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Submitted/Paulyn Cartwright
Paulyn Cartwright, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, right; and Kora Anderson, a senior from Baldwin City, take a dive on a research trip in Bocas del Torro, Panama. Despite the distance from major bodies of water, KU is home to a pair of experts on marine biology.

SEA KANSAS Flatlanders can study marine biology

By Brandis Griffith

About 66 million years ago, Kansas was a fluid concept. Its residents were sharks, corals, clams and squid. Although the state is no longer submerged, KU researchers continue studying underwater life forms – past and present – even though they are hundreds of miles from the ocean.

KU senior Kora Anderson grew up in Baldwin City and had never seen the ocean before she went on a field expedition to Panama with Paulyn Cartwright, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology.

Submitted/Paulyn Cartwright
An Aurelia, or moon jelly, as it is commonly called, is just one of the many creatures Paulyn Cartwright and Daphne Fautin come in to contact with in their research. The two specialize in marine biology.

Cartwright says that kind of inexperience fuels her students' desire to learn more about aquatic life. They are fascinated with fish and organisms she sees regularly on the beach in her home state of California, she said.

"Honestly, in the year and a half that I've been here, that has been the most rewarding part of my job: bringing in these undergraduates and teaching them and introducing them to my own research and this experience," she said.

Cartwright studies the life stages of cnidarians, a group of marine invertebrates that includes jellyfish.

"Very few of the professors here are from Kansas," Cartwright said. "We develop our interest and education elsewhere, and this is where we got our jobs. What has happened is it has formed a really nice community."

Cartwright has teamed up with Daphne Fautin, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology and senior curator in the Natural History Museum, in receiving a grant from the National Science Foundation to help assemble the "Tree of Life" for the organisms they study. Fautin's work concentrates on sea anemones.

Fautin was recently recognized for her work with an appointment to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, organized in 1895 to govern the scientific naming of animals. This year, she is among the first three women ever appointed.

Cartwright and Fautin say they don't need an ocean next door to do their jobs well and pass their love for marine biology on to students.

"Daphne always says it's easy to study marine biology in Kansas because you're close to an airport," Cartwright said.

KU IQ

A 33-year-old transformer malfunctioned early Sept. 15, causing a power outage at Wescoe Hall. The building was closed for the day, and classes were cancelled. The building houses 320 classes per day, and 620 faculty and staff work there. The cost of replacement is estimated at $120,000.