Mark J. Henderson

Mark Henderson recently started as the Unit Leader for the USGS Vermont Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Vermont. Prior to joining the Vermont Cooperative Research Unit, he was the acting unit leader at the California Cooperative Research Unit for six years.



Mark's overarching research interests are how the physical, and biological, environment influences fish population dynamics (e.g., movements, growth, and mortality) on different spatial and temporal scales. He is a quantitative ecologist that uses various modeling approaches to answer applied research questions related to fisheries management. Research in his lab group primarily focuses on the interactions between fishes and their environment, and how our changing climate will affect species distributions, habitat availability, and population dynamics.



Prior to coming to Vermont, the majority of the research in Mark's lab focused on using population dynamics and species distribution models to understand the causes of salmonid mortality. Many of the salmonid populations in California are ESA listed as threatened or endangered, thus identifying the causes of mortality and what management and restoration actions may aid in population recovery is critical. In Vermont, Mark will apply similar quantitative metho