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Vanessa von Biela, Ph.D.

I am an aquatic ecologist focused on filling key information gaps about the structure, function, and drivers of aquatic ecosystems in the subarctic and Arctic to better inform management of public lands and resources.

My research program seeks to understand current limitations on the production of fishes and aquatic ecosystems to inform Federal and State agencies, Tribal entities, non-profits organizations, and the public given the importance of fish and aquatic species to economies, wellbeing, and culture. For example, the annual subsistence harvest per rural resident is 295 pounds of wild food of which 56% is fish. Access to my study areas is difficult because most of Alaska is not connected by road and requires complex logistics with boats and aircraft. I make research progress by leading teams that use a diverse set of tools that allow us to gain as much information as possible from each field trip and each fish: otolith growth, calorimetry, stable isotopes, heat shock proteins, and gene expression/mRNA.

Professional Experience

  • 2011- Present Research Fishery Biologist, USGS Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, Alaska

  • 2007 - 2010 Fishery Biologist, USGS Alaska Science Center, Anchorage, Alaska

  • 2005 - 2007 Research Assistant, University of Alaska Anchorage

  • 2007 Marine Mammal and Bird Observer, USFWS

  • 2006 Marine Mammal Observer, LGL Alaska Research

  • 2004 - 2005 Teaching Assistant, University of Alaska Anchorage

  • 2003 - 2004 Rehabilitation Supervisor, Santa Barbara Marine Mammal Center

  • 2003 - 2004 Hearst Scholar, Santa Barbara Natural History Museum

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D. 2015 University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK Fisheries

  • M.S. 2007 University of Alaska, Anchorage, AK Biological Sciences

  • B.S. 2004 University of California, Santa Barbara, CA Zoology

Affiliations and Memberships*

  • Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology

  • American Fisheries Society

  • Society of Marine Mammalogy

  • The Wildlife Society

  • 2005-2006 Student Representative, UAA Graduate Academic Board

  • 2005-2007 Chair, UAA Graduate Student Association

Honors and Awards

  • 2009 Star (Special Thanks for Achievement) Award from USGS Biology Chief

  • 2008 USGS Performance Award

  • 2007 Graduate Hooding Ceremony invited speaker

  • 2006 NSF EPSCoR Student Travel Award

  • 2006 Kodiak Whalefest invited speaker

  • 2005 NSF EPSCoR Student Travel Award

Science and Products

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A Red-throated Loon swimming in a small lake

Does fish prey influence red-throated loon productivity?

This study will evaluate the nearshore marine feeding areas of breeding adult red-throated loons and assess the response of loon reproductive success to differences in the relative abundance, composition, and nutritional content of nearshore fish communities that vary in space and time.
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Alaska Science Center
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Does fish prey influence red-throated loon productivity?

This study will evaluate the nearshore marine feeding areas of breeding adult red-throated loons and assess the response of loon reproductive success to differences in the relative abundance, composition, and nutritional content of nearshore fish communities that vary in space and time.
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Male scientist with fishing rod and female scientist using a plankton on small boat on a lake. Green hills in background.

Tracing Mercury Through Lake Food Webs

Mercury concentrations in fish likely reflect different energy sources in lake food webs. Species, populations, or individuals may contain higher and variable concentrations of mercury, which may relate directly to prey mercury content, diets of fish, and fish foraging strategies.
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Alaska Science Center
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Tracing Mercury Through Lake Food Webs

Mercury concentrations in fish likely reflect different energy sources in lake food webs. Species, populations, or individuals may contain higher and variable concentrations of mercury, which may relate directly to prey mercury content, diets of fish, and fish foraging strategies.
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Pacific sand lance in a sieve from a purse seine in Prince William Sound

Condition of Forage Fish in Prince William Sound During the Marine Heatwave

Changes in the body condition of a key forage fish species, Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes personatus), are examined to understand how energy transfer to predators may have been disrupted during the recent marine heatwave in the North Pacific (late 2013 to mid 2016).
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Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
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Condition of Forage Fish in Prince William Sound During the Marine Heatwave

Changes in the body condition of a key forage fish species, Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes personatus), are examined to understand how energy transfer to predators may have been disrupted during the recent marine heatwave in the North Pacific (late 2013 to mid 2016).
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Canning River with bars view

