Occidental College, B.A. Biology, marine emphasis
I grew up mostly in Portland, Oregon, but also lived in Eastern and Central Oregon as a kid. I got the ocean bug as a kid after visiting the Oregon coast on family vacations. I graduated from Occidental College in Los Angeles, where I worked at the Vantuna Research Group, a marine biology lab affiliated with the college. I graduated in 2010 and spent the following 5 years travelling, trying an assortment of different jobs, many relating to marine biology. I lived in Australia for a year and a half, and I lived in New Zealand for two years. I then came back to the States and worked as a fisheries observer in the North Pacific, where I developed my interest in commercial fishing gear.
My thesis project involves looking at how to quantify bottom contact in commercial fishing gear. Commercial fishing gear, particularly mobile gear like trawl nets, makes contact with the seafloor. There is not a high-resolution method of quantifying how much contact is made by fishing gear, and especially by individual components of fishing gear. The first part of my thesis is re-analyzing data collected from an NPRB-funded project in which multiple bottom contact sensors were attached to the footrope of a trawl net. I will be assessing the relationship of seafloor clearance to footrope component, material, and expected seafloor clearance. The findings from this first part of my project will provide guidance for the second part of my thesis, which will involve collecting a new set of field data about seafloor clearance in trawl nets under real fishing conditions.
Collaborators: Craig Rose
Related theses: Susie Zagorski, Aileen Nimick
Funding for this work is provided by the Pollock Conservation Cooperative via the Alaska Education Tax Credit Program.
