University of South Carolina
Peng Lab in Marine Microbial Ecology
Principal Investigator
Xuefeng "Nick" Peng
Assistant Professor, School of Earth, Ocean and Environment
Ph.D. in Geosciences, Princeton University
B.A. in Environmental Studies, Connecticut College
B.A. in Economics, Connecticut College
Graduate Students
Madeleine Thompson
Madeleine received her B.S. in Marine Biology from Texas A&M University at Galveston. She likes to travel and scuba dive. She also loves to cook and adventure outdoors!
Email: mthomposon@seoe.sc.edu
Birch Lazo-Murphy
Birch received his B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Syracuse University. He enjoys cooking, painting, and staying active by biking, skating, or playing soccer.
Email: blmurphy@seoe.sc.edu
Undergraduate Students
Sydney Staines
Sydney is an Honors College senior with a major in Marine Science. She likes going to the beach, reading, and spending time with her dog.
Lily Bosch
Lily is an Honors College junior with a major in Environmental Science and minor in Spanish. She enjoys hiking, playing with her dogs, and going to the beach.
Liam Kellogg
Liam is an Honors College junior with a major in Marine Science. He enjoys fishing, backpacking, traveling, and cooking.
Hannah Lewis
Hannah is a sophomore with a major in Marine Science. She enjoys scuba diving, reading, and going on runs.
Lab Assistant
Dylan Lane
Dylan received his B.S. in Biology with a minor in Marine Science from the Honors College at USC (2022). He enjoys fishing, hiking, and interacting with wildlife.
Lab Alumni
Julianne McHenry
Julianne received her B.S. in Marine Science at USC with a leadership distinction (2023). She was the President of the SCUBA Club.
Samantha Larson
Samantha received her B.S. in Environmental Science from the Honors College at USC (2023). She was the captain of the Quidditch Team.
Margaret Bernish
Margaret completed a Master's thesis at USC studying marine fungi using genomics (2023). She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at the Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island.
Heather Bruck
Heather received her B.S. in Biology from the Honors College at USC (2023). She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Marine Science at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill.