ASCC Student Assisting Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology with Fish Genetics Survey
ASCC/Sea Grant Press Release
American Samoa Community College (ASCC) student Senifa Annandale has spent the last four weeks assisting Brian Bowen, a researcher from the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, with a genetic survey on 25 reef fish species found throughout the archipelago. The goal of the project is to resolve phylogeographic patterns, find routes of dispersal, and assess the level of isolation between island archipelagos by comparing DNA sequences among the region’s fish species.
The project is designed to reconstruct the patterns of colonization across the Pacific, in order to determine how long ago the reef fish arrived in Samoa and where they came from. The research can also indicate whether stocks of fish are independent in American Samoa, or whether they are closely connected to the fish stocks in other areas of the southwestern Pacific. "If fish are depleted here," said Bowen, "we want to know whether they will be replenished by fish coming in from elsewhere, or whether they will have to recover on their own."
Annandale is currently pursuing an Associates of Arts degree in Marine Science at ASCC, and hopes to finish his Bachelors degree in Zoology at the University of Hawaii. He will apply for a summer internship this coming summer, in order to learn more about this research at the University of Hawaii. The genetic research program is funded by the University of Hawaii Sea Grant Program, with additional funding from the National Science Foundation.
The ASCC Marine Science Program prides itself on training and educating undergraduate students who are permanent residents of American Samoa in environmental science and conservation. Annendale stated, "This project has taught me a great deal, and it has allowed me to combine my love for fishing with learning research techniques"