The Team
Phytoplankton EcoPhySi 'omics Lab
Brittany N. Zepernick, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Ph.D. in Microbiology, University of Tennessee
Honors B.S. in Biology, Bowling Green State University
Dr. Zepernick grew up along the shores of Lake Erie (North American Great Lakes). During her undergraduate studies at Bowling Green State University, the Toledo Water Crisis occurred - with a harmful algal bloom rendering the drinking water toxic to ~500,000 people in the nearby city of Toledo. She has studied algal blooms ever since - with field sites spanning spatial and salinity gradients alike. Her favorite phytoplankton are cyanobacteria & diatoms.
910-962-7051
Brynn O. Shelley
Graduate Student
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M.S. in Marine Biology underway at UNCW
B.S. in Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington
January 2026 - present
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Brynn is a North Carolina native working on her Masters in Marine Biology at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She fell in love with phytoplankton after she began working in the UNCW Algal Resources Collection where she conducted a DIS project with Zepernick, isolating various phytoplankton from the Albemarle-Pamlico Sound. Presently, her thesis research is supported by a UNCW Center for Marine Science Research Development Award -where she will collaborate with an interdisciplinary team to use whole-genome sequencing and metabolomics to deduce the constraints of nitrogen availability on estuarine dinoflagellate blooms.
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Which phyotplankton is she?
Protoperidinium sp.
Lilly G. Garner
Undergraduate DIS Student
August 2026 - present
Lilly was born and raised in the Wilmington area - which has instilled a deep passion and commitment to coastal water quality. In the past, she has researched the effects of rising salinity levels on coastal wetland grasses in efforts to identify how sea level rise and climate change will shape regional ecosystems. Presently, she utilizing an array of molecular and morphological methods to characterize novel phytoplankton isolates from the Albemarle-Pamlico Estuarine Sound. She is particularly interested in cyanobacteria isolated from this region.
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Which phytoplankton is she?
Microcystis sp.
Lucy F. Hahn
Undergraduate DIS Student
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August 2026 - present
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Lucy is originally from the Pacific Northwest, and is currently pursuing her B.S. in Marine Biology and a minor in Chemistry & Oceanography at UNCW. She is interested in the abiotic and biotic interactions which shape microorganisms. Though she misses the misting rain from the Columbia River, she loves North Carolina's thunderstorms even more. Presently, she utilizing an array of molecular and morphological methods to characterize novel phytoplankton isolates from the Albemarle-Pamlico Estuarine Sound. She is particularly interested in dinoflagellates isolated from this region.
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Which phytoplankton is she?
Alexandrium tamarense
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This could be you!
Contact us
If you're interested in molecular methods, bioinformatic datasets, and/or phytoplankton - contact Dr. Zepernick