Nicole (Nikki) L Berry, PhD
Nicole (Nikki) Berry is a Biologist, stationed in Cortland, NY
I am an experimental biologist interested in studying the impediments to the survivorship and development of the early life stages of fish.
Professional Experience
Biologist, USGS Great Lakes Science Center, November 2023-Present
Education and Certifications
Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology PhD, Miami University, 2024
Biology MS, Miami University, 2019
Biology BS, Ohio Northern University, 2016
Science and Products
Post-stocking survivorship and diet of Age-1 Cisco (Coregonus artedi) in Lake Erie, May 2025 Post-stocking survivorship and diet of Age-1 Cisco (Coregonus artedi) in Lake Erie, May 2025
Lake Erie historically supported a large population of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) which provided an important fisheries resource. The Cisco population declined precipitously in the 1920s and by the 1960s the species was considered extirpated from the lake. In May of 2025, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation experimentally released age-1 Cisco into Lake Erie to...
Post-stocking mortality and blood cortisol concentrations of stocked Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) in Lake Ontario Post-stocking mortality and blood cortisol concentrations of stocked Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) in Lake Ontario
Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) are an extirpated deepwater fish species in Lake Ontario. Bloater were reintroduced to Lake Ontario starting in 2012 from a donor population in Lake Michigan. Despite annual stocking, Bloater have yet to establish a self-sustaining population and success of stocking has been limited. Acoustic telemetry studies have identified that post-release survival of stocked...
Underwater measurements of photosynthetically active radiation from 2021 Lake Michigan CSMI survey Underwater measurements of photosynthetically active radiation from 2021 Lake Michigan CSMI survey
Underwater measurements of photosynthetically active radiation were collected along multiple transects throughout Lake Michigan during the 2021 cooperative science monitoring initiative survey of the lake. These data were collected as part of an effort to quantify the water transparency of the lake. The data included in this release provide the percent of photosynthetically active...
Cisco Egg Hatching Data for UV-lamp Phototron Experiments Cisco Egg Hatching Data for UV-lamp Phototron Experiments
These data contain the survivorship, hatching dates, and two metrics of sublethal effects of ultraviolet radiation (UV-B; 320 nm) exposure on Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos. These data were derived from UV-lamp phototron experiments conducted in the laboratory using fertilized Cisco eggs from wild caught fish from Lake Koronis, MN from 2021 - 2022. Cisco are an important species of...
Decreased water transparency of nearshore Laurentian Great Lakes habitats is driven by increased dissolved organic carbon. Decreased water transparency of nearshore Laurentian Great Lakes habitats is driven by increased dissolved organic carbon.
Little is understood of lake browning (due to increased dissolved organic carbon; DOC) in large lakes such as the Laurentian Great Lakes. Lake browning can alter whole lake ecosystems, including decreasing exposure to damaging ultraviolet radiation (UV-B) which is strongly and selectively attenuated by DOC more so than photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). We compared the changes in...
Authors
Nicole Lynn Berry, David B. Bunnell, Thomas J. Fisher, Erin P. Overholt, Elizabeth M. Mette, Todd Howell, Craig E. Williamson
Sunburned after a day at the beach? Investigation of ultraviolet radiation tissue damage on larval Lake Whitefish and Alewife across lake Michigan nursery habitats of varying water clarities Sunburned after a day at the beach? Investigation of ultraviolet radiation tissue damage on larval Lake Whitefish and Alewife across lake Michigan nursery habitats of varying water clarities
No abstract available.
Authors
Maddie Tomczak, Nicole Lynn Berry, Amanda Susanne Ackiss, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Cory O. Brant, Ben S Breaker, Robin L. DeBruyne, Patricia M. Dieter, Lindsie Ann Egedy, Madison Ellenbeck, Greg Faneuff, Brandon Gerig, Paul Glyshaw, Tomas O. Hook, Josh Hug, Jory Jonas, Kae Skubik, Elizabeth M. Mette, Gary Michaud, Steven A. Pothoven, Stacy A Provo, Jennifer A. Schumacher, Taylor Skiles, Jason B. Smith, Ralph W. Tingley, Andrew Tucker, Ben Turschak, Les D. Warren
Lake Ontario spring prey fish bottom trawl survey and Alewife assessment, 2025 Lake Ontario spring prey fish bottom trawl survey and Alewife assessment, 2025
The multi-agency Lake Ontario spring prey fish survey quantifies changes in pelagic prey fish populations, in particular Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus, which are the primary prey supporting the lake’s sport fishes. The 2025 survey included 230 trawls in the main lake and embayments and sampled depths from 5.5 to 245 m (15 – 810 ft). The survey captured 504,541 fish from 33 species with a...
