At the end of each Spring 2023 semester, UNH holds its Undergraduate Research Conference (URC) that highlights the breadth of scholarly work completed by our students. Two graduating seniors in the Fish and Movement Ecology Lab, Samuel Comeau and Matthew Scott, presented their efforts.
Sam presented his research characterizing small fishes of the Great Bay estuary via trapping and eDNA, and comparing his findings to NH Fish and Game's bag seine survey. Sam was one of five undergraduate students selected to give an oral presentation across the entire College of Life Sciences and Agriculture. He also presented a poster, and received one of the "Honorable Mentions" for best poster!
Matt presented his research on potential impacts of an invasive riparian plant (Japanese knotweed) on brook trout foraging opportunities. Matt's work combined stream habitat data, food availability (stream macroinvertebrates collected via drift nets), observed brook trout sizes, and bioenergetics models!
Sam and Matt have worked in the Fish and Movement Ecology Lab for the past two years, including summers, and have been integral to the lab's success. They are both headed off to grad school! Sam is going to the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Matt to SUNY Buffalo! We are proud of them, and they will be missed!