Organized research work in the fields of oceanography and fishery started in Dubrovnik after World War II with the founding of the Fishery Centre in 1946 and with the establishment of the Biological Institute of the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Art (JAZU) in 1949. They formed the base for the present scientific research work of the Institute for Marine and Coastal Research of the University of Dubrovnik. The task of the Fishery Centre was to promote fishery in the deep southern Adriatic waters, whereas the Biological Institute was founded for the study of subterranean organisms in our karst region. In this respect, this region represents one of the most interesting ones in the world. The Fishery Centre was located on the leased manor property owned by Capt. Pitarević, and JAZU was located in the home of Sorkočević-Jordan. Later on, the Fishery Centre was taken over by the "Academic Counseling Centre" in Belgrade and annexed to the Oceanographic Centre of the Split Oceanographic Institute. Plankton research commences with the arrival of Prof. Tomo Gamulin from Rovinj in 1951. The Oceanographic Centre was shut down in 1956. Andrija Štampar, the JAZU president of the time, contracted an agreement with the Municipality of Dubrovnik in order to further the work of the Biological Institute. By this agreement, the Biological Institute abandoned its seat in Lapad and took over Lokrum Island, which it aimed to promote and preserve. This same contract allowed the Biological Institute to also take over two municipal institutions - the Museum of Natural Sciences (founded in 1872) and the Sea Aquarium in St. John's Fortress. On December 28, 1956, the Dubrovnik City Council supported the joining of the Dubrovnik natural science institutions with the JAZU Biological Institute. The first large reconstruction of the aquarium (1958-1959) and the start of a project for the creation of a Botanical Garden (1959), with the aim of introducing acclimatized tropical and sub-tropical plants, as well as the renovation of the natural science exhibition, birds and fish in particular, altogether formed the basis for the growing significance of the research work done by this center in the southern Adriatic. In 1960, JAZU united its institutes in Rovinj, Trstetno and Dubrovnik under the leadership of Prof. Gamulin, with the headquarters in Rovinj. This set-up was abandoned in 1963 when the Rovinj and Trsteno institutes split into separate units. The Biological Institute continued with its scientific activities, particularly in the research of plankton. The Academy provided the financial support needed for scientific research in the Institute, and the research vessel "Baldo Kosić" was purchased. Also, the laboratory for marine research located on the premises of the sea aquarium was renovated. At the same time, the Institute started to strengthen its staff by awarding scholarships for the specialization of its young assistants. The Institute then had strong connections and collaborated with many similar Mediterranean institutes, particularly with the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn in Naples, Italy. In the beginning, the scientific research work of the Institute was based only on plankton research. Later on, the arrival of botanists and work on the botanical garden intensified research on the vascular flora and vegetation of the Dubrovnik region. This was the set-up of the Biological Institute (Hr. Biološki institut) when it joined the Institute of Oceanography and Fishery in Split as the Biological Institute (Hr. Biološki zavod) in 1977. From 1993 until the end of 2005, the scientific centre in Dubrovnik worked under two laboratories: Laboratory of Plankton Ecology, and Laboratory for the Ecology and Rearing of Marine Organisms. These were two of the overall ten laboratories of the Institute of Oceanography and Fishery Split-Dubrovnik. During this period, the Dubrovnik laboratories of the Institute of Oceanography and Fishery achieved excellent scientific results. Even though the number of scientists in the Dubrovnik laboratories accounted for less than one third of the total number of scientists in the entire Institute, they contributed by 40% to the overall scientific production of the Institute. The process of joining the Dubrovnik laboratories of the Institute of Oceanography and Fishery to the University of Dubrovnik commenced with the Rulings passed on November 02, 2005 by the Scientific Council of the Institute of Oceanography and Fishery, and on November 04, 2005 by the Board of Directors. On November 15, 2005, the Senate of the University of Dubrovnik established the Institute for Marine and Coastal Research as part of its organization, and the Institute started to operate on January 01, 2006.

 

The Institute for Marine and Coastal Research is located in St. John's Fortress in the historical centre of Dubrovnik. The laboratory area covers 220 m2. The Institute has a laboratory area (60 m2) for chemical analysis and phytoplankton analysis with appropriate equipment, a UV chamber for sterilization, a laboratory area for the preparation of samples for bacterioplankton analysis, a room for the preparation of vessels, chemicals and other items needed for conducting analyses, a room for microscope studies and computers for data analysis. The Institute has tanks for the experimental rearing of marine organisms, a chamber for growing phytoplankton, zooplankton, shells and fish. The Institute's library, alongside its rich collection of books, has been receiving the following scientific journals on a regular basis: Marine Ecology Progress Series, Journal of Plankton Research, Hydrobiologia, Marine Biology, Oceanologica Acta, Limnology and Oceanography, Aquaculture, Acta Adriatica, Acta Botanica Croatica, Natura Croatica, and others. The Institute has resource to a number of data banks ("Jadran" Project), libraries, etc. 

The Institute also has an administrative staff, and a workshop.