The Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Studies

This past summer I worked with Amy Wyeth at the UW School of Oceanography investigating changes in zooplankton abundance over tidal cycles in Padilla Bay NERR. By calculating abundance in eelgrass beds and then comparing changes over tidal cycles, I explored the potential for deep water zooplankton species to serve as a potential food source for juvenile fish as they transition from freshwater to saltwater habitats. I appreciated getting to experience the various aspects of the scientific process during my summer. My biggest highlight was probably participating on the 5 day WOAC cruise around the Puget Sound in the R/V Rachel Carson. On the research vessel, I took net tows as part of the various long term data collected on WOAC. Being able to see the entire Puget Sound from the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Tacoma was a pretty mind blowing experience. 

The majority of my summer was spent in the Keister lab looking at zooplankton samples collected at the Padilla Bay NERR under the microscope. Learning zooplankton taxonomy is a skill that I never would have learned in any of my classes at Bowdoin and being exposed to new areas of oceanography research was super cool. The highly self-motivated work flow also signified a huge departure from undergraduate classes. I really enjoyed both the work-life balance of the REU and also the independence and trust I was given to complete my project on my own. 

I synthesized my lab work by analyzing the data I collected in R and got to practice my fledgling programming skills with the help of my mentor. Working with my mentor let me actually see what graduate work is like and I learned a ton about future career possibilities both from my mentor and from the weekly CICOES seminars. 

Lastly, the connections I made with the other interns was undoubtedly the largest joy of the summer. Meeting other science students from across the country and exploring Seattle together was both a ton of fun and a huge learning experience. The people I met through CICOES really changed my life and for that I will always be grateful. 

Project Introduction

Research Poster