Sandra Shumway

Adjunct Professor in Residence, Department of Marine Sciences, Avery Point

University of Connecticut

Dr. Shumway's research spans over 25 years in shellfish biology, filter-feeding, physiological ecology of marine invertebrates. After post-doctoral studies at the University of Otago, New Zealand and the Department of Ecology and Evolution at SUNY Stony Brook, Shumway spent 11 years as a research scientist with the State of Maine Department of Marine Resources and as an adjunct scientist at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences. Shumway pioneered the study of impacts of harmful algae on shellfish and introduced the use of flow cytometry as a means of determining particle selection in filter-feeding invertebrates. Her primary research focus has been on problems directly applicable to industry needs, e.g. distribution of toxins in individual shellfish tissues, detoxification rates, and timing and extent of toxicity between bivalve species with the goal of establishing species-specific closures. Most recently, she has been working in collaboration with scientists from North Carolina State University to determine the potential impacts of Pfiesteria a spp. on shellfish and public health. Most recently, a new species of dinoflagellate, Pfiesteria shumwayae, discovered by Drs. JoAnn Burkholder and Howard Glasgow, was named in her honor.

Dr. Shumway is a strong advocate for the shellfishing industry and regularly attends working group sessions and meetings with fishermen as an invited advisor. In early 2000, she organized and co-chaired the National Shellfish Workshop, a forum sponsored by the Cooperative Research and Information Institute designed to develop a National Shellfish Plan. Dr. Shumway is very active in the National Shellfisheries Association and was the first and, thus far, only woman to serve as President in its 95 year history. An enthusiastic and dedicated mentor, she has several times been elected by the senior class as their faculty marshal and received the senior class recognition award. In recent years she has taken a keen interest and leadership role in making scientifically credible communication a reality by working with user communities, policy makers, and the press.