Fisheries Scientist
Jess is a postdoctoral researcher specialising in fish ecology and population dynamics. Her research background includes modelling salmonid life cycles and drivers of vital rates, characterising sea turtle diet, and stock assessment of Southern Ocean fisheries, studying with GWCT and Queen Mary University of London, before a stint working at Cefas.
What is your favourite GWCT wildlife project or initiative?
As a fisheries scientist, I may be a bit biased, but my favourite GWCT project has to be the long-term monitoring of salmon and trout on the River Frome in Dorset. Some life stages have been monitored for over 50 years, which creates a phenomenal dataset to learn about and observe changes in the salmonid population over time and, in particular, how the populations react to changing environmental conditions.
What is the best thing about your job?
The privilege to study and help to inform measures to conserve our native aquatic wildlife, and the variety of tasks, from wrangling large datasets in the office to night shifts surveying seaward migrating salmonid smolts.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Have self-belief: you’re more capable that you know!