Hollings Scholars Share Research Projects

Summary

KBNERR's NOAA Hollings Scholars wrap-up their summer research projects around Kachemak Bay.

Several People in the field at soil pit and groundwater well.

Photo: KBNERR and University of South Florida Hollings Scholar and Margaret A. Davidson Fellow collecting groundwater data on the lower Kenai Peninsula.

About the NOAA Hollings Scholar Program

The Hollings Scholarship Program provides undergraduates with an award that includes academic assistance (up to $9,500 per year) for two years of full-time study and a 10-week, full-time paid ($700/week) internship at a NOAA facility during the summer. The Kachemak Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve hosts 3-4 Hollings Scholars each summer and are mentored by KBNERR staff and faculty. We partner with the University of South Florida Ecohydrology Research Group to co-mentor an additional Scholar. Learn more and how to apply.

Meet our 2025 Hollings Scholars, who presented on their projects in Washinton D.C. on July 30th.

Elizabeth Wilson

Bio: Originally from Vermont, Lizzy is a rising senior majoring in Marine Science – Biology at the University of Tampa. “At the University of Tampa, I work in a lab that researches sea slugs, and after graduation, I plan on pursuing a graduate degree in Marine Science. I’ve loved spending my summer in Homer, Alaska, as some of my favorite pastimes are tidepooling, spending time outside, and fishing.”

Project: Lizzy spent the summer using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to investigate the location and seasonality of groundwater discharge into salmon-bearing streams in the Kenai Peninsula Lowlands. Groundwater discharge plays an important role in modulating flow, nutrients, and temperature in salmon-bearing streams in the Kenai Peninsula, providing cold water refugia in the summer and maintaining above-freezing temperatures in the winter. Lizzy found that groundwater discharge most often occurs proximal to streams, including anadromous, salmon-bearing streams. She also found that we can use GIS to predict where groundwater discharge occurs seasonally versus perennially using a model that she created in GIS and ground-truthed in the field.

Woman in life jacket next to Gull Island with Kittiwakes

Photos: Hollings Scholars and their research sites and field activities in and around Kachemak Bay.

Claire Labuda

Bio: Claire is a rising senior at Colorado State University studying Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology with a minor in Zoology. Growing up with a love for birds, she enjoys exploring the realm of Ornithology. As a career, she hopes to combine conservation research with the cultural values of local communities to create community-based conservation practices that allow for resilient solutions to human – wildlife co-existence. She also enjoys learning about population genetics, environmental education, sustainable agriculture, and ecotheology. Claire hopes to return to Alaska after graduation to continue studying seabirds.

Project: This summer Claire worked on creating a disturbance monitoring program for the three Black-legged Kittiwake colonies at the Reserve. This program aimed to create a baseline understanding of the reproductive success and phenology between all three colonies, and how differences in human usage may be impacting these colonies. This program will allow the reserve to monitor how large infrastructural projects with high amounts of human impact, such as the planned harbor expansion and hotel development, will impact neighboring wildlife. Kittiwakes are a well-known indicator species that exemplify the overall health of an ecosystem, so they are of high value to monitor. This program also aims to utilize and collaborate with the community; any disturbance events observed can be submitted online by scanning the QR code on KBNERR website. This program is planned to continue next summer into the foreseeable future, so stay tuned for more developments!

Helena Shenk

Project: With background knowledge of fish communication via sound and the proposed harbor expansion, Helena paired hydrophone data of moving vessels with concurrent observations of traffic in the harbor. Helena used this data to determine a positive correlation between number of vessels and the level of sound, and was able to map the existing sound profile onto the known hearing ranges of fish, where she determined that the sound did not overlap with these ranges currently, but in the future with the addition of 304 vessels, this threshold may be crossed.

Markayla Katchatag

Bio: “I am Alaska Native from Unalakleet, Angoon, and have familial ties to Mekoryuk.” Markayla is currently majoring in Marine Biology and minoring in Alaska Native Studies at the University of Alaska Southeast on Aakw’ Kwaan Territory in Juneau. She plans on staying in Alaska after she graduates and hopes to work for small communities around Alaska. “Some of my favorite activities I did this summer were harvesting devil’s club, beading, and going camping!”

Project: “The main goal for my project this summer was to inform current and future researchers, teachers, and students traveling to Kachemak Bay about the Indigenous presence and land history in the area.” Alaska has a couple of different complex land policies and as a result of these policies, there are different Alaska Native Entities that oversee land and resource management in certain areas. Knowing about these policies and collaborating with these entities while putting community needs first makes the research being done more meaningful. In collaboration with the Chugach Regional Resources Commission (CRRC), Markayla created four different infographics that give a brief overview of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), the Alaska National Interests Land Conservation Act (ANILCA), and the different Alaska Native Entities, regional corporation land acquisition histories, and co-management at KBNERR’s monitoring sites for invasive European Green Crabs. These infographics will be used in trainings hosted by KBNERR and CRRC.

Summary

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