Sara’s love for marine science started when she learned to free dive in Hawaii, on a family vacation at the age of seven. This memory stuck with her and when she turned 18 she became SCUBA certified. From then on, her passion for the world’s oceans and its fish species solidified her desire to become a marine ecologist.

 

During Sara’s undergraduate career as an Evolution & Ecology Biology (B.S.) major at UC Santa Cruz, she had many opportunities to work with different advisors and graduate students on research projects. She worked on a variety of projects, from documenting the survival of elephant seal pups in California, to observing the spread of sea start wasting disease along the west coast of North America. Under the guidance of her advisors Mark Carr, Pete Raimondi, and Giacomo Bernardi, she had the opportunity to develop a research project in South Africa investigating movement patterns of intertidal gobies. Through these experiences, she was able to realize how rewarding and fulfilling field work can be.

 

After participating in the 2015 Red Sea Summer Course, Sara joined the Reef Ecology Lab as an intern in early 2016 and returned later that year as a Master's student. She wants to use her past experiences to create a better understanding of the ecological roles of fishes in the Red Sea. Also, she hopes to develop laboratory skills to analyze DNA and stable isotopes, to help address this question.​