Jim McManus, PhD

Vice President for Administration and Operations

Phone: +1 (207) 315-2567, ext. 307
jmcmanus@bigelow.org

For media inquiries, please contact: communications@bigelow.org

Bio PublicationsCV

Education

Oregon State University Corvallis, Oregon Oceanography PhD 1992

Stockton State College Pomona, New Jersey Chemistry BS 1986

About

James (Jim) McManus most recently joined Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in June of 2025 as its Vice President for Administration and Operations. Prior to this position, McManus was the acting Assistant Director for the Directorate of Geosciences at the National Science foundation from December 2024 to May 2025, and he was NSF’s Division Director for the Division of Ocean Sciences from July 2022 to December 2024. He was also at Bigelow Laboratory from August 2016 to July 2022 as its Vice President for Strategy and Administration and its Vice President for Research and Administration. Prior to coming to Bigelow, McManus held positions at the University of Akron, Oregon State University, the University of Minnesota Duluth, and the University of Southern California.

McManus obtained a B.S. in Chemistry from Stockton State College in 1986 and he obtained his Ph.D. in Oceanography from Oregon State University in 1992. He has scientific expertise in understanding ocean chemistry. His interests include working in freshwater environments as well as the deep ocean and he has been on numerous scientific expeditions throughout the world.

Selected Recent Publications

2025

Du, J., Haley, B.A., McManus, J., Blaser, P., Rickli, J., and Vance, D. (2025) Abyssal seafloor as a key driver of ocean trace-metal biogeochemical cycles. Nature, 642, 620.
Slomp, C.P., Hermans, M., van Helmond, N.A.G.M., Severmann, S., McManus, J., van Erk, M.R., Malkin, S. (2025) A niche for diverse cable bacteria in continental margin sediments overlain by oxygen-deficient waters. EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-817.

2024

Zhang, X., Tang, L., Du, J., Haley, B.A., McManus, J., Hu, X., and Huang, F. (2024) The Rb isotope composition of modern seawater and outputs to deep-sea sediments, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 642, 118858.
Bruggmann, S., McManus, J., Archer, C., Vance, D., and Severmann, S. (2024) Nickel’s behaviour in marine sediments under aerobic to anerobic diagenetic conditions, Chemical Geology, 122234.
Longman, J., Manners, H.R., Gernon, T.M., McManus, J., and Palmer, M.R. (2024) Production and preservation of organic carbon in sub-seafloor tephra layers, Marine Chemistry, 258, 104334.

2023

Rotjan, R.D., et al., 20 authors (2023) COBRA Master Class: Providing deep-sea expedition leadership training to accelerate early career advancement, Frontiers in Marine Science, 10, 1223197.
Fleischmann, S., Du, J., Chatterjee, A., McManus, J., Iyer, S.S., Amonkarr, A., Vance, D. (2023) nickel output to abyssal pelagic manganese oxides: A balanced elemental and isotope budget for the oceans, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 619, 118301.
Deng, K., Rickli, J., Suhrhoff, T.J., Du, J., Scholz, F., Severmann, S., Yang, S., McManus, J., Vance, D. (2023) Dominance of benthic fluxes in the oceanic beryllium budget and implications for paleo-denudation records, Science Advances, 9, eadg3702

2022

Li, W., Liu, X.M., Wang, K., McManus, J., Haley, B.A., Takahashi, Y., Shakouri, M., Hu, Y. (2022) Potassium isotope signatures in modern marine sediments: Insights into early diagenesis, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 599, 117849.
Du, J., Haley, B.A., Mix, A.C., Abbott, A.N., McManus, J., Vance, D. (2022) Reactive-transport modeling of neodymium and its radiogenic isotope in deep-sea sediments: The roles of authigenesis, marine silicate weathering and reverse weathering, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 5966, 117792.

2021

Glass, J.B., Ranjan, P., Kretz, C.B., Nunn, B.L., Johnson, A.M., Xu, M., McManus, J., Stewart, F.J. (2021) Microbial metabolism and adaptations in Atribacteria-dominated methane hydrate sediments, Environmental Microbiology, doi/10.1111/1462-2920.15656.
Chen, L., Little, S.H., Kreissig, K., Severmann, S., McManus, J. (2021) Isotopically light Cd in sediments underlying oxygen deficient zones, Frontiers in Earth Science, 9. 97.

2020

Little, SH., Archer, C., McManus, J., Najorka, J., Wegorsewski, AV., Vance, D. (2020) Towards balancing the oceanic Ni budget, Earth and Planetary Sci. Letts. 547, 116461

2019

McManus, J., Wheat, CG., Bach, W. (2019) Carbon cycling in low temperature hydrothermal systems: The Dorado Outcrop, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 264, 1-12.
Wheat, CG., Hartwell., AM., McManus, J., Fisher, AT., Orcutt, BN., Schlicht, LEM., Niedenzu, S., Bach, W. (2019) Geology and fluid discharge at Dorado Outcrop, a low temperature ridge-flank hydrothermal system, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 20(1), 487-504.
Berelson, WM., McManus, J., Severmann, S., Rollins, N. (2019) Benthic fluxes from hypoxia-influennced Gulf of Mexico sediments: Impact on bottom water acidification, Marine Chemistry, 209, 94-106.

