College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Department of Fisheries and Wildlife

Education:

• Ph.D. - Biology, The University of Western Ontario, 2013
• M.Sc. - Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, 2008
• B.Sc. - Zoology, University of Guelph, 2006

Background:

I received my MSc (University of Guelph) and PhD (The University of Western Ontario) studying the foraging ecology of pumpkinseed and bluegill sunfish in multiple lakes in eastern Ontario. 

I began to work on acoustic telemetry projects and interactions between academic research and management priorities with Dr. Aaron Fisk (University of Windsor – Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research; 2014-2017). During this time I lead and collaborated on a number of telemetry research projects, but I primarily focused on largemouth bass, sunfish, and bowfin in the Detroit River around Fighting Island. Then I expanded my research focus across the Huron-Erie Corridor working as a Research Associate on a long-term lake sturgeon telemetry project with Dr. Charles Krueger (MSU) and Dr. Darryl Hondorp (USGS – Great Lakes Science Center) (2017 – 2019; Michigan State University). The last two-years I have worked as a researcher at the University of California Davis on a collaborative acoustic telemetry project working to synthesize tracking data on fishes in rivers of the California Central Valley, ranging from adult green and white sturgeon to Chinook and steelhead smolts. As part of this work, I also facilitated interactions between the UC Davis research team and management personnel from multiple state (California Department of Fish and Wildlife) and federal agencies (US Geological Survey, US Bureau of Reclamation).

Research Interests:

As an Assistant Professor in the Quantitative Fisheries Center, I work in collaboration with the Great Lakes Acoustic Telemetry Observation System (GLATOS) on a variety of acoustic telemetry projects aimed at using telemetry data to inform ecology and management efforts. My initial focus areas will include Lake Erie walleye and grass carp. I am excited to be working with the QFC and am looking forward to being back within the GLATOS group of researchers. I hope my research continues to build relationships between researchers and management personnel and contribute to the world class fisheries research happening at Michigan State.

Selected Publications: 

• Colborne, S.F., Sheppard, L.W., O’Donnell, D.R., Reuman, D.C., Walter, J.A., Singer, G.P., Kelly, J.T., Thomas, M.J., and Rypel, A.L. (2022) Intraspecific variation in migration timing of green sturgeon in the Sacramento River system. Ecosphere. e4139. doi: 10.1002/ecs2.4139 

• Colborne, S.F., Hayden, T.A., Holbrook, C.M., Hondorp, D.W., Krueger, C.C. (2021) Lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) annual survival estimated from acoustic telemetry. Journal of Great Lakes Research. 47(6): 1814-1823. doi: 10.1016/j.jglr.2021.08.007 

• Weinz, A.A., Klinard, N.V., Matley, J.K., Fisk, A.T., and Colborne, S.F. (2021) Performance of acoustic telemetry in relation to submerged aquatic vegetation in a nearshore freshwater habitat. Marine and Freshwater Research 72: 1033-1044. doi: 10.1071/MF20245 

• Weinz, A.A., Klinard, N.V., J.K. Matley, Fisk, A.T., and Colborne, S.F. (2020) Identification of predation events in wild fish using novel acoustic transmitters. Animal Biotelemetry 8(1): 1-14. doi: 10.1186/s40317-020-00215-x 

• Colborne, S.F., Hondorp, D.W., Holbrook, C.M., Lowe, M.R., Boase, J.C., Chiotti, J.A., Wills, T.C., Roseman, E.F., and Krueger, C.C. (2019) Sequence analysis and acoustic tracking individual lake sturgeon identifies multiple patterns of river-lake habitat use. Ecosphere 10(12): e02983. doi: 10.1002/ecs2.2983 

• Klinard N.V., Fisk, A.T., Kessel S.T., Halfyard, E.A., and Colborne, S.F. (2018) Habitat use and small-scale movement patterns of sympatric sunfish species in a large temperate river. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 75(7): 1059-1069. doi: 10.1139/cjfas-2017-0125