SEARCH ANDREW PERSHING
FOR SCIENTISTS
 
Andrew Pershing
 
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University
Sc.B. Aquatic Biology, Brown University
POSITION
Research Scientist, Ecosystem Modeling
Gulf of Maine Research Institute
Portland, Maine
COSEE ROLE & AFFILIATION
Participating scientist with COSEE-Ocean Systems
Participation with COSEE Network
January 29 - February 2, 2010
OCEAN-CLIMATE CONNECTIONS | Faculty/Graduate Student Collaborative Workshop
Darling Marine Center, Walpole, Maine
 
Andrew Pershing
WHAT I DO
I am an ecosystems modeler. The primary focus of my research is to understand what causes the Gulf of Maine ecosystem to change from one year to the next. My work details how alterations in conditions in the Labrador Sea impact plankton communities in the Gulf of Maine which subsequently lead to changes in populations of fish and whales.

As the Gulf of Maine Research Institute's ecosystem modeler, I develop computer models that reconstruct and forecast changes in zooplankton in the Gulf of Maine. I currently lead a project that uses satellite data and computer models to predict the location of endangered North Atlantic right whales in the Gulf of Maine. More information on research in the Pershing lab can be found on my lab blog.

I was recently awarded a grant from the Comparative Analysis of Marine Ecosystem Organization (CAMEO), a program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Science Foundation to study the role played by herring and other small pelagic fish in the Gulf of Maine, including the nutrients they supply to larger animals like tuna and whales and their effect on zooplankton. See the full article here.
LEARN MORE About the Concept Maps This Scientist Partnered On
Concept map
How Do Computer Models Help Scientists Predict the Location of Right Whales in the Gulf of Maine?
Andrew Pershing, Marissa McMahan, Maria Nielsdottir, and Ashley Young