PhD, OCF
Supervisor
Murdoch McAllister
Research Unit
SEARUN
Degrees
B.A. Biology and Sociology, Colby College
M.S. Marine Science, University of Delaware
Contact Information
Email: h.oleynik@oceans.ubc.ca
Website: haleyoleynik.github.io
Thesis Topic
My thesis research explores what factors impact Pacific salmonid productivity and how we can use this information to better manage fish populations and support fisheries that rely on them. My research will include a multivariate stock-recruit analysis for multiple stocks of Chinook, Coho, Sockeye, and Steelhead to explore what drives productivity of these species. These findings, along with socioeconomic data I will collect by surveying fishers across sectors, will then be used to conduct a retrospective analysis of the ecological and socioeconomic conditions in multisectoral salmonid fisheries along the coast of B.C.
Biography
My interest in fisheries science began in my undergraduate degree where my thesis research focused on how environmental change and management have influenced the social structure and dynamics of the Lobster fishing industry in Maine. Through this research, I became fascinated by how fishing industries support coastal communities and I was eager to learn more about how fisheries are monitored and managed. I crossed North America to work in some of the largest fishing industries in the world as a North Pacific Groundfish Observer for the National Marine Fisheries Service. There, I lived on commercial Pollock and Rockfish fishing vessels in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska and collected data on catch, bycatch, and fishing effort to support stock assessment science used to manage these fisheries.
My work in Alaska brought me back to the science, and sparked my interest in fish population dynamics. I went on to pursue my Master’s at the University of Delaware. My thesis research focused on fish community dynamics and associated environmental drivers in the Delaware Bay using a long-term, state run trawl survey. After graduating from UD I completed a NOAA Sea Grant Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship in 2021 working with the NOAA Fisheries National Stock Assessment Program. My PhD work at UBC connects all of the interests I’ve accumulated along my path: fisheries science, management, and consideration of the people and economies fishing supports.
Research Interests
What drives fish population dynamics and how we can manage fish stocks to support thriving coastal communities?
Fish Population Modeling, Bayesian Fisheries Assessment, Quantitative Management Evaluation
Awards
Buck Suzuki Legacy Bursary, T. Buck Suzuki Foundation, 2022
Google Scholar
Publications
Mathews, J. A., Hale, E. A., Oleynik, H. A., et al. (2022) Exploring Trends in Abundance of Young-of- the-Year and Age-1 Atlantic Croaker, Black Drum, Spot, and Weakfish in Relation to Salinity, Temperature, and Large-Scale Climatic Signals in a Mid-Atlantic Estuary. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 151(2), 150–171.
Oleynik, H. A. (2020). Changes in a Mid-Atlantic Estuary: Trends and Drivers of the Fish and Macroinvertebrate Community in Delaware Bay.
MSc, OCF