Suspension feeders have unique and strange adaptations that allow them to thrive in ecosystems like coral reefs and estuaries.  Organisms like sponges also form complex and long-term symbiotic interactions (or friendships) with bacteria that live within them.  In exchange for a safe place to live, these bacteria provide their hosts with important nutrients.

In this lecture, Dr. Chris Freeman, a marine ecologist at the Smithsonian Institution and an adjunct faculty member at the College of Charleston will introduce suspension feeders and discuss his research on the ecology and evolution of these organisms on Caribbean coral reefs and in estuaries of Florida.