Established in 1945 with the purchase of the historic Bank House – a former bank and WWII RAF Air Sea Rescue base – QML began as a field station led by lecturer George Williams. Beds left from war time were repurposed for early student groups, and its distinctive character as a hands-on teaching and research site was born. Over the decades, QML has grown into a vibrant, multidisciplinary hub home to researchers, students, and collaborators from across the world.

Today, QML serves multiple Queen’s Schools, including Biological Sciences, Natural and Built Environment, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and Chemistry. Early research focused on local ecology and seaweed, and this continues today through various projects including SeaFEED, which looks at novel uses for seaweeds, such as an alternative pig feed ingredient.

The lab also leads the Northern Ireland Marine Biodiversity Data Portal, a five-year DEARA-funded initiative to collate marine resources into a user friendly website and promote public engagement through ID courses and outreach. Sustainability is another core focus, both in research and operations.

“Much of our research looks at sustainable practice – renewable energy devices and sustainable materials on the seaweed site being key to this,” says Emma Healey, Senior Technician. “We have made improvements on site with resources from the green revolving fund for new LED lighting, recyclable gloves and an electric back up engine for our boat, and the Green Impact and LEAF schemes to make our lab a more sustainable place, and we would love to do more to show that even a listed building like Bank House can be run sustainably.”

To mark the anniversary, QML hosted a summer celebration, welcoming past and present staff and students to the lab. In attendance was Dr Richard Briggs, who had one of the earliest memories of the lab, first visiting QML during an A-level field course in 1964. He later studied at Queen’s, conducting research within the lab before graduating and going on to work as a fisheries biologist. Dr Briggs remained closely connected to QML throughout his career, later co-supervising several PhD students based at the lab, including current lecturer Dr Annika Clements.

Professor Ian Montgomery, who served as Head of the School of Biological Sciences from 1995 to 2010, was also in attendance and shared his reflections on the celebration:

“It was wonderful to see such a wide range of photos and other material related to the distant past as well as more recently. The highlight for me was seeing lots of ex colleagues and students and catching up on their post QML lives.”

Professor Jaimie Dick, Director of QML, remarked:

“It’s truly wonderful to welcome so many friends, colleagues, and former students back to the Marine Laboratory. Over the past 80 years, QML has brought together people from across the world and research disciplines to study and protect our marine environments. We look forward to continuing this legacy of collaboration, discovery, and innovation for the next 80 years and beyond.”

Emma adds:  

“Marine field stations are few and far between and there are not many that have our interdisciplinary strengths. We'd love to continue research in Strangford Lough and beyond, showcasing this amazing marine resource and hopefully see signs of recovery where habitats have been degraded in the past and contribute to that recovery with habitat restoration research.”

 

Learn more about Queen’s Marine Lab.