This week’s #SundayScientistShoutout is Eugenie Clark (1922-2015)!

Clark is an American ichthyologist who worked with fish (order Tetraodontiforme) and shark behavior - container her the title of “The Shark Lady”

(1/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#WomenInWildlife
http://bit.ly/ec_smith 

Clark grew up in NYC and was raised by her Japanese mother after her American father passed when she was 2

She graduated from Bryant High School (Queens, NY) and was the only Japanese descent student in her school

(2/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife

Clark had a passion for marine sciences (especially marine animals) from a very young age.

After visiting the NY Aquarium for a school trip, her passion only grew and she returned every Saturday she could after.

(3/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife

Clark attended Hunters College to earn a BA in Zoology in 1942.

During summers, she worked at the University of Michigan Biological Station.

Before starting graduate school, she also worked as a chemist at Celanese Corporation.

(4/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#SundayScientistShoutout

Clark applied to Columbia University to pursue her graduate studies - her application was rejected.

The rejection came from “a department chairman concerned that she would leave her career in science to raise a family.”

(5/n)
#SundayScientistShoutout
http://bit.ly/ec_mote 

This sexism didn’t stop Clark - she went on to earn her MA in 1946 and PhD in Zoology in 1950 from New York University.

During graduate school, she researched @scripps_ocean, @AMNH, @MoteMarineLab, and Lerner Marine Laboratory.

(6/n)
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife

Clark earned a Fulbright Scholarship after finishing her PhD to study at the Marine Biological Station in Hurghada, on the northern Red Sea Coast (Egpyt).

(7/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife
http://bit.ly/ec_noaa 

Clark was invited in 1954 by the Vanderbilts to speak about her Red Sea research at a public school in Englewood, FL

At the end, an attendee telling Clark they had seen a fish she discussed in local waters and wanted to learn more

(8/n)
#WomenInWildlife
#SundayScientistShoutout

This lead to the Vanderbilts building a lab for Clark to conduct research - the creation of the Cape Haze Marine Laboratory in 1955

Here Clark worked with a local fisherman (Beryl Chadwick) to catch sharks.

(9/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife

The first request to the lab came from J. Hellen (at New England Institute for Medical Research), wanting to conduct shark research

After publishing this - requests for more research projects came pouring into the lab worldwide

(10/n)
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife

At Cape Haze, Clark conducted behavioral, reproductive, & anatomical research on sharks ^ fish species.

Clark frequently used scuba diving to conduct these studies - a pioneer in using scuba diving for research.

(11/n)
#DiversityinSTEM
#SundayScientistShoutout
#WomenInWildlife

Clark was faculty at the City University of NY and instructor at University of Maryland until retiring in 1999

Clark returned to Cape Haze (renamed the @MoteMarineLab) in 2000 as a Senior Scientist & Director Emerita until she passed away in 2015

(12/n)
#SundayScientistShoutout

Clark was an active researcher and diver over her life

She conducted 70+ submersible dives & 200+ research expeditions -her last dive was in 2014

Clark wrote 2 books & 175+ scientific articles - publishing her last paper in 2015

(13/n) #WomenInWildlife
#SundayScientistShoutout

One of her notable discoveries was by observing many sleeping sharks she was able to prove that do not need to move to breathe

Several species named in memory of Clark…
Callogobius clarki
Sticharium clarkae
Atrobucca geniae
Squalus clarkae

(14/n)
#SundayScientistShoutout

The Shark Lady advocated for marine conservation working to prevent shark killings and to preserve the ocean

Clark’s work helped protect marine environments by conducted innovative research - an amazing #SundayScientistShoutout!


(15/n)
#WomenInWildlife
#DiversityinSTEM