Category Archives: Summer Research Fellowships

Miguel Barajas ’13 (University of Southern Maine) An investigation of the functional relationship of river herring to the diet of nearshore groundfish of the Kennebec-Androscoggin river system. A diet study will be performed by catching nearshore groundfish using live bait … Continue reading →

Catherine Johnston, Class of 2012 Merrymeeting Bay is a freshwater tidal ecosystem in midcoast Maine that experienced ecosystem collapse in the mid-20th century. The focus of our study this summer was on two vital components of the ecosystem that were negatively impacted … Continue reading →

Daniel “Danny” Lowinger, Class of 2012 The Kennebec and Androscoggin Rivers in Maine provide a variety of ecosystem services, such as commercial and recreational fishing, boating and hydropower. Historically, alewives traveled upstream on the rivers to spawn, while supporting a commercial inshore cod … Continue reading →

Michele Kaufman, 2013 The Androscoggin and Kennebec rivers were historically low quality rivers due to excessive industrial waste and transportation use on the rivers. Since the Clean Water Act in 1972, work has been done on both rivers to improve their quality. … Continue reading →

Diet study of nearshore groundfish to understand the role of river herring in the Kennebec-Androscoggin nearshore marine food web Project Description: An investigation of the functional relationship of river herring to the diet of nearshore groundfish of the Kennebec-Androscoggin river … Continue reading →

The research that I was involved over the summer covered many aspects of the Merrymeeting Bay and Kennebec Estuary ecosystem. One part of my research involved directly monitoring the species that comprise major commercial fisheries in the Gulf of Maine. … Continue reading →

The prospects for ecological and economic recovery on the Kennebec and Androscoggin River systems do not rely solely on ecological and biological interactions, but include a distinct human dimension. The Kennebec and Androscoggin Rivers were historically used as working rivers, … Continue reading →

Merrymeeting Bay is a freshwater tidal ecosystem located in midcoast Maine that receives water from six Maine rivers. Merrymeeting Bay and the Lower Kennebec River support a diverse food web that is important from both an ecological and economic perspective. … Continue reading →

The Merrymeeting Bay ecosystem in southern Maine—a dynamic confluence of six rivers (the Androscoggin and Kennebec being the major two), and one of only four freshwater, tidal bodies of water in the world—once supported a healthy and intricate web of … Continue reading →

Merrymeeting Bay and the lower Kennebec estuary in Midcoast Maine suffered catastrophic environmental collapse with human presence. This freshwater tidal ecosystem, a confluence of 6 rivers (Kennebec, Androscoggin, Abagadasset, Eastern, Cathance, and Muddy), drains roughly 1/3 of the land area … Continue reading →