Andia Chaves-Fonnegra, Ph.D., an associate professor of biology at Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, has been awarded a five-year, $720,446 grant from the United States EPA to support a pioneering project aimed at restoring sponge populations in Florida Bay through a genetics-based approach.
Andia Chaves-Fonnegra, Ph.D., an associate professor of biology at Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, has been awarded a five-year, $720,446 grant from the United States EPA to support a pioneering project aimed at restoring sponge populations in Florida Bay through a genetics-based approach.
Florida Bay is a shallow body of water between the southern tip of mainland Florida and the Florida Keys. It is part of Everglades National Park, which supports important marine life like sponges, fish and spiny lobster.
The project marks the first genetic assessment of sponge restoration efforts in the region and seeks to build long-term ecological resilience in one of the nation’s most vulnerable marine environments.
Read more at: Florida Atlantic University
Andia Chaves-Fonnegra, Ph.D., principal investigator, conducting research in the field. (Photo Credit: Florida Alantic University)