Winter Habitat of Juvenile Dolly Varden in the Canning River

In the Arctic, rivers often freeze all the way to the bottom each winter leaving fish with limited habitat where they can survive.
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Alaska Science Center
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Winter Habitat of Juvenile Dolly Varden in the Canning River

In the Arctic, rivers often freeze all the way to the bottom each winter leaving fish with limited habitat where they can survive.
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Benthic invertebrates captured in a bottom trawl

Ecosystem Shifts in Arctic Seas

In addition to the direct effects of sea ice loss on walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) and polar bears (Ursus maritimus) that use ice as a platform, the decline of Arctic sea ice is predicted to promote a fundamental ecosystem shift from benthic animals that forage on the sea floor to pelagic animals that forage near the sea surface.
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
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Ecosystem Shifts in Arctic Seas

In addition to the direct effects of sea ice loss on walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens) and polar bears (Ursus maritimus) that use ice as a platform, the decline of Arctic sea ice is predicted to promote a fundamental ecosystem shift from benthic animals that forage on the sea floor to pelagic animals that forage near the sea surface.
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A cross-section of a lake trout otolith (ear bone) under the microscope

Lake Trout Biochronologies as Long-term Climate and Productivity Indicators in Alaska Lake Ecosystems

High latitude ecosystems are among the most vulnerable to long-term climate change, yet continuous, multidecadal indicators by which to gauge effects on biology are scarce, especially in freshwater environments.
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Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
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Lake Trout Biochronologies as Long-term Climate and Productivity Indicators in Alaska Lake Ecosystems

High latitude ecosystems are among the most vulnerable to long-term climate change, yet continuous, multidecadal indicators by which to gauge effects on biology are scarce, especially in freshwater environments.
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A lot of small fish from a fyke net set near Kaktovik, AK. Biologists sort through them.

Nearshore Fish Surveys in the Beaufort Sea

Nearshore systems provide habitat to a unique community of marine and diadromous (lives in both fresh and saltwater) fish and support high fish abundance.
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Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
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Nearshore Fish Surveys in the Beaufort Sea

Nearshore systems provide habitat to a unique community of marine and diadromous (lives in both fresh and saltwater) fish and support high fish abundance.
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Biologist transferring a muscle biopsy from the sampler to the vial

Assessing heat stress in migrating Yukon River Chinook Salmon

We will examine evidence of heat stress in Yukon River Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) using heat shock proteins and gene expression.
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Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC)
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Assessing heat stress in migrating Yukon River Chinook Salmon

We will examine evidence of heat stress in Yukon River Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) using heat shock proteins and gene expression.
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Spawing sockeye salmon in a Matanuska River side channel, Alaska

Fish and Aquatic Ecology

Fish and aquatic habitats in Alaska support important commercial, sport, and subsistence fisheries and provide forage fish that support wildlife populations. The USGS Alaska Science Center conducts interdisciplinary research to inform local, state, federal, and international policy makers regarding conservation of fish, aquatic species, and their habitats. We work collaboratively with hydrologists...
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Species Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
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Fish and Aquatic Ecology

Fish and aquatic habitats in Alaska support important commercial, sport, and subsistence fisheries and provide forage fish that support wildlife populations. The USGS Alaska Science Center conducts interdisciplinary research to inform local, state, federal, and international policy makers regarding conservation of fish, aquatic species, and their habitats. We work collaboratively with hydrologists...
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Nearshore Fish Isotope Values, Beaufort Sea, Alaska, 2017-2019

This dataset contains isotope values of muscle tissue from fish collected in the nearshore Beaufort Sea, Alaska in summers 2017-2019.
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Alaska Science Center

Bivalve Shell Growth Indices, Chukchi Sea, Alaska, 1867-2015

This dataset contains the growth index from annual growth bands in the shells of two bivalve clam species (Astarte borealis and Liocyma fluctuosa) captured in the Chukchi Sea, Alaska. The growth index is based on a measurement of the annual growth increment width that has been detrended for age-related differences in growth.
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Alaska Science Center

Fish Communities of the Nearshore Beaufort Sea, Alaska, Across Three Decades, 1988-2019

