De Mutsert Lab

Marine and Estuarine Fish Ecology

Influence of Temperature on the Growth of Young-of-Year (YOY) River Herring – New Publication!

by Sammie Alexander In spring 2016, I completed an OSCAR Undergraduate Research Scholars Program project under the guidance of Dr. CJ Schlick (then, PhD candidate) investigating the influence of temperature on the growth of young-of-year (YOY) Alewife and Blueback Herring in Potomac River tributaries. At the time, I was a second-year undergraduate and had not Read more about Influence of Temperature on the Growth of Young-of-Year (YOY) River Herring – New Publication![…]

A tale of joy and sorrow: Successful recovery and setbacks of blue catfish invasion

I recently completed my Masters thesis work in the de Mutsert Fish lab. My research is based in Gunston Cove, a freshwater tidal tributary to the Potomac River in Virginia, USA. Estuaries are particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic impacts, due to their proximity to high human population density. Impacts at the ecosystem level are particularly strong Read more about A tale of joy and sorrow: Successful recovery and setbacks of blue catfish invasion[…]

2020 Virginia Sea Grant Graduate Symposium – OSCAR student Katie Russell

I attended the 2020 Virginia Sea Grant Graduate Symposium on February 27 – 28 and presented a poster of my OSCAR funded research conducted under Dr. Kim de Mutsert and the Potomac Environmental Research and Education Center.  I have been researching the differences in spawning population size of river herring, the collective name of alewife Read more about 2020 Virginia Sea Grant Graduate Symposium – OSCAR student Katie Russell[…]

OSCAR student Tom Hutchison: New Tools, New Techniques, New Technology

I am very excited to share what our lab has been working on for the 2019 Summer Impact Research Project: Microbial Communities as Indicators of Ecological Health.  Dhanush Banka (a student from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology) and I have been working in Dr. Salerno’s lab at the Potomac Science Center, George Read more about OSCAR student Tom Hutchison: New Tools, New Techniques, New Technology[…]

OSCAR student Grace Loonam: My Research, in a Snail Shell

This summer, I have been working on a Summer Team Impact Project at the Potomac Science Center in Woodbridge, Virginia.  I have been studying an invasive species of snails―termed mystery snails―and by collecting samples of these invaders and their native counterparts, I aim to learn more about the mystery snails as a whole, as well Read more about OSCAR student Grace Loonam: My Research, in a Snail Shell[…]