NARRAGANSETT, R.I. – April 5, 2006 – University of Rhode Island Oceanography Professor Edward Durbin will present a lecture entitled “The Processes Controlling Zooplankton Population Dynamics in the Georges Bank/Gulf of Maine Region” as part of the Graduate School of Oceanography’s Inaugural Lecture Series.

The lecture will be held on Thursday, April 13 at 12:30 p.m. in Corless Auditorium on URI’s Narragansett Bay Campus. It is free and open to the public.

According to Durbin, his lecture will discuss, in part, the results of a large research study that examined the effects of climate variability on ocean currents and the population dynamics of cod and haddock larvae and their zooplankton prey. One result he found was that the low salinity levels of the surface water one year was probably responsible for the great abundance of zooplankton in the region, which in turn, resulted in increased growth rates of larval cod and haddock.

Durbin’s research focuses on the ecology and physiology of fish and zooplankton and the dynamics of the marine food chain. He teaches graduate courses on marine fish ecology. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in botany from Auckland University in Australia and a Ph.D. in biological oceanography from URI’s Graduate School of Oceanography.

Inaugural Lectures are presented by newly promoted oceanography professors at URI and are designed to inform the scientific community and the general public about research being conducted by URI marine scientists.