2024 Annual Meeting

Examining Infrastructure and Fisheries Interactions

The Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the American Fisheries Society (MAC-AFS) is a professional organization that promotes the conservation, development, and wise use of fisheries in the Mid-Atlantic region. Each year, MAC-AFS hosts a meeting that gathers fisheries professionals from the Mid-Atlantic. This meeting provides a platform for sharing information and ideas about the latest advancements in the region’s fisheries and aquaculture science and management. Cutting edge science, new policy perspectives, challenges facing the region, and success stories worth celebrating are all discussed through oral presentations, poster displays, and informal social events.

This year, we are excited to be co-hosting our 2024 meeting with the Northeastern Division of the American Fisheries Society (NED-AFS). Fisheries professionals and stakeholders from throughout the region, and from the other chapters within NED, are emphatically encouraged to attend.

Meeting Program & Abstracts

Detailed Meeting Schedule

Meeting Reminders

Make sure to check back regularly for updates!
Questions about this meeting?
Please contact the MAC-AFS Executive Committee at [email protected]

Theme:	Infrastructure and Fisheries Interactions
When:	October 27-29, 2024
Where:	Hyatt Regency – New Brunswick, New Jersey Two Albany Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901 United States
Meeting Schedule:	Sunday, October 27^th (10:00am – 8:30pm) Professional Development Activities – Grants Management 101 (10:00 am – 12:00 pm) – Improving Your Scientific Writing (12:30 pm – 2:30 pm) – Introduction to Gyotaku – The Art of Fish Printing (3:00 pm – 5:00 pm) Registration Socializing in New Brunswick Student-ONLY Social Event (6:30pm – 8:30pm) All Sunday meals are “on your own” Monday, October 28^th (7:00am – 8:30pm)* Registration Plenary Speaker Oral Presentations Workshop on Cumulative Effects of Offshore Wind Poster Session, Cocktail Reception, and Student Fund Silent Auction Evening Banquet Monday breakfast and lunch are “on your own” Tuesday, October 29^th* (7:00am – 6:45pm) Registration Plenary Speaker Oral Presentations Workshop on Dam Removals Luncheon Business Meetings Announcing the Winners of the Student Awards *Tuesday breakfast and dinner are “on your own”
Meeting Registration:	To register, please use the link and complete the registration form: https://forms.gle/wk7vi27qTcCoKoDaA Each attendee must register separately, even if several attendees are a part of a group that’s paying with a single transaction. Pre-payment by mailed check or credit card is preferred. Standard Registration: $265 (Register by Friday 10/4) Late Registration: $300 (Register after Friday 10/4) Fishing Industry Stakeholders (e.g., commercial fishermen) have a reduced registration fee of $225. All Fishing Industry Stakeholders must pay with check. To pay with a credit card, please use our SquareSite: https://afs-mid-atlantic-chapter.square.site/ To pay with check, please make out your check to “AFS Mid-Atlantic Chapter” and send to: DE DIV Fish & Wildlife Attn: Richard Wong 3002 Bayside Drive Dover, DE 19901 For questions regarding payment, please contact MAC-AFS Treasurer Rich Wong via [email protected].
Abstract submission:	Abstract submissions are closed. Abstracts are due by September 6, 2024
Hotel Information:	Free Student Lodging: We are providing free lodging for students (based on room availability and funding) at the Hyatt Regency. This will be offered on a “first come, first serve” basis, with student presenters receiving top priority. To be eligible, students need to be currently enrolled, or need to have graduated during the 2023-2024 academic year. We ask students who do receive a room to pitch-in with the conference support throughout the meeting. Students must register by Friday, September 6th and will be notified of their free lodging by September 15th. The Local Arrangements Committee of MAC/NED-AFS has secured a limited number of reduced rate rooms for meeting attendees. Reduced rates are only available for the nights of 10/27, 10/28, and 10/29. Rooms in these blocks must be reserved by Friday September 27th. Non-Federal and Non-State/Provincial Employees: Please book your reduced rate room ($179 USD/night) using this special link: https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/group-booking/EWRRN/G-MACN Federal and State/Provincial Employees: Please contact us directly to secure one of the limited GSA per diem rate ($118 USD/night) rooms. Questions regarding your lodging options can be directed to the MAC/NED-AFS Local Arrangements Committee via [email protected].

AFS Meetings Code of Conduct

Plenary Speakers

Monday, October 28: Dr. Elizabeth (Lisa) Methratta
Dr. Lisa Methratta is a Fisheries and Wind Scientist at the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center Offshore Wind and Ecology Branch. Dr. Methratta holds a B.S. in Biology from Penn State University and a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Pennsylvania. Following graduate school, she went on to pursue a National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship at NOAA Fisheries in Woods Hole. In her nearly 20-year career, Dr. Methratta has worked on such topics as spatially explicit fish-habitat relationships on the Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf, oyster reef restoration and blue crab fishery dynamics in Chesapeake Bay, and more recently offshore wind effects on finfish populations. Dr. Methratta’s work has involved designing approaches to synthesizing large volumes of complex fisheries data, providing advice on survey design methodology, coordinating projects involving multiple agencies, and leading working groups to discuss the best science available to underpin the environmental decision making process. Dr. Methratta’s current focus lies at the nexus of offshore wind and fisheries. Her work has included a critical analysis of survey design methodologies used to study finfish impacts and the publication of a meta-analysis of European finfish studies conducted at wind farms.

