Crabs: A Window into Marine Life for Dr. Blaine Griffen’s Lab

Photo by Kylee Brown

As a ship takes in ballast water to remain stable, different species of crabs may get sucked in and end up traveling around the world. Rather than starting a whimsical tale of animal misadventures, these crabs invade and take over other ecosystems. Invasive species like the crab have the potential to cause native plants and animals to go extinct, reduce biodiversity, and alter habitats. Because of the harm invasive species cause on introduced ecosystems, researchers are able to collect and test the crabs with few barriers.

Crabs are ideal research subjects. They are large enough to observe behaviors within their environment, but small enough that scientists can easily gather them and conduct experiments by changing environmental pressures. Crabs also maintain complex interpersonal relationships in their mating, foraging, and conflict patterns.

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Dr. Blaine Griffen leads a marine biology research lab using crabs as the primary model organism. Griffen works with undergraduate and graduate students to investigate changes in marine ecosystems. As he studies crabs, he looks into how climate change, habitat variations, fishing pressures, pollution, and other factors affect the marine ecosystem. Currently, he is looking into how animals respond when they get injured but are not killed.

“If you were talking to someone studying human medicine, they use mice as their window into the medical world. They're not really interested in how mice respond to medication; the mouse is the way that they understand biology,” says Griffen. “It's the same with us and crabs. They are the window into understanding the bigger picture of how the marine environment is responding to what we do.”

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In order to sample the crab population, Griffen travels to the east coast with his students for a couple of months each summer. They study the various species of invasive crab to understand how far they have spread and their environmental impact. Since the East Coast is dominated by crabs and the crabbing industry, they want invasive crabs to be eradicated. Another troubling development is that crabs have taken over fish as the main predator in a number of near-shore environments.

The lab’s work has been used to set regulations for managing crab fisheries in Florida and treating ballast water to limit the spread of invasive species. Griffen’s research has also been used by state and local governments to find solutions to stop the spread of invasive species. Research in the Griffen lab has also gone beyond focusing on invasive species to improve our understanding of how coastal marine ecosystems and ecology are influenced by human pressures. In addition, their work has developed the use of native crab species as bioindicators of ecosystem health along shores in the southeastern US.

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Griffen hopes that all his student researchers catch the marine biology bug and realize that their contributions are important. He loves when students become experts in marine biology sampling because of their passion for the field.

“If someone thinks they're interested in marine biology, it's important for them to try it. Maybe they'll find out that it's the love of their life, but maybe they'll find out it's not. Either way, you gotta try it to find out,” says Griffen.

One such student, David Neu (BIO ’26), joined Griffen’s lab after a BIO 130 professor referred him to Griffen. Neu joined the East Coast trip the following summer and has worked in the lab ever since. Neu has enjoyed working in the lab and is grateful for the one-on-one mentorship he receives from Griffen. “Dr. Griffen as a man is very inspirational. He is a hard worker and he knows his stuff,” says Neu. “It blows my mind that I could get to [Dr. Griffen’s] level of knowledge in a scientific field. Like I would actually know something so well conceptually that I can research it and get to the edge of what we know as people.”

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Luke Ashworth (BIO ’26) also went east last summer with Griffen; he has since appreciated the lab environment. “Being a part of the back and forth and figuring out how to proceed with the work has been more hands-on than expected. Dr. Griffen is not holding your hand while doing the work,” says Ashworth.

Griffen nurtures the lab environment to teach about both the delicate balance of marine ecosystems and the spiritual implications of their research. “We're stewards here on this planet. We weren't given this [world] with the instruction, ‘Do what you want with it. Good luck if you rip it up,’” says Griffen. “We were told, ‘You're stewards of this planet. Take good care of it.’ I think at times we've done a good job of that, and at times, we have not done such a good job of that. Our work opens students' eyes to help them see that [they] actually can take an active role in being a wise steward.”

A number of donations and grants have aided Griffen’s research. Recently, he acquired a grant from the National Science Foundation and BYU Experiential Learning that fund the hands-on experience for the students’ trip to the East Coast. The Sant Foundation, which supports environmental sustainability research, has also supported his work for the last four years.

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“[The grants] have allowed me to pay for four to eight students to come on the trips and get them housed so they can get involved in this research,” Griffen says. “From the student standpoint, these experiences might be the thing that lights their fire. It might be the ticket that gives them the experience to get them into grad school.”

To work with Dr. Griffen, email him at blaine_griffen@byu.edu. He welcomes any student who is curious about marine biology and is willing to put in the effort to learn. You can also find more information on his lab at his website: https://biology.byu.edu/griffen-lab.

Photo by Kylee Brown