This dataset contains two tables comprising catch per unit effort (CPUE) data and length measurements from fish surveys conducted in the nearshore Beaufort Sea, Alaska, between 1988 and 2019. Historical data collected by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) includes fish catch and fish length data (measured from a subset of the total catch) from two eras, 1988-1991 and 2003-2005, in the east
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Alaska Science Center

Observations Documenting Premature Mortality Among Alaska's Pacific Salmon in 2019

These data are a compilation of geographically widespread observations of premature mortality in Pacific salmon across their range in Alaska in 2019. Premature mortality observations primarily spanned an area of western and southcentral Alaska that is approximately one million km2 and included all five species of Pacific salmon. Observations were obtained and compiled in a single database from fou
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Alaska Science Center

Water Temperature and Dissolved Oxygen Measured During a Manipulative Thermal Challenge Experiment for Adult Salmonids, Yukon River, Alaska, 2018

This data set documents the temperature and dissolved oxygen of water during the implementation of a new experimental thermal challenge protocol for migrating adult Pacific salmon in remote settings. This experiment was conducted with migrating adult Chinook salmon near Pilot Station, Alaska, along the Yukon River in a location without access to utilities. The analysis of this data was published i
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Alaska Science Center

Gene Transcription and Heat Shock Protein 70 Abundance Results from Migrating Adult Chinook Salmon, Yukon Watershed, 2016-2017

This data set documents the gene transcription levels for a panel of 12 selected genes and the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) protein abundance measured in the muscle tissue of individual wild Chinook salmon captured from locations within the U.S. portion of the Yukon River watershed. Chinook salmon were primarily captured in 2016 and 2017 from existing field efforts (n = 477). A small number of ad
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Alaska Science Center

Lake Trout Otolith Growth Increment Measurements, Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Alaska, 1979-2012

This data set documents the width of annual otolith growth increments from Lake Trout collected in lakes within Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Alaska. The analysis of this data was published in von Biela et al. 2020 (DOI: 10.1111/eff.12566)
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Alaska Science Center

Pacific Sand Lance Energy Density, Length, and Age, Prince William Sound, Alaska, 2012-2016

This data set documents the age, length, dry mass energy density, and dry mass of age-0 and age-1 Pacific sand lance captured in Prince William Sound Alaska each July from 2012 to 2016. The analysis of this data was published in von Biela et al. 2019 (doi:10.3354/meps12891).
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Alaska Science Center

Kuskokwim Bay chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) energy density, distribution, and stomach data, 2004

This data set documents the dry mass energy density, distribution, and stomach contents of age-0 chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) captured in the Kuskokwim Bay estuary in May and June 2004. The analysis of this data was published in Burrill et al. 2018 (DOI :10.1007/s00300-018-2297-2.).
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Alaska Science Center
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A bucket holds an assortment of forage-sized fishes from the Beaufort Sea, Alaska.
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A saffron cod (left) and Arctic cod (right) sit on a measuring board with ruler for comparison.
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An assortment of forage fishes (varying sizes) from the Beaufort Sea, Alaska lie on a measuring board with ruler.
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A fourhorn sculpin sits in a net pen underwater Beaufort Sea, Alaska.
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An eroding and slumping shoreline adjacent to a fyke net fishing site in Lion Bay, Beaufort Sea, Alaska.
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Six slender eelblennys and two fourhorn sculpin lie on a measuring board with ruler. One fourhorn sculpin is upside down.
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Pacific capelin in clear container with ruler at bottom for scale.
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A juvenile Dolly Varden in clear container with ruler at bottom for scale.
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Scientist on boat deploys a CTD to measure conductivity, temperature, and density of seawater in the Beaufort Sea, Alaska.
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Misty pine trees overlaid with a photo of a smiling blond woman in a heavy parka. AD icon in corner. link
Misty pine trees overlaid with a photo of a smiling blond woman in a heavy parka. link
Scientist in rain gear and flotation vest pulling in a surface trawl net on back of boat.
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USGS Research Fish Biologist Vanessa von Biela in a boat near Flaxman Island in the eastern Beaufort Sea
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Fyke net with buoys, adjacent to Flaxman Island, Beaufort Sea, Alaska. Beach with driftwood in background.
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Two scientists in the water standing around a red floating net pen to measure and count fish from the Beaufort Sea, Alaska.
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A caribou stands next to a pipeline.
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A saffron cod captured in the Beaufort Sea, Alaska. In clear container with ruler at bottom for scale.
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Four Arctic cod in clear container with ruler at bottom for scale.
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Four Arctic cod in clear container with ruler at bottom for scale. Beach with sea and scientist in water in background.
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Arctic smelt in clear container with ruler at bottom for scale.
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Scenic view of the Beaufort Sea in AK. Beach, driftwood, ocean, and view of clouds against a blue and golden sky.
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Filter Total Items: 32

