Eamonn Powers

My name is Eamonn Powers and I am a Junior at the Pennsylvania State University. I am a wildlife and fisheries science major with a concentration in fisheries science and a minor in watersheds and water resources. I am originally from a small town outside of Boston Massachusetts, and have had a passion for both fly fishing and fisheries science since a young age. Spending time exploring the trout streams of Vermont and Western Massachusetts instilled a deep appreciation for coldwater fisheries and conservation in me. While searching for a school I focused on two factors: a fisheries science program and a local area rich in coldwater fisheries and fly fishing culture, Penn State checked both of these boxes.

Since coming to Penn State I have been elected the president of the Fly Fishing Club twice, became involved in multiple undergraduate research projects and have completed a number of wildlife and fisheries internships. I have recently received an Undergraduate research grant to perform a study on the coloration and patterning of native Brook Trout with the hopes of revealing further information about the diversity and potentially speciation of this fish throughout its native range. I spent the summer after my freshman year surveying shorebirds with the US Fish and Wildlife Service at Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge. I spent the summer after my sophomore year working as a fisheries field biologist intern for the Downeast Salmon Federation, surveying a number of diadromous fish species, as well as helping construct a study on sea run Brook Trout. While working and living in Downeast Maine I became fascinated with the local fisheries, with a specific interest in Atlantic Salmon and Sea Run Brook Trout. In January of this year I returned to DSF for 3 days to help with winter Tomcod surveys. This upcoming summer I will be working as a fisheries intern with the Utah Division of Natural Resources and continuing virtual research at Penn State. After I graduate from Penn State I hope to pursue a masters and eventually a PhD in the study of diadromous fisheries.

Eammon is a 2021 Undergraduate Intern in Sea-run Fish Research.