Programs and Activities

• On the Islands
  SIMRI runs a number of everyday research programs on Star Island, and one or two on the other Isles of Shoals:
  
  • Bird Life Survey -- an everyday log of birds seen around the Isles. Once a week, usually on Monday morning, we run a more thorough survey of local birds, using one of our motorboats to travel all through the Isles and check every island for visible birds.
  • Bird Banding -- Every year, a number of migrating birds get blown out to sea and use Star Island as an emergency landing zone. During spring and fall migration, we run a bird-banding station to catch and band as many of these migrants as possible.
  • Tern Colony -- In association with UNH and New Hampshire Fish & Wildlife Department, we help monitor the breeding colony of terns on White and Seavey Islands.
  • Tidepooling -- We do regular surveys of life in and around the tidepools on the rocky shores of Star Island.
• Marine Studies
  We also run a number of programs on and in the water around the Isles and as much as thirty miles out to sea:
  
  • Whale-watching -- Gulf Challenger makes regular runs to look for whales and dolphins in the Gulf of Maine. On occasion she is accompanied by our light plane, which acts as a long-range spotter. We record each sighting: species, how many, location, what they were doing.
  • Seabird surveys -- On her whale-survey trips, Gulf Challenger's observers also record data on sightings of seabirds.
  • Scuba diving -- Once or twice a week, Auntie Sue goes out to various points around the Isles, and divers run surveys of sea-bottom life. These trips are rotated so that every survey site is visited once a month. In calm weather, dives can also be made from Star Island Boathouse or the Gosport Harbor breakwater.
• Aquaculture
  The Aquaculture Project run by SIMRI in association with UNH.
  This section is still under construction
  
• For the Public
  How you can get involved in our projects
  This section is still under construction