Kings of the North: Bridging disciplines to understand the effects of changing climate on Chinook salmon in the Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim Region

Understanding how species are responding to environmental change is a central challenge for stewards and managers of fish and wildlife who seek to maintain harvest opportunities for communities and Indigenous peoples. This is a particularly daunting but increasingly important task in remote, high-latitude regions where environmental conditions are changing rapidly and data collection is logistical
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Megan L. Feddern, Erik R. Schoen, Rebecca Shaftel, Curry J. Cunningham, Craig Chythlook, Brendan M. Connors, Alyssa D. Murdoch, Vanessa R. von Biela, Brooke Woods
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Alaska Science Center

Reduction in overwinter body condition and size of Pacific sand lance has implications for piscivorous predators during marine heatwaves

Acute anomalous ocean warming events, including marine heatwaves (MHWs), have significant effects on reproduction and survival of piscivorous seabirds. Additionally, MHWs have negative effects on seabird fish prey, exacerbating these consequences and resulting in population implications for seabirds. We evaluated the relative body condition of Pacific sand lance Ammodytes personatus, an important
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Clifford LK Robinson, Douglas F Bertram, Hayleigh Shannon, Vanessa R. von Biela, Wesley Greentree, William Duguird, Mayumi L. Arimitsu
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Alaska Science Center

Adult spawners: A critical period for subarctic Chinook salmon in a changing climate

Concurrent, distribution-wide abundance declines of some Pacific salmon species, including Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), highlights the need to understand how vulnerability at different life stages to climate stressors affects population dynamics and fisheries sustainability. Yukon River Chinook salmon stocks are among the largest subarctic populations, near the northernmost extent of
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Kathrine G. Howard, Vanessa R. von Biela
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Alaska Science Center

Borealization of nearshore fishes on an interior Arctic shelf over multiple decades

Borealization is a type of community reorganization where Arctic specialists are replaced by species with more boreal distributions in response to climatic warming. The process of borealization is often exemplified by the northward range expansions and subsequent proliferation of boreal species on the Pacific and Atlantic inflow Arctic shelves (i.e., Bering/Chukchi and Barents seas, respectively).
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Vanessa R. von Biela, Sarah M. Laske, Ashley E. Stanek, Randy J Brown, Kenneth H. Dunton
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Alaska Science Center

Barrier islands influence the assimilation of terrestrial energy in nearshore fishes

We examined the relative importance of landscape features on estuarine fish trophic structure and dependence on terrestrial organic matter (OMterr) in four barrier island lagoon systems along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea coast. Our study compared two relatively large lagoon systems characterized by high river discharge and relatively free ocean water exchanges (central region near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska)
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Ashley E. Stanek, Vanessa R. von Biela, Sarah M. Laske, Rebecca L. Taylor, Kenneth H. Dunton
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Alaska Science Center

Sclerochronological records of environmental variability and bivalve growth in the Pacific Arctic

The Pacific Arctic region has experienced, and is projected to continue experiencing, rapid climate change. Large uncertainties exist in our understanding of the impact these physical changes have on the region’s ecology. This is, in part, due to the lack of long-term data. Here we investigate bivalve mollusc growth increment width chronologies (sclerochronologies) to develop a long-term biologica
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David J. Reynolds, Vanessa R. von Biela, Kenneth H. Dunton, David C. Douglas, Bryan A. Black
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Alaska Science Center

