Paul E. Fell, Katharine Blunt Professor of Zoology Emeritus, was a professor with Connecticut College from 1968-2003.
His areas of specialization were marine biology: the ecology of fish and invertebrates, ecology and restoration of tidal marshes, and the reproduction and dormancy of aquatic invertebrates. He was a graduate of Hope College and received his Ph.D. from Stanford University
Professor Fell passed away in 2005.
Read "In Memoriam: Remembering Paul Fell," by Daniel Clem '98, in CC:online.
Professor Fell centered his research around the ecology and reproduction of aquatic animals and brought his expertise on these subjects to his teaching. He taught “Coastal Marine Biology,” “Vertebrate Biology” and “Animal Reproduction and Development” and co-taught Tropical Biology.” He also worked with students on individual research projects. Fell’s recent research included studies of the impact of reed grass invasion on animal populations in tidal marshes of the lower Connecticut River.
Fell published numerous articles in academic journals, many with student co-authors, including “Comparison of fish and macroinvertebrate use of Typha angustifolia, Phragmites australis, and treated Phragmites marshes along the lower Connecticut River” (2003) in Estuaries, “Macroinvertebrate and fish population in a restored impounded salt marsh 21 years after the re-establishment of tidal flooding” (2002) in Environmental Management, and “Ecology and physiology of dormancy in sponges” (1998) Archiv für Hydrobiologie, Advances in Limnology. He presented a paper, “Phragmites expansion in Connecticut River tidelands: Do fishes and crustaceans care?” at a national forum on Phragmites australis in Vineland, New Jersey in 2002. Fell was a reviewer for many academic journals as well, including Marine and Freshwater Research, Marine Ecology Progress Series, Coral Reefs, and Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science.
Fell was the recipient of grants from several foundations, including one to him and R. Scott Warren from the Long Island Sound Research Fund which facilitated their work on “Phragmites australis on the lower Connecticut River: impacts on emergent wetlands and estuarine waters.”
In 1990 Fell received the Sears Roebuck Foundation Award for teaching excellence.
"I consider working with students on individual research projects an important part of my teaching. This allows students to actually do science and make contributions to the field." - Paul Fell