I have worked as both a lab instructor, and lab assistant at Athabasca University. Main focus was on Ecology labs, Introductory Biology and Microbiology. I am a certified PADI open water diver, and a quick independent thinker.

Master of Marine Biology

2022 to 2024

Project Description

To determine the effects of DEHP and DEHT plasticizer leachate from PS fibers on copepod behaviour, growth, survival.

Project Importance

This project is important to help understand the effects that plasticizers and microplatic leaching has on copepods. As copepods are the number one source of food for many marine organisms in marine food webs.

Project Methods

Lab based tanks for copepod husbandry. Beakers for different levels of plastic/polymer concentrations, various equipment to measure concentration of leachate before (characterization), during, and after experiments of the leachate. Microscopy to see the effects on the copepods per experiment.

Project Results

To see strong negative effects of copepod survival, function and growth as concentration of number of plastics is increased and the measure the amount of leaching plasticizer per experiment.

Keywords

Behaviour,
Benthic,
Cetaceans,
Climate change,
Communication / Education,
Controlled Environment,
Coral reefs,
Corals,
Crustaceans,
Deep sea,
Ecology,
Manipulative experiments,
Mapping,
Microbial,
Microbiology,
Pelagic,
Physiology,
Plankton,
Pollution,
Qualitative techniques,
Quantitative marine science,
Squid / cuttlefish / octopus