Loyola University Chicago

Jaelyn Bos is an ecologist who studies corals and how they adapt to the environments around them. She earned her Ph.D. working under the Global Change Research Group at the University of California, Santa Cruz, in collaboration with the College of Natural Sciences at Lúrio University in Mozambique. She grew up in Michigan and in Maryland, and studied environmental science and biology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She previously served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Mozambique, where she taught high school biology.

Project Summary

Defining Coral Diversity to Guide Marine Conservation Planning in Mozambique

Mozambique's coral reefs play a key role in supporting both biodiversity and human well-being, but remain critically understudied. In particular, the branching corals that form the foundation of these ecosystems are difficult to identify to the species level. Since many branching corals look very similar, genetic sequencing is the most accurate way to determine how many species exist in an area. In this project, corals within a new conservation area are being sampled and their DNA is being sequenced to determine how many species exist, how rare they are, and whether some of them might be regionally endemic to Africa or Mozambique. The project also involves working with university and NGO partners in Mozambique to prepare other students to continue this work into the future.