By: Niamh Owen-McLaughlin

Bella Andre

It’s not only invertebrates that are seen along the rocky intertidal. Bella Andre, an undergraduate majoring in Environmental Science & Terrestrial Resource Management (ESRM), with a minor in Marine Biology, spent almost two weeks at the beginning of summer 2025 with the Marine Landscape Ecology Lab (MLEL). Where? Just over the border in British Columbia, Canada, conducting drone surveys of long term rocky intertidal study sites and measuring the physical environment around the sites. These surveys will support the lab’s continued understanding of how the habitat at these sites have changed over time.

“While not the focus of our work, we had plenty of wildlife sightings! We saw black bears, black tailed deer, bald eagles, seals, and whales, which for me was a highlight of this research experience,” Bella shared. Each morning, the team would depart the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre dock at 7am. Bella was responsible for loading all of the safety equipment and anchors onto the boat, while lab leader and SAFS Professor, Dr. Corey Garza, and SAFS masters student, Brenna Rothman, would fill out the sail plan. “We were performing drone surveys of the intertidal zone at multiple small islands off of the coast of Vancouver Island, and my job was to assist with boating duties and monitoring the drone,” Bella shared.

Some of the skills Bella learned during her research experience was how to anchor the boat in multiple ways and how to set the drone up for a day of flying. “When back on land, we offloaded the drone data and I did some remote work that I typically do when back at UW in Seattle, such as pinniped counts from our California drone surveys,” Bella said.

This was Bella’s first time in Canada and her first time carrying out fieldwork on a boat, giving her the chance to learn a lot about the logistics and complexity of fieldwork and research. However, working with MLEL is not the first research experience she’s had since being at UW. “I am currently part of the UW Student Seaglider Center where I have assisted in Oceanography research under the mentorship of Dr. Sasha Seroy and Rick Rupan. That position helped me learn the technical side of research, such as coding and data analysis,” she shared.

For science majors, putting their studies into practice is a vital part of the degree. And for Bella, studying the Wildlife Research Techniques course (ESRM 351) was critical in preparing her for fieldwork with MLEL. “ESRM 351 with Dr. Laura Prugh is a required course for ESRM wildlife majors, and it teaches hands-on field techniques which, while not in the exact same realm of marine research, made me more comfortable with going into the field,” Bella said. She also shared that her GIS coursework has been essential in the research she has been a part of so far in her academic journey and wants to continue pursuing in the future.

Browsing UW internship programs is an invaluable tool for undergraduates looking to take their studies into the field. Bella started by going through the UW research position database, plus exploring the Marine Biology website. “I ended up on the Marine Landscape Ecology Lab’s page and found a posting with an available position that was very interesting to me!” she said.