Graduate Students
Joseph A. Skorupski, Jr.
- B.S. Fisheries Biology: Mansfield University 2008
- M.S. Biology student, Advisor: Dr. J.H. Kennedy
After growing up in rural Pennsylvania I continued my appreciation for the outdoors at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania earning my B.S. in Fisheries Biology. While at Mansfield, I studied the population recovery of fish in Babbs Creek after the remediation of acid mine drainage discharges.
Throughout my time at Mansfield and afterwards, I worked a number of short-term technician positions. In 2005, I assisted with the development and remediation of a number of acid mine drainage sites in Schuylkill County Pennsylvania for the Schuylkill Headwaters Association. The following summer I worked in Oregon and Idaho with the USFS implementing a long-term habitat assessment on the Upper Columbia River Basin in concern of the endangered bull trout. After graduating, I acquired a six month position in the fisheries department at Yellowstone National Park. I was primarily the aquatic ecology technician where I assisted with monthly water quality collections, macroinvertebrate sampling, habitat assessments, and amphibian surveys. I also helped execute an ongoing restoration project for the native westslope cutthroat trout. The project uses piscicides to remove non-native and hybridized fish species.
My experiences at Yellowstone have led to my M.S. thesis project. I will be examining the macroinvertebrate populations of the East Fork Specimen Creek to determine the effects of a newly licensed rotenone. The project will be conducted the summer of 2009 and 2010 in collaboration with historical data.
