NOAA-EPP LMRCSC Doctoral Graduate
Ph.D., Marine, Estuarine & Environmental Science
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Wilmelie Cruz completed her doctorate degree in the UMES MEES program in 2020. Advised by Dr. Bradley Stevens, her research focus was offshore wind sites, doing a benthic habitat assessment of the Maryland coast using video technology. She completed her bachelor’s degree from University of Puerto Rico, Humacao Campus. While pursuing her undergraduate degree, Wilmelie took part in a fellowship with SCDNR where she worked with effects of an invasive species in Charleston, SC.
In summer 2019, Wilmelie participated in a NOAA Experiential Research Training Opportunity in which she studied queen conch distributions in the U.S. Virgin Islands under the supervision of NOAA researcher Ron Hill. She is interested in fisheries management, invasive species and effects of humans in coastal ecosystems.
After graduation, Wilmelie was hired as a Fisheries Biologist at the NOAA Chesapeak Bay Office.
NERTO Project Title: Evaluation of fisheries parameters for a commercially important marine mollusk: growth rates and habitat distribution
NOAA Mentor: Dr. Ron Hill, NOAA SEFSC, Galveston, TX
Academic Advisor: Dr. Bradley Stevens
Publications/Presentations
- Cruz-Marrero, W., Cullen, D., Stevens, B.G. & Gay, N.C. (2019). Characterizing the benthic community in Maryland’s offshore wind sites: Developing a method to reduce the effort of image analysis and community description. PLoSONE 14(5): e0215966
- Cruz-Marrero, W., Touhy, C., Stevens, B.G. & Appeldoorn, R.A. (2019). Comparing divers and camera sled surveys: an improvement for fisheries independent data for queen conch in Puerto Rico. Revision process for Proceedings
- Cruz-Marrero, W., Touhy, C. & Stevens, B.G. & Appeldoorn, R.A. (2018). Comparing divers and camera sled surveys: an improvement for fisheries independent data for queen conch in Puerto Rico. Presented at the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute meeting, San Andres, Colombia, November 2018.
- Cruz-Marrero, W., C. Tuohy, R. Appeldoorn, & Stevens, B.G. (2018). Comparing Divers and Camera Sled Surveys: An Improvement for Fisheries Independent Data for Queen Conch in Puerto Rico? Presented at the American Fisheries Society 148th Annual Meeting, Atlantic City, NJ, August 21, 2018.
