FORKS — Research scientist Mara Zimmerman will present information on steelhead research during an Evening Talk at the Olympic Natural Resources Center at 7 tonight.
Her free presentation will be in the Hemlock Room at ONRC, 1455 S. Forks Ave. Refreshments will be served, and attendees are encouraged to bring dessert for a potluck.
Zimmerman is a research scientist with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. She leads the Fish Ecology and Life Cycle Monitoring Unit in the Fish Science Division.
Her presentation will describe a new steelhead research study on the Hoh River. The study is designed to improve understanding of the north coast steelhead populations and fill information gaps needed for management.
The work is a collaborative effort between Fish and Wildlife, conservation groups, local guides and anglers.
Research in her unit focuses on the life cycle of salmon and steelhead including their abundance, diversity and distribution in rivers on the Washington coast and tributaries to the lower Columbia River.
Prior to joining Fish and Wildlife, Zimmerman worked as a biologist for the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, as a graduate student instructor for the University of Michigan and as a post-doctoral research associate for the Great Lakes Fishery Commission.
She has conducted research on a diversity of freshwater fauna including crayfish, freshwater mussels, sticklebacks, lake trout and, most recently, salmon and steelhead.
Evening Talks at ONRC is funded through the Rosmond Forestry Education Fund, an endowment that honors the contributions of Fred Rosmond and his family to forestry and the Forks community.
For more information, contact Frank Hanson at 360-374-4556 or fsh2@uw.edu.