Tuesday, October 29: Dr. John Waldman
Dr. John Waldman joined the faculty of Queens College as a tenured professor of Biology in 2004. For the previous 20 years, he was employed by the Hudson River Foundation for Science and Environmental Research. He holds a B.A. in Biology from Herbert H. Lehman College, City University of New York, a M.S. in Marine and Environmental Sciences from Long Island University, and a Ph.D. from the Joint Program in Evolutionary Biology between the American Museum of Natural History and the City University of New York. His research interests focus on the ecology and evolution of fishes, the historical ecology of rivers and urban waterways, and estuarine biology. Dr. Waldman has authored more than 100 scientific articles and numerous essays in the New York Times, Yale Environment 360, and elsewhere. He has also published several popular books, including the award winning Heartbeats in the Muck: the History, Sea Life, and Environment of New York Harbor, Still the Same Hawk: Reflections on Nature in New York, and most recently, Running Silver: Restoring Atlantic Rivers and their Great Fish Migrations.

Professional Development Activities

(Sunday, October 27th)
Professional development activities will take place on Sunday October 27^th at the Rutgers University Cook/Douglass Campus. Click on the program descriptions to learn more.
If you are interested, you can register using this form – https://forms.gle/GWzbfdEZvPNynjvx7
To pay for professional development activities, please use our SquareSite: https://afs-mid-atlantic-chapter.square.site/

Introduction to Gyotaku (Art of Fish Printing) – program description
Grants Management 101 – program description
Improving Your Scientific Writing – program description

Meet & Eat Student-Only Mixer

(Sunday, October 27th)
There will be a “Meet and Eat” student-only mixer on Sunday evening, 6:30-8:30 pm at Old Man Rafferty’s in New Brunswick. This restaurant is a 3-minute walk from the Hyatt — light food and non-alcoholic beverage will be provided! This is a great opportunity to meet folks before the conference start, and to make new friends and research connections (i.e.: hang out with a bunch of fish nerds!)

If you will be attending, fill out this form by Wednesday, October 23th. Our limit is 45 people and sign-up is first come first serve! If you plan to attend, it is extremely important that you fill out this form, so the restaurant knows how much food to prepare.

Here is the restaurant’s “meet and eat” menu for your reference (also linked in the form).

Cumulative Effects of Offshore Wind on Fisheries

(Monday, October 28th)
NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center Offshore Wind Ecology Branch is organizing a workshop to foster conversations with researchers, managers, and stakeholders about the cumulative effects of offshore wind on fish and fisheries. Participants will explore and discuss the definition of cumulative as it relates to the impacts of offshore wind and will discuss what information must be collected to evaluate cumulative effects. All meeting registrants are welcome to participate in this workshop, which will include a special session of oral presentations and breakout groups. More details about this session can be found HERE.

Exploring the Impacts of Dam Removal on Fisheries Among Northeast U.S. Basins

(Tuesday, October 29th)
American Rivers, The Nature Conservancy, and The Watershed Institute are organizing a workshop to introduce attendees to the concept of removing dams for the benefit of fish populations. Participants will have the opportunity to learn how research and monitoring impacts and evaluates restoration outcomes and discuss challenges surrounding restoring rivers with practitioners and researchers. All meeting registrants are welcome to participate in this workshop, which will include a special session of oral presentations and a panel discussion. More details about this session can be found HERE.

WindTech 2024

Please also consider staying in New Brunswick after the MAC/NED-AFS Meeting and attend the NAWEA / WindTech 2024 Conference. NAWAE / Wind Tech 2024 is a premier technical event on wind energy in North America, hosted by Rutgers University, and co-organized by the New Jersey Academic Alliance for Offshore Wind (A2OSW). The main conference will take place on Wednesday 10/30 – Friday 11/1 at the same venue at MAC/NED-AFS (Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick, NJ). Side events will be held on various Rutgers–New Brunswick locations (College Ave. and Busch campuses).

Silent Auction

Every year we hold a silent auction to support our student members and the Hutton Junior Fisheries Biologist Program. Visit our silent auction page to see who has donated.

Our Sponsors

This meeting couldn’t happen without the support of generous sponsors. Thanks to them, students and professionals have the opportunity to discuss cutting-edge science, new policy perspectives, success stories, and challenges facing the Mid-Atlantic region.

For more details about becoming a sponsor, visit our sponsorship page.