Authors
Brian Weidel, Jessica Goretzke, Jeremy P. Holden, Emma Bloomfield, Scott David Stahl, Olivia Margaret Mitchinson, Brian O’Malley, Nicole Lynn Berry, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Amanda Susanne Ackiss
Exposure to ultraviolet radiation induces escape hatching of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos Exposure to ultraviolet radiation induces escape hatching of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos
Cisco (Otoonapii in Ojibwe; Coregonus artedi Lesueur, 1818), is a widely distributed stenothermic freshwater fish whose embryos typically incubate under ice and in the dark. We used Cisco as a model organism for testing the potential of UV-induced escape hatching behaviour. Owing to reduced ice cover and increased water transparency in north temperate lakes, these experiments provide...
Authors
Nicole Lynn Berry, David Bunnell, Erin P. Overholt, Jennifer A. Schumacher, Addison Z. Almeda, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Peter C. Jacobson, Kristopher Dey, Jason B. Smith, Andrew Tucker, Thomas J. Fisher, Elizabeth M. Mette, Bradley N. Carlson, Gretchen J.A. Hansen, Tyler D. Ahrenstorff, Derek L. Bahr, Kevin Keeler, Brian Weidel, Abigail J. Lynch, Craig E. Williamson
Evaluating how changing climate and water clarity can affect restoration of native coregonine fishes in midwestern lakes Evaluating how changing climate and water clarity can affect restoration of native coregonine fishes in midwestern lakes
In the upper midwestern United States, coregonine fishes (e.g., ciscoes and whitefishes) have provided a key food source for Indigenous peoples since time immemorial. In the last century, however, several anthropogenic stressors including overfishing, declining quality of key habitat (e.g., dams, algal blooms), and negative interactions with invasive species have led to declines in the...
Authors
David Bunnell, Nicole Lynn Berry, Martin Albert Simonson, Charles P. Madenjian, Kevin Keeler, Joseph Schmitt, Abigail J. Lynch, Gretchen Hansen, Erin P. Overholt, Peter Jacobson, Casey Schoenbeck, Craig E. Williamson, Tyler D. Ahrenstorff
Science and Products
Post-stocking survivorship and diet of Age-1 Cisco (Coregonus artedi) in Lake Erie, May 2025 Post-stocking survivorship and diet of Age-1 Cisco (Coregonus artedi) in Lake Erie, May 2025
Lake Erie historically supported a large population of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) which provided an important fisheries resource. The Cisco population declined precipitously in the 1920s and by the 1960s the species was considered extirpated from the lake. In May of 2025, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation experimentally released age-1 Cisco into Lake Erie to...
Post-stocking mortality and blood cortisol concentrations of stocked Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) in Lake Ontario Post-stocking mortality and blood cortisol concentrations of stocked Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) in Lake Ontario
Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) are an extirpated deepwater fish species in Lake Ontario. Bloater were reintroduced to Lake Ontario starting in 2012 from a donor population in Lake Michigan. Despite annual stocking, Bloater have yet to establish a self-sustaining population and success of stocking has been limited. Acoustic telemetry studies have identified that post-release survival of stocked...
Underwater measurements of photosynthetically active radiation from 2021 Lake Michigan CSMI survey Underwater measurements of photosynthetically active radiation from 2021 Lake Michigan CSMI survey
Underwater measurements of photosynthetically active radiation were collected along multiple transects throughout Lake Michigan during the 2021 cooperative science monitoring initiative survey of the lake. These data were collected as part of an effort to quantify the water transparency of the lake. The data included in this release provide the percent of photosynthetically active...
Cisco Egg Hatching Data for UV-lamp Phototron Experiments Cisco Egg Hatching Data for UV-lamp Phototron Experiments
These data contain the survivorship, hatching dates, and two metrics of sublethal effects of ultraviolet radiation (UV-B; 320 nm) exposure on Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos. These data were derived from UV-lamp phototron experiments conducted in the laboratory using fertilized Cisco eggs from wild caught fish from Lake Koronis, MN from 2021 - 2022. Cisco are an important species of...
