Peter Burn, Professor & Chair

Peter Burn, PhD

Professor and Chair
Department of Biology

 

 

 

 

 

Phone: 617.573.8246
Fax: 617.573.8245
Email: pburn@suffolk.edu

Office: Archer Building, Rm. 507

 

Education

  • PhD, University of New Hampshire

  • MS, Northeastern University

  • BA, University of Pennsylvania

Research Interests

  • Characterization and comparison of New England barrier island and salt marsh habitats
  • Uses of hypermedia in research and education

Employment

1996-present      Professor of Biology, Suffolk University
1989-1998 

Consultant in Radiology (non-clinical), 
  Massachusetts General Hospital 
1989-1996  Associate Professor of Biology,
Suffolk University
1982-1989  Assistant Professor of Biology,
Suffolk University
1978-1981  Jessie Smith Noyes Post-doctoral Fellow,
Osborn Laboratories of Marine Science,
New York Zoological Society

Selected Publications

Perez, K., E. Davey, R.H. Moore, P.R. Burn, M. Rosol, D. Kopans.  1999.  Application of Computer-Aided Tomography (CT) Scanning to the study of Benthic Estuarine Communities.  Ecological Applications 9(3): 1050-1058

Burn, P.R., M.S. Potts, R.H. Moore, A.J. Fischman, H.W. Strauss.  1993.  Tissue Distribution and and Excretion of 99mTc-Disofenin in three marine Species:  Pleuronectes americanus (winter flounder), Homarus americanus (lobster), and Mya arenaria (soft-shell clam).  Mar Biol 116: 355-361.

 

Recent Oral Presentations

Burn, P.R.  2005.  Spanning Biogeographic Provinces and Plant Hardiness Zones:  Observations on the Species Composition of Coatue (Nantucket), Sandy Neck (Barnstable), and Plum Island (Newburyport) Barrier Beaches.  Presented at the Nantucket Biodiversity Initiative Conference.  September 24, 2005.

Burn, P.R.  2006.  Plum Island and the Great Marsh – Biology and Geology,  Past, Present and Future.
Parker River National Wildlife Refuge Biodiversity Lecture Series.  June 14, 2006.

 

Professional Activities

1995-present     President, Marine Studies Consortium 
1990-2002      MA EOEA Coastal Resources Advisory 
  Board 
1985-present  Coordinator, Suffolk University Marine 
  Science Program 

Other Activities

1982-present    President, SuAsCo Watershed 
  Association 
2000-present  SuAsCo Watershed Community 
  Council, Executive Committee 
2002-present  Sudbury Assabet Concord Wild and 
  Scenic Rivers Stewardship Council 

Current Grant Support

Contract support from the NSF funded Electronic Field Guide Project with Rob Stevenson and Bob Morris of UMass Boston. In conjunction with this grant, my students and I have prepared Electronic Field Guides for the Shrubs, Trees and Flowers of the Plum Island (Newburyport, MA) barrier beach. Other EFGs are in progress. The basis for these EFGs is a hierarchically arranged, 36,000 digital image catalogue of the flora and fauna of Plum Island.

 

Courses Taught

BIO 114/L114 - Organisimal Biology and Lab

BIO 254 - Marine Biology

BIO 343 - Biodiversity and Conservation Biology

BIO 357 - Biology of Fishes    

BIO 359 - Biology of Whales