Biosensors
VIMS researchers are combining the immune system’s power with cutting-edge electronics to address pressing issues in marine science.

Fuel from Algae
Collaborative research at VIMS aims to use wild algae to convert what is now a troublesome pollutant into a fuel that can help power our cars.

Gulf Spill FAQs
VIMS researchers answer some frequently asked questions concerning the Gulf oil spill.

VIMS researchers assist with global census
VIMS researchers are involved in the Census of Marine Life--a 10-year global project to collect, identify, and catalog each and every ocean species.

Atlantic Sturgeon
VIMS research plays a critical role in efforts to restore this ancient species to Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.

Cownose rays
Sea Grant scientist at VIMS works to keep rays out of commercial shellfish beds while ensuring the sustainability of their population in Chesapeake Bay.


The ghost hunters
Dave Stanhope and Kory Angstadt are searching for a killer lurking on the floor of Chesapeake Bay. The culprit turns out to be derelict blue crab pots.

Robots dive into marine science
Dr. Mark Patterson’s autonomous underwater vehicle has conducted research missions from Chesapeake Bay to the Gulf of Mexico and Antarctica.

Science-industry partnership revives troubled fishery
The recovery and growth of the East Coast scallop fishery is due to a long-term collaboration between scallopers, fishery managers, and scientists at VIMS.

VIMS researchers take storm-tide predictions to the streets
The potentially devastating impact of hurricanes and nor’easters to coastal residents motivates VIMS researchers to deliver timely and detailed predictions of storm tides, right down to street-level.

Yorktown breakwaters
A long-term partnership between York County and VIMS has helped the historic riverfront community of Yorktown stem shoreline erosion, weather several powerful storms, and maintain a popular swimming beach.

From Plankton to Planet
Each evening, a multitude of small sea creatures rises from the inky depths to feast on microscopic plants growing in sunlit surface waters. At dawn, they reverse course, descending to spend another day under the cover of darkness.By almost any measure, this daily migration rivals the great seasonal movements of caribou or arctic terns. Yet its magnitude was virtually unknown until the 1940s, and many of its mysteries remain.

Research to Restore the Poor Man's Salmon
VIMS professor John Olney has worked for more than a decade to help restore American shad to Chesapeake Bay. These fish, once as iconic to the Bay as blue crabs or oysters, are now only familiar to scientists, commercial netters, and fly fishermen.

Living Shorelines
Living shorelines use strategic placement of plants, stone, and sand to reduce erosion, enhance wetland habitat, and provide important ecosystem services.

What you see is what you get
VIMS graduate student Andrij Horodysky is using electroretinography—a technique first developed for studying human vision—to explore how fishes see the underwater world of Chesapeake Bay.

Who's Eating Whom?
It may be mud and muck to you, but to David Gillett it’s like a super-sleuth game to see who’s eating whom and how energy moves through food webs.