Morgan Bennett-Smith Receives 2026 Dana Wright Fellowship

Morgan Bennett-Smith, a 4th -year PhD Candidate in the Buston Lab, is the 2026 awardee of the Dana Wright Fellowship.

Morgan’s focus is on marine symbioses and how these tightly coupled interactions are reshaped by rapid climate change. His dissertation spans field and experimental work across the Red Sea, Indo-Pacific, and Caribbean, focusing on marine symbioses and their responses to climatic stress.

In his first thesis chapter, he followed a population of Red Sea anemones and their resident anemonefish through an extreme marine heatwave, documenting a near-complete collapse of this iconic mutualism. He then conducted controlled laboratory experiments to disentangle the mechanisms driving this breakdown, showing how heat stress alters host defenses, fish behavior, and the protective benefits of the symbiosis. In his third chapter, Morgan examines how the microbiome of both partners shifts across stress and recovery, and how these microbial changes may influence resilience. Finally, his research extends beyond this system to describe new symbioses, including interactions between reef fishes and Christmas tree worms, highlighting how much remains to be discovered about cooperative relationships in the ocean.

This fellowship for outstanding achievement in Marine Biology was established in memory of Dana Wright (CAS ’00), an alum of the BU Marine Program. After completing her studies, Wright went on to work in research in right whale acoustics at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on Cape Cod.

Congratulations, Morgan!