Sean has a diverse background in aquatic ecology, with a passion for studying Mid-Atlantic fisheries and freshwater invertebrates. In his role as Project Scientist, Sean oversees the maintenance and calibration of the Watershed Science and Engineering Program's water quality sonde network and collaborates with faculty and staff on a number of research projects.
Sean is a certified professional diver with several years experience conducting aquatic ecology studies on large rivers, including the Mississippi, Ohio, Monongahela, and Susquehanna. Since joining the Watershed Sciences and Engineering Program in 2010, Sean has completed a number of mussel, snail, and crayfish surveys in the central Susquehanna River region. His work is shedding light on these freshwater ecosystems and of significance to our collaborators including the U.S. Fish an Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.
Sean also helps other faculty and students with various teaching and research activities, especially those involving sample collection and water quality monitoring. A native of the Susquehanna watershed (Milton, PA), Sean also helps lead educational paddling sojourns on the river and the Chesapeake Bay.
Education
- M.S., Marshall University, Biology
- B.S., Lycoming College, Biology
Selected Publications and Conference Presentations
Wilson, M. J., M. McTammany, M.D. Bilger, S.P. Reese, and B.R. Hayes (2015), Combining data from multiple agencies to assess benthic macroinvertebrate communities in a large gravel-bed river, Freshwater Science, 34 (2), 593-605.
Reese, S.P., B.R. Hayes, and J.T. Newlin (2015), Reach- and catchment-scale determinants of the distribution of freshwater mussels in a tributary of the West Branch Susquehanna River.4th Biennial Symposium of the International Society for River Science (ISRS), August 23-28, 2015, Lacrosse, WI.
Reese, S.P., M. Huffner, and J. Feindt (2014), Mussel population and distribution on Buffalo Creek, an American Eel stocked tributary to the West Branch Susquehanna River, Journal of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science, 88(1), 63-66.
Hayes, B. R., J.T. Newlin, M.E. McTammany, K. Langdon, and S.P. Reese (2012), Monitoring of Water Quality and Flow Hydraulics on the Susquehanna River in Central Pennsylvania, American Society of Civil Engineers Hydraulic Measurement and Experimental Methods Conference, Snowbird, UT, August 12-15.
Wilson, M.J.; M.E. McTammany; B.R. Hayes; S.P. Reese; and M. Bilger (2012), Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Benthic Invertebrate Communities in the Susquehanna River Revealed Using Data from Twenty Years of Surveys by Multiple Agencies, Abstract ID 7010, Annual Meeting of the Society of Freshwater Sciences, Louisville, KY, May 20-24.