Thesis Student Projects

My lab explores fish-focused questions in the marine and freshwater realm. This page features some of the projects New College thesis students are working on.

Alaskan pipefish ecology

One thesis student completed her thesis in Sitka, Alaska. She performed pipefish surveys at two sites to measure body condition and reproductive allocation in relation to Pacific Herring spawns.

Left: Syngnathus californiensis

Right: Syngnathus leptorhynchus

Photos courtesy of Katie Sands

Pufferfish cognition

The figure eight pufferfish, Tetraodon biocellatus, is a euryhaline (meaning they can tolerate a wide range of salinities) fish species native to Southeast Asia. This biopsychology thesis student is studying their ability to remember training tasks as it relates to different salinity environments.

A photo of Tetraodon biocellatus from Aquarium Glaser

Shrimp phenotypes & microbiomes

In collaboration with a thesis student and New College Faculty Dr. Kent Hatch, Dr. Jose Moscoso, and Dr. Samuel Bedgood, we are exploring how shrimp phenotype influences microbiome diversity using four local species.

Pictured to the left: Tozeuma green and clear phenotypes

Pictured to the right: Hippolyte green and brown/clear phenotypes