The Center for Coastal Studies, established in 1984, is an interdisciplinary research unit of the College of Science and Technology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMU-CC). The main purpose of the center is to perform coastal ecosystem research and contract studies on the Padre/Mustang barrier island chain, the Laguna Madre, and the Nueces/Corpus Christi Bay Complex. The Center for Coastal Studies is located in the Natural Resources Center (NRC) on TAMU-CC's Ward Island campus, which is located between Corpus Christi Bay and Oso Bay, on the eastern side of Corpus Christi. Access to local marine/estuarine environments, such as oyster reefs, salt marshes, seagrass beds, tidal flats, sandy beaches, and jettied rocky seashores, is just minutes away. Operating as a state-supported institute, the Center for Coastal Studies is committed to coastal environmental/ecological research, teaching, and service in the Texas Coastal Bend and beyond.

ON CAMPUS

The Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) comprises 10,000 square feet of office and laboratory space within the Natural Resources Center (NRC) located on the west side of the TAMU-CC island campus. The CCS shares the NRC with various agencies and organizations, including TAMU-CCs National Spill Control School, Conrad Blucher Institute, and Center for Water Supply Studies, along with multiple offices of Texas Parks & Wildlife, Texas General Land Office, Texas Commission on Environmenatl Quality, Texas Department of Health, U.S. Geological Survey -Biological Resources Division, and a satellite office of the Texas Sea Grant Program. Through cohabitation in this facility with other university, state, and federal agencies, the CCS contributes to an efficiently productive and successful mechanism with the goal of safeguarding natural resources and promoting environmental conservation.

Our Facilities Include:

Marine Ecotoxicology Laboratory – this lab is used by the USGS/BRD Marine Ecotoxicology Research Station, in a cooperative agreement with CCS scientists. The lab contains equipment for culturing test organisms, processing water and sediment samples, doing water quality analyses, performing toxicity tests and cleaning glassware. The equipment in this laboratory includes aquaria, dissecting and compound microscopes, environmental chambers, instruments and corresponding probes for the measurement of pH, dissolved oxygen, salinity, ammonia and sulfides in liquid samples.

Marine Invertebrate Environmental Physiology Laboratory – this CCS lab contains a 1000 gallon seawater system for the maintenance of marine invertebrates. The lab is equipped for the analyses of physiological rate functions including a state-of-the-art fiber optic respirometry system, particle counter for determination of consumption rates in marine filter feeding invertebrates, and environmental chambers.

Marine Chemistry Laboratory - this lab is used by the USGS/BRD Marine Ecotoxicology Research Station, in collaboration with CCS scientists. The lab contains a high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC), for analyses of organic compounds in marine waters and sediments, and a total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer, currently used for the analysis of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in marine pore waters.

Coastal Resources Lab - this CCS lab is equipped with compound and dissecting microscopes, digital imaging equipment, desiccating and cold storage facilities. It also houses the micromollusc collection.

Dive Locker – this CCS facility houses the equipment used in the scientific and technical diving program. The program is supported by portable and stationary breathing air compressors, full face and U/W communication gear, SCUBA gear and state of the art underwater imaging equipment for both film and digital media. The program is capable of mixed-gas diving with Nitrox or Tri-mix. The program also utilizes a fleet of research vessels ranging from 15’ inflatables to a 26’ “Deep-V” Fiberglass cabin cruiser outfitted with the latest in navigation and safety equipment.

Benthic Ecology Lab – this CCS lab is dedicated to the processing and identification of benthic marine organisms. The lab is equipped with a vented wet bench, prep room and cold storage facilities, two drying ovens and one muffle furnace, numerous dissecting microscopes, several compound microscopes, three analytical balances, and a walk-in refrigerator.

Marine Botany & Molecular Research Laboratory – this CCS lab contains equipment for DNA PFGE analysis, horizontal gel electrophoresis, plant growth studies with incubators, and digital image analysis computer equipment.

OFF CAMPUS - LAGUNA MADRE FIELD STATION

The Laguna Madre Field Station was recently reconstructed through volunteer labor from faculty, students, and friends under the direction of Dr. Roy Lehman and Mr. Jerry Barnes. The facility is built on a dredge material island in the Laguna Madre, making it only accessible by boat. The original science club cabin was located on a spoil island near Intracoastal Waterway Marker 83 (about five miles south of the JFK Causeway). It has been leased since the mid-1970s from the Texas General Land Office under a unique Educational Facility Lease.

Faculty, undergraduate and graduate students for both research and educational endeavors have used the site. Graduate students have used the island and structure as headquarters while completing research in the surrounding Laguna Madre.