Fish ear stones offer climate change clues in Alaska's lakes

Otoliths, also known as ear stones, are small body parts that help fish with hearing and balance. Like tree rings, otoliths form one light and one dark band per year, creating rings. These rings can be measured to understand fish growth. The wider the ring, the greater the growth. In our study, we used otoliths to understand how one fish species—lake trout—responds to rising temperature in the sta
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Krista K. Bartz, Vanessa R. von Biela, Bryan A. Black, Daniel B. Young, Peter van der Sleen, Christian E. Zimmerman
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Alaska Science Center

First juvenile Chum Salmon confirms successful reproduction for Pacific salmon in the North American Arctic

The distributional extent of Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. in the North American Arctic is unresolved. While adult Pacific salmon have a recurring presence across the Alaskan North Slope and into the Canadian Arctic, it is uncertain if these fish are part of established Arctic populations, vagrants from outside sources reproducing unsuccessfully, or both. Here we present the first confirmed rec
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Karen M. Dunmall, Darcy G. McNicholl, Christian E. Zimmerman, Sara E. Gilk-Baumer, Sean E. Burril, Vanessa R. von Biela
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Alaska Science Center

Premature mortality observations among Alaska’s Pacific salmon during record heat and drought in 2019

Widespread mortality of Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. returning to spawn in Alaska coincided with record-breaking air temperatures and prolonged drought in summer 2019. Extreme environmental conditions are expected to happen more frequently with rapid climate change and challenge the notion that Alaska could indefinitely provide abundant, cool freshwater habitat for Pacific salmon. A total of 1
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Vanessa R. von Biela, Christopher J. Sergeant, Michael P. Carey, Zachary Liller, Charles M. Russell, Stephanie Quinn-Davidson, Peter S. Rand, P. A. H. Westley, Christian E. Zimmerman
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Alaska Science Center

Migration strategies supporting salmonids in Arctic Rivers: A case study of Arctic Cisco and Dolly Varden

Amphidromous fish such as Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma) and Arctic Cisco (Coregonus autumnalis) have distinct life histories that facilitate their success in Arctic environments. Both species spawn in freshwater and make annual migrations between marine, brackish, or freshwater environments. Dolly Varden rear for one or more years in freshwater before migrating to sea whereas Arctic Cisco migrat
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Michael P. Carey, Vanessa R. von Biela, Randy J Brown, Christian E. Zimmerman
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Alaska Science Center

Egg retention of high-latitude sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) in the Pilgrim River, Alaska, during the Pacific marine heatwave of 2014–2016

Ocean and freshwater conditions can influence spawning success of Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) by governing the energy content of fish at the start of and during the spawning migration. Ocean conditions determine the energy stores of fish at the freshwater entry, while freshwater conditions determine how quickly stored energy is depleted as individuals migrate to spawning grounds in natal ri
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Michael P. Carey, Vanessa R. von Biela, Ashley Dunker, Kevin D. Keith, Merlyn Schelske, Charlie Lean, Christian E. Zimmerman
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Alaska Science Center

Reduced quality and synchronous collapse of forage species disrupts trophic transfer during a prolonged marine heatwave

The Gulf of Alaska forage fish community includes a few key species that differ markedly in their timing of spawning, somatic growth and lipid storage, and in their migration behavior. This diversity in life history strategies facilitates resilience in marine food webs because it buffers predators against the naturally high variance in abundance of pelagic forage fish populations by decreasing the
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Mayumi L. Arimitsu, John F. Piatt, Scott Hatch, Rob Suryan, Sonia Batten, Mary Anne Bishop, Rob Campbell, Heather Coletti, Dan Cushing, Kristen Gorman, Stormy Haught, Russell Hopcroft, Kathy Kuletz, Caitlin Elizabeth Marsteller, Caitlin McKinstry, David McGowan, John Moran, R. Scott Pegau, Anne Schaefer, Sarah K. Schoen, Jan Straley, Vanessa R. von Biela
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Ecosystems Mission Area, Land Management Research Program, Alaska Science Center
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Movements and Habitat Use of Loons for Assessment of Conservation Buffer Zones in the Arctic Coastal Plain of Northern Alaska

Few data exist to assess the value of National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska management buffer zones for conservation-reliant yellow-billed loons or...

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Science and Products

*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government