2018

Chong, LS., Berelson, WM., McManus, J., Rollins, NE. (2018) Meter-scale early diagenesis of organic matter buried within deep-sea sediments beneath the Amazon river plume, Frontiers in Marine Science, 5, 250.
Zinke, LA., Reese, BK., McManus, J., Wheat, CG., Orcutt, BN., Amend, JP. (2018) Sediment microbial communities influenced by cool hydrothermal fluid migration Frontiers in microbiology, 9, 1249.
Murray, NA., McManus, J., Palmer, MR., Haley, B., Manners, H. (2018) Diagenesis in tephra-rich sediments from the Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc: Pore fluid constraints, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 228, 119-135.
Beam, J.P., Scott, J.J., McAllister, S.M., Chan, C.S., McManus, J., Meysman, F.J.R., Emerson, D. (2018) Biological rejuvenation of iron oxides in bioturbated marine sediments. ISME Journal (in press) 10.1038/s41396-017-0032-6.

2017

Haley, B.A., Du, Jianghui, Abbott, A.N., McManus, J. (2017) The impact of benthic processes on rare earth element and neodymium isotope distributions in the oceans. Front. Mar. Sci. doi: 10.3389/fmars.2017.00426 (in press)
Wheat, C.G., Fisher, A.T., McManus, J., Hulme, S.M., Orcutt, B.N. (2017) Cool seafloor hydrothermal springs reveal global geochemical fluxes. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 476, 179-188.
Yang, J., Torres, M., McManus, J., Algeo, T.J., Hakala, J.A., Verba, C. (2017) Controls on rare earth element distributions in ancient organic-rich sedimentary sequences: Role of post-depositional diagenesis of phosphorus. Chemical Geology, 466, 533-544.
Little, S.H., Vance, D., McManus, J., Severmann, S., Lyons, T.W. (2017) Copper isotope signatures in modern marine sediments (2017) Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 212, 253-273.
Baronas, J., Hammond, D.E., McManus, J., Wheat, C.G., Siebert, C. (2017) Germanium-silicon fractionation in a river-influenced continental margin: The Northern Gulf of Mexico. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 203, 265-283.

2016

Abbott, A.N., Haley, B.A., McManus, J. (2016) The impact of sedimentary coatings on the diagenetic Nd flux. Earth and Planetary Sci. Letters, 449, 217-277.
Baronas, J., Hammond, D.E., Berelson, W.M., McManus, J., Severmann, S. (2016) Germanium-silicon fractionation in a river-influenced continental margin: The Northern Gulf of Mexico. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 178, 124-142.
Little, S.H., Vance, D., McManus, J., Severmann, S. (2016) Key role of continental margin sediments in the oceanic mass balance of Zn and Zn isotopes. Geology, 44, 207-210.
Coussens, M.F. and many others (2016) Synthesis: stratigraphy and age control for IODP Sites U1394, U1395, U1396 offshore Montserrat in the Lesser Antilles. In: Le Friant, A., Ishizuka, O., Stroncik, N.A., and the Expedition 340 Scientists Proceedings of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, 340, 1-19. doi:10.2204/iodp.proc.340.204.2016.
Murray, N.A., Muratli, J.M., Hartwell, A.M., Manners, H., Megowan, M.R., Goñi, M., Palmer, M., and McManus, J. (2016) Data report: dissolved minor element compositions, sediment major and minor element concentrations, and reactive iron and manganese data from the Lesser Antilles volcanic arc region, IODP Expedition 340 Sites U1394, U1395, U1396, U1399, and U1400. In Le Friant, A., Ishizuka, O., Stroncik, N.A., and the Expedition 340 Scientists, Proceedings of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, 340: Tokyo (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Management International, Inc.). doi:10.2204/iodp.proc.340.207.2016

2015

Abbott, A.N., B.A. Haley, J. McManus, (2015) Bottoms up: Sedimentary control on the deep ocean’s εNd signature. Geology, 43 (11), 1035-1038.
Abbott, A.N., B.A. Haley, J. McManus, Reimers, C. (2015) The sedimentary flux of dissolved rare earth elements to the ocean. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 154, 186-200.
Little, S.H., Vance, D., Lyons, T.W., McManus, J. (2015) Controls on trace metal authigenic enrichment in reducing sediments: Insights from modern oxygen-deficient settings, Am. J. Sci., 315 (2), 77-119.
McManus, J., Severmann, S., Cohen, A.S., McKay, J.L., Montanye, B.R., Hartwell, A.M., Wheatcroft, R. (2015) The sedimentary response to a rapid change in lake level in Lake Tanganyika, Palaeogeogr., Palaeoclim., Palaeoecol., 440, 647-658.
Torres, M.E., Cox, T., Hong, W-L., McManus, J., Sample, J.C., Destrigneville, C., Gan, H.M., Gan, H.Y., Moreau, J.W. (2015) Crustal fluids and ash alteration impact on the biosphere of Shikoku Basin sediments, Nankai Trough, Japan, Geobiology, 13: 562-580.
Scholz, F., J. McManus, A.C. Mix, C. Hensen, R.R. Schneider, (2014) The impact of ocean deoxygenation on iron release from continental margin sediments. Nature Geoscience, 7, 433-437.