Matthew Mercier

• Coastal cutthroat life cycle work at the Cal Poly Humboldt fish hatchery including spawning, sterilizing fresh eggs and continuous monitoring of non-living eggs.

• Assisted in ultrasounding and inducing spawning through gonad stimulating injections of California Sea Cucumbers for an aquaculture master's project at Cal Poly Humboldt.
• Learned hormone based spawning techniques, larval count procedures, and larval rearing.

• Evaluated the effectiveness of rehabilitated wetlands created by the California Trout organization for the presence of juvenile Coho salmon.
• Conducted seining in intertidal, wetland, creek, estuary, and pond settings.
• Learned the inner workings of governmental practices and procedures.

• Conducted salmon spawning surveys, fish counts, and general hatchery technician work. Focused specifically on both juvenile and adults Coho Salmon
• Learned how to operate a wide array of standard fisheries and hatchery equipment.
• Learned the inner working of large scale salmonid hatcheries and related fisheries biology work.
• Learned safety protocols in and around different aspects of hatchery work and working alongside moving water.