Decreased water transparency of nearshore Laurentian Great Lakes habitats is driven by increased dissolved organic carbon. Decreased water transparency of nearshore Laurentian Great Lakes habitats is driven by increased dissolved organic carbon.
Little is understood of lake browning (due to increased dissolved organic carbon; DOC) in large lakes such as the Laurentian Great Lakes. Lake browning can alter whole lake ecosystems, including decreasing exposure to damaging ultraviolet radiation (UV-B) which is strongly and selectively attenuated by DOC more so than photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). We compared the changes in...
Authors
Nicole Lynn Berry, David B. Bunnell, Thomas J. Fisher, Erin P. Overholt, Elizabeth M. Mette, Todd Howell, Craig E. Williamson
Sunburned after a day at the beach? Investigation of ultraviolet radiation tissue damage on larval Lake Whitefish and Alewife across lake Michigan nursery habitats of varying water clarities Sunburned after a day at the beach? Investigation of ultraviolet radiation tissue damage on larval Lake Whitefish and Alewife across lake Michigan nursery habitats of varying water clarities
No abstract available.
Authors
Maddie Tomczak, Nicole Lynn Berry, Amanda Susanne Ackiss, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Cory O. Brant, Ben S Breaker, Robin L. DeBruyne, Patricia M. Dieter, Lindsie Ann Egedy, Madison Ellenbeck, Greg Faneuff, Brandon Gerig, Paul Glyshaw, Tomas O. Hook, Josh Hug, Jory Jonas, Kae Skubik, Elizabeth M. Mette, Gary Michaud, Steven A. Pothoven, Stacy A Provo, Jennifer A. Schumacher, Taylor Skiles, Jason B. Smith, Ralph W. Tingley, Andrew Tucker, Ben Turschak, Les D. Warren
Lake Ontario spring prey fish bottom trawl survey and Alewife assessment, 2025 Lake Ontario spring prey fish bottom trawl survey and Alewife assessment, 2025
The multi-agency Lake Ontario spring prey fish survey quantifies changes in pelagic prey fish populations, in particular Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus, which are the primary prey supporting the lake’s sport fishes. The 2025 survey included 230 trawls in the main lake and embayments and sampled depths from 5.5 to 245 m (15 – 810 ft). The survey captured 504,541 fish from 33 species with a...
Authors
Brian Weidel, Jessica Goretzke, Jeremy P. Holden, Emma Bloomfield, Scott David Stahl, Olivia Margaret Mitchinson, Brian O’Malley, Nicole Lynn Berry, Katie Victoria Anweiler, Amanda Susanne Ackiss
Exposure to ultraviolet radiation induces escape hatching of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos Exposure to ultraviolet radiation induces escape hatching of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos
Cisco (Otoonapii in Ojibwe; Coregonus artedi Lesueur, 1818), is a widely distributed stenothermic freshwater fish whose embryos typically incubate under ice and in the dark. We used Cisco as a model organism for testing the potential of UV-induced escape hatching behaviour. Owing to reduced ice cover and increased water transparency in north temperate lakes, these experiments provide...
Authors
Nicole Lynn Berry, David Bunnell, Erin P. Overholt, Jennifer A. Schumacher, Addison Z. Almeda, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Peter C. Jacobson, Kristopher Dey, Jason B. Smith, Andrew Tucker, Thomas J. Fisher, Elizabeth M. Mette, Bradley N. Carlson, Gretchen J.A. Hansen, Tyler D. Ahrenstorff, Derek L. Bahr, Kevin Keeler, Brian Weidel, Abigail J. Lynch, Craig E. Williamson
Evaluating how changing climate and water clarity can affect restoration of native coregonine fishes in midwestern lakes Evaluating how changing climate and water clarity can affect restoration of native coregonine fishes in midwestern lakes
In the upper midwestern United States, coregonine fishes (e.g., ciscoes and whitefishes) have provided a key food source for Indigenous peoples since time immemorial. In the last century, however, several anthropogenic stressors including overfishing, declining quality of key habitat (e.g., dams, algal blooms), and negative interactions with invasive species have led to declines in the...
Authors
David Bunnell, Nicole Lynn Berry, Martin Albert Simonson, Charles P. Madenjian, Kevin Keeler, Joseph Schmitt, Abigail J. Lynch, Gretchen Hansen, Erin P. Overholt, Peter Jacobson, Casey Schoenbeck, Craig E. Williamson, Tyler D. Ahrenstorff