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Oysters in the Rough

January 10, 2014

MIT-WHOI Joint Program student Jeanette Wheeler (right) and 2013 Summer Student Fellow Elaine Luo prepare a tank to video the movement of oyster larvae. Wheeler is studying the behavior of the larvae in turbulent water, which is characteristic of flow above preferred ocean-bottom habitats, where larvae transition from free-swimming plankton to sessile shellfish. The tank is equipped with high-speed cameras, infrared lasers, and a host of other sensors that enable her to record the larvae and the physical and chemical cues they may be using to determine the best location to settle for life. (Photo by Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)