Over the years, the original structure became so weathered by the harsh coastal environment that repair was no longer an option and a new facility was needed. A proposal to the Texas General Land Office was submitted (summer 1999) and approved for the construction of a new structure along with plans for future expansion. The new building was constructed starting in the winter of 1999-2000 and currently has two buildings with a research laboratory and dormitory. The facility has propane and electrical utilities (via generator), a rainwater collection and storage system, and a restroom facility with two composting toilets. The field station provides a staging area for prompt and frequent collection, environmental monitoring, and analysis of harmful algal blooms known to occur in the Laguna Madre. Research and analysis pertaining chemical, physical, and biological effects of water quality and the prevention, reduction and elimination of pollution will be enhanced with the use of this facility.

Research and contract work conducted by the Center for Coastal Studies is both pure and applied. Faculty and graduate students associated with the Physical and Life Science Department are currently working in benthic ecology, coral reef ecology, mitigation evaluations, and artificial reef studies. The Center for Coastal Studies also has several cooperative work agreements with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey-Biological Resources Division, and other agencies. These agreements are designed primarily to aid these agencies in providing solutions to a variety of practical problems existing in coastal South Texas.

Current studies involve:

* environmental impact and monitoring of a high marsh oil spill and burn site

* biological investigation and impact of the Edible Brown Mussel on the Texas coast

* an evaluation of offshore oil and gas platforms as artificial reefs

* long-term monitoring of the Flower Gardens National Marine Sanctuary

* wetlands creation/mitigation monitoring and site development of a 200-acre restoration area in Nueces Bay, Texas

* Laguna Madre seagrass distribution/ecology studies

* ecotoxicology of coastal sediments

Although the Center for Coastal Studies is not degree granting, it is within the College of Science and Technology of Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, which does offer B.S. and M.S. degrees. Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, established in 1947, is a comprehensive, four-year and graduate, state-supported university with an enrollment of about 5,500 students. The College of Science and Technology offers several degrees with a marine emphasis: B.S., Chemistry; B.S., Geology; B.S. and M.S., Biology. Students in the B.S. programs obtain either a degree in Chemistry or Biology with 20 credit hours in marine studies in lieu of a traditional minor. At the M.S. level, students choose either a thesis or non-thesis track, both of which are 36 hour degrees. Most students in the M.S. Biology program conduct coastal or marine-oriented research. Two new degree programs, a B.S. and M.S. in Environmental Science, began in September 1992. TAMU-CC is a part of the Texas A&M University System.

Hickman, Graham C.--Ph.D., Texas Tech University 1975, Associate Professor of Biology; Vertebrate biology, subterranean mammals, ethnology,biogeography.

Lehman, Roy L.--Ph.D., Texas A&M University 1993, Research Associate; Distribution and ecology of benthic marine algae.

Loter, Joe C.--Ph.D., University of Kansas 1971, Professor of Chemistry; Computer applications, statistical analysis of environmental data.

McKee, David A.--Ph.D., Texas A&M University 1986, Professor of Biology; Commercial and academic mariculture, marine biology, marine education.

Nicolau, Brien--M.S., Texas A&M University 1999, Operations Manager, Center for Coastal Studies; Wetlands ecology; wetlands conservation, restoration, creation, and mitigation; marine benthic ecology.

Nipper, Marion--Ph.D., University of Sao Paolo, Brazil 1985, Senior Research Scientist, Center for Coastal Studies; Marine ecotoxicology, effects of contaminants on behavior, growth, and survival of benthic organisms.

Smith, Elizabeth H.--Ph.D., Texas A&M University 1994, Research Scientist and Adjunct Professor of Biology, Center for Coastal Studies; Wetland ecology, ornithology, mammalogy, wetlands vegetation.

Smith-Engle, Jennifer--Ph.D., University of Georgia 1983, Professor of Geology, Environmental Science Program Coordinator, Assistant Dean of the College of Science & Technology; Sedimentology, animal-sediment relations, coastal geology, marine paleoecology.

Tunnell, Jr. John W.--Ph.D., Texas A&M University 1974, Director, Center for Coastal Studies and Professor of Biology; Systematics, distribution, and ecology of molluscs, coral reef ecology, marine benthic ecology.

Withers, Kim -- Ph.D., Texas A&M University 1994, Research Scientist and Adjunct Professor of Biology, Center for Coastal Studies; tidal flat ecology, ornithology, marine benthic ecology, aquatic entomology.

Dr. John W. Tunnell, Jr., Director
Center for Coastal Studies
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
6300 Ocean Drive, NRC 3200, Unit 5866
Corpus Christi, TX 78412
Telephone: (361) 825-2055
FAX: (361) 825-2050