Megan co-Directs the Quantitative Wildlife Ecology Research Lab at Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) in Portland, Maine. She received her PhD in Biological Oceanography from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and her Master’s in Quantitative Ecology and Resource Management from the University of Washington. Her research has focused on algae, invertebrates, and fishes of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska; marine mammals in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, California Current, Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea, and Beaufort Sea; and seabirds in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean. Megan’s analytical toolbox includes distance sampling, hierarchical spatial modeling, population abundance estimation, spatial planning, and cumulative effects assessment. From 2008 to 2023, Megan was a Research Fisheries Biologist at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In that role, she worked at the intersection of science, management, conservation, and cross-cultural information exchange, specializing in Arctic marine ecosystems in Alaska. Specifically, she conducted research and analyses to investigate marine mammal ecology, and also to assist Tribal, co-management, local, state, and federal decision-makers in offshore oil and gas exploration, development, and production issues. Since joining BRI in 2023, Megan has focused on ecological and management issues related to offshore wind energy development.
Quantitative Ecologist | Biodiversity Research Institute