People
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Dr. Ed Hale leads our research group and is supported by a unique position within Delaware Sea Grant and the School of Marine Science & Policy
CURRENT STUDENTS
Benjamin Marsaly is a Ph.D. candidate that is co-advised with Dr. Aaron Carlisle who began his Ph.D. in 2020. Ben has two M.S. during which he studied top predator trophic ecology in estuarine environments and movements of large sharks around remote tropical islands. He is presently working on a project that is designed to assess the relative difference in apex predators, including coastal shark species, between different sand shoal environments in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Rileigh Hudock is a M.S. student that started with our group in 2022. She has a background with GIS and is examining how farmed Eastern Oyster growth and mortality varies as a function of temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen along an estuarine gradient. Rileigh received her undergraduate education at Elizabethtown College in PA.
Dan Millea is a Ph.D. candidate. He comes from a unique military background concurrently serving in the Delaware Air National Guard. Dan is exploring how a modified gear design might limit the interaction of an endangered species in the mid-Atlantic gillnet fishery, as well as the relative abundance of Atlantic Sturgeon in the Delaware River Estuary. Dan is the recipient of an externally funded award from the National Working Waterfront Network.
Rachel Roday started with us in 2023. She is a M.S. student focusing on how American Shad use tributaries in New Castle County, Delaware, particularly those that may be impacted by barriers to fish passage. Ultimately, she would like to better understand how diadromous fishes use these systems. Rachel is a recipient of a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program award.
Anthony O’Toole is a M.S. student that joined the laboratory in 2023. He graduated from Loyola University and has studied juvenile fishes in tributaries of the Delaware River estuary. Anthony’s research has focused on how diadromous and resident species vary as a function of the presence of dams.
Peyton McCain joined our laboratory group in 2024. She is a M.S. student focusing on the movement and habitat use of diadromous fishes in and around shoreline restoration zones. Peyton graduated from Florida Southern College and came to us with experience in acoustic telemetry and stable isotope analyses.
CURRENT RESEARCHERS
Brendan Campbell joined our team in 2022 after completing his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland. He has experience examining some of the dynamics associated with off-bottom shellfish aquaculture production, including oyster growth and shell quality in response to different farm management techniques and water movement. He is presently working on a project aimed at understanding the impact aquaculture gear has on the environment, including the abundance and biomass of juvenile fishes and invertebrates adjacent to gear.
Laboratory Coordinator Alyssa Campbell joined our group in 2022, and is working as the Laboratory Coordinator for the brand-new Oyster Hatchery at the University of Delaware. Alyssa has a substantial set of experiences in the culture of Eastern Oyster and microalgal feeds having worked for university hatchery and commercial outfits. She actively engages in both animal husbandry, directing operations of the newly renovated pilot-scale facility, as well as extension when called upon.
FORMER STUDENTS
Randy Feris was a M.S. student that started with us in 2020. He explored how the relative degree of habitat impairment as a function of the presence of derelict and active fishing gear affected the catch rates of Blue Crab and bycatch in the Delaware Inland Bays. Randy was my first graduate student and served his country in the U.S. Marine Corp. as well as the state of Pennsylvania. Randy graduated in 2023 and is now working at Morgan State University.