Sephena Mann | Research Technician

After graduating from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 2022 with a BSc in Marine Biology, Sephena joined the lab as a Blundy Family Marine Science Fellow through the California Ocean Alliance. With a background in laboratory work, Sephena conducted DNA and hormone extractions and ran immunoassays to help understand the shifts in cetacean population demographics in a changing environment. After her fellowship, she is continuing in the lab as a research technician and is conducting stable isotope analyses on baleen whales, in addition to the hormone and DNA work. She is looking forward to starting her Ph.D. in a joint program between Australia and New Zealand in the coming year, where she will investigate the effects of environmental and anthropogenic stressors on reproductive physiology and endocrinology in odontocetes.