Dr. Jessica Pruett, a researcher at The University of Southern Mississippi, who has spotlighted the importance of Mississippi Oyster Research and its past, present and future impacts on the Blue Economy, has received the BioOne Ambassador Award. The award is given to five early-career researchers who display great communication skills and public understanding and awareness of scientific topics.
Pruett was nominated by National Shellfisheries Association (NSA) managing editor, Dr. Sandra E. Shumway of the Journal of Shellfish Research, on her topic titled Looking Back to Move Forward: Lessons Learned from the Mississippi Oyster Fishery. The NSA is an international group of scientists, officials and industry members focused on knowledge relevant to biology, ecology, economics and shellfish resources. Pruett’s work focused on oyster restoration from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and 2019 Bonnet Carré spillway openings. She was able to uncover the deep history and lessons learned along the Mississippi coastal community and local oyster fisheries.
“It was truly an honor just to have been nominated by the Journal of Shellfish Research and Sandy Shumway, a legend in shellfish biology, to apply for this award. I am incredibly grateful for the recognition and committed to continue growing my science communication skills throughout my career,” said Pruett.
Her research provides critical information on future restoration efforts including past oyster population numbers compared to today’s numbers, environmental conditions and harvest levels. Her hope is to develop products to assist in addressing issues along with communicating with state managers, advocacy groups, educators and journalists about solutions.
Dr. Kelly Darnell, director of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory and Mississippi Based RESTORE Act Center of Excellence, expressed pride in Pruett’s research and her insights into the future of the oyster population.
“Dr. Pruett’s work has real-world impacts, and she excels at communicating this in an engaging way to a variety of audiences. Dr. Pruett is very deserving of this prestigious award, and I am happy to see her recognized as a BioOne Ambassador,” said Darnell.
Pruett hopes to research future strategies and solutions regarding restoration efforts in the Mississippi Sound through large-scale experimental reef plots. Reef plots can be used for long-term experiments to study environmental changes, species interactions, stressor responses and ecosystem functions over time.