine & Veterinary Hospital

08/14/2026

CMAST in New Zealand! 🪸 🇳🇿

This July, two PhD students from the Rodgers Lab traveled to Auckland to present at the 16th International Coral Reef Symposium! Happening just once every four years, it’s the world’s largest gathering of coral researchers. Over 2,100 academics, NGOs, and restoration experts from 90+ countries came together to share their research and optimism for reef conservation.

CMAST students, Zach Zagon and Andrea Landaverde, each presented their posters. Zach presented his poster, “Characterizing Endozoicomonas aggregates across U.S. coral reefs: Unraveling implications for restoration and conservation efforts”, and Andrea presented her poster,“Coral immunity across different reef environments in the Middle Florida Keys.”

08/12/2026

CMAST - NC State University Center for Marine Sciences and Technology PhD candidate, Bethany Wager, recently traveled to Savannah, Georgia to volunteer on a NOAA Southeast Fishery Independent Survey research cruise. She spent 10 days offshore sampling the fish community on natural reefs off the coast of Florida. This long term survey provides valuable data that Bethany is utilizing in her 2nd chapter to better understand changes in fish communities on natural and artificial reefs over time.

With CMAST just 10 minutes away from the NOAA Beaufort Lab, students often have the opportunity to work closely with NOAA staff. Bethany has been mentored by multiple NOAA employees and able to volunteer on multiple NOAA research cruises through these connections. The opportunity to collaborate with the NOAA lab was one of the many reasons Bethany chose to attend NC State's CMAST for her PhD.

NOAA Fisheries Service

08/11/2026

Last month, CMAST students and the Director of The Science House’s Coastal Satellite Office connected with students at the Coastal Plains Boys & Girls Club Career Fair. Attendees got a firsthand look at a day in the life of marine scientists and educators while asking great questions about career paths and future aspirations. We always love getting out into the community and sharing what we do! 🌊🔬

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Coastal Plain North Carolina Coastal Federation The Science House at North Carolina State University

08/07/2026

📢 Restoring coral reef soundscapes to strengthen climate resilience in South Caicos 📢

Eggleston Lab PhD student, Mikayla Carrier, is working in South Caicos to study the underwater soundscape and working to understand how this soundscape can contribute to coral reef restoration. Melissa LaCroce, Del Bohnenstiehl, and Mikayla did some acoustic receiver changeouts and installed a solar powered underwater speaker system with accompanying larval sediment traps.

"Off the coast of South Caicos, restoration and conservation efforts in the Admiral Cockburn Land and Sea National Park are led by the School for Field Studies’ Center for Marine Resource Management (CMRS), who are actively growing and outplanting corals. However, a key question remains; will these sites attract enough new larvae to sustain long-term recovery?"

Read the article below to learn more about Carrier's research to restore the acoustic cues to reefs, aiming to increase larval recruitment rates to the reefs which she hopes will make the reefs more resilient!

https://darwinplus.org.uk/news/2026/06/12/restoring-loud-healthy-reefs/

08/05/2026

Happy National Oyster Day! 🦪

Here at CMAST - NC State University Center for Marine Sciences and Technology, many lab groups are studying oysters. One of these labs, the Eggleston lab, focuses on oyster reef monitoring. Last week, they were all smiles coming back from a successful trip to the Gull Shoal oyster sanctuary. They have monitored this oyster reef once a year in the summer since 2024 and will do so until 2028! This type of monitoring will help ensure the success of these artificial reefs year after year in the Pamlico Sound.