Lab Members
Lab PI & Senior Lecturer - Fisheries
Samantha Sherman
Samm Sherman is a Senior Lecturer in Fisheries at Deakin University in Victoria, Australia. She is the Immediate Past President of the Oceania Chondrichthyan Society and a member of the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group. Her research focuses on sharks and rays through (1) Fisheries Management, (2) Ecology, and (3) Extinction Risk.
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For more information: www.sammsherman.com
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Contact: ssherman(at)deakin.edu.au
PhD Candidate / Lecturer
Darren Wong
Darren is a PhD candidate working on fisheries ecology. His PhD uses a multi-disciplinary approach to investigate stock structure of rock flathead in south-eastern Australia.
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Originally from Singapore, Darren spent several years working in aquaculture, before relocating to Australia for further studies. He has a keen interest in fisheries science, particularly in fish ageing and acoustic telemetry.
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Contact: jwwong(at)deakin.edu.au
PhD Candidate
Tom Johnson
After studying marine biology and biochemistry in the UK, Tom developed a passion for elasmobranch ecology. He recently completed work in South Africa, studying movement ecology and physiology of endemic shark species. Tom recently relocated to Australia to continue his studies and now researches the impact of bait dispersal from BRUVS, and the implications it has on marine predator abundance estimates.
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Contact: s22428494(at)deakin.edu.au
PhD Candidate
Louisa Graf
​​Louisa is a graduate marine scientist and PhD student specialising in elasmobranch research. After completing an honours year focusing on shark and ray abundance and distribution modelling, Louisa commenced a PhD where her research now involves biochemical analyses and acoustic telemetry to explore the ecology and movement of south Australian coastal sharks and rays.
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Contact: lgraf(at)deakin.edu.au
PhD Student
Teah Burke
Teah recently completed her MSc degree at the University of Windsor (2024), where she used an archived collection of vertebrae to investigate the population structure, ecological role and life history of Australian white sharks.
Her research interests include stable isotopes, food web dynamics, and movement behaviours. Specifically, she aims to better understand the ecological role of marine predators to inform ecosystem and fisheries management.
She has now relocated to Australia to begin her PhD, co-supervised by Brittany Finucci (NIWA) and Lauren Meyer (Flinders) researching the impact of fisheries on the trophodynamics of deep-sea sharks in New Zealand.
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Contact: t.burke(at)deakin.edu.au
Honours Student
Alex Montanaro
Alex recently finished his Bachelor of Marine Science. He is aiming to complete an honours degree and is interested in trophic ecology and population dynamics of elasmobranchs and ray-finned fish.
Alex has been awarded an ADR Summer Project Prize and is currently working on geospatial analyses of temporal shark and ray movement using ArcGIS Pro and global receiver array data.
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PhD Student
Kayden Verhagen
Kayden finished his Honours working on the diversity and distribution of Nudibranchs in Point Lonsdale. He has now started a PhD to continue his work.
Honours Student
Ryan Camilleri
Ryan is currently completing his Honours project, investigating the ecology of Pipis (Donax deltoides) following a recent mass mortality event in Discovery Bay, Portaland, Victoria. His research aims to identify the potential drivers of the mortality event, assess ecological indicators, and inform the future management of this economically important fishery species.
Ryan has a strong interest in fisheries science and is committed to supporting evidence-based management to ensure the sustainable use of marine resources.
Honours Student
Sam Beddome
Sam recently completed his degree at Deakin and has started an Honours project working on Pipi behaviour.