Congratulations Jamie and Caroline
posted: April 29, 2026, 6:53 PM
We are proud to announce this year’s scholarship recipients for the Judith C. Bryan HBTWP Fellowship in Marine Biology. Judy Bryan started the Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program out of her garage on Holden Beach in 1989.
Both fellowship winners are Marine Biology graduate students and researchers at UNCW, and they work directly with sea turtles. They are both second time winners and will share the $5000 scholarship award, again this year. They were featured in the Fall 2025 edition of UNCW Magazine.
• Jamie Clark conducts research to develop and validate tools for determining the age of living, deceased, and stranded Kemp’s ridley sea turtles. Her Ph.D. research calibrates emerging aging techniques with skeletochronology, which estimates age by counting growth rings in humerus bones. This work aims to improve age‑estimation efficiency and support calculations of age‑specific demographic parameters, including growth, maturity, and survival. (Left photo)
• Caroline VanDuzer is investigating the diving physiology of juvenile Kemp’s Ridley and Green Sea Turtles, focusing on how muscle tissue influences their respective oxygen storage which they utilize for submergence and migrate long distance migration. Her M.Sc. research could establish a baseline that may be useful to compare the effects of warming oceans on sea turtle diving behavior over time. (Right photo)
We are proud of our educational partnership with UNCW and we strongly support their marine biology program and students researching sea turtles and other marine life. Their research will improve our understanding of sea turtles and our sea turtle conservation efforts.
To learn more about Judy Bryan, hit the “About Us and Our History” tab.
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