Researchers from Rutgers University presented a suite of advances in ocean observing, telemetry integration, and coastal modeling at the 2026 Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry Network meeting on March 30–31, 2026.
Among the featured presentations, graduate student Jacob A. Kuenzli delivered “Identifying the oceanographic and environmental drivers of elasmobranch presence and distribution in the U.S. Northeast Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem.” His work explored how environmental conditions, including ocean circulation, temperature, and habitat variability, shape the distribution of sharks, skates, and rays across the Northeast U.S. shelf.
Rutgers undergraduate student Hannah Hornbeck presented work in collaboration with graduate student Chase Wunder entitled “Investigating Summer Flounder Habitat Use in a Salt Marsh Subtidal Creek”. They tagged 25 summer flounder to investigate habitat use in Little Sheepshead Creek and they utilized an autonomous surface vehicle (ASV) to reduce detection range.
Tom Grothues presented on behalf of lead developer, Masters in Ocean Observing student Kayla Sullivan “Development and Application of an Acoustic Telemetry Simulator Coupled to a Regional Ocean Model to Inform Array Development and Biased Markov Walk Brownian Bridges.” Their work demonstrated how simulation frameworks can improve the design and interpretation of telemetry arrays by coupling animal movement models with regional ocean dynamics.
In addition, Hugh Roarty presented “The Accuracy of Surface Currents in the Mid Atlantic Bight.” This work focused on evaluating the performance of high-frequency radar-derived surface current measurements, a critical component of coastal observing systems used for applications such as search and rescue, spill response, and ecosystem monitoring.
Collectively, these presentations emphasized the growing importance of integrating biological telemetry with physical oceanographic observations. By combining animal tracking data with surface current measurements, autonomous platforms, and numerical models, Rutgers researchers are advancing a more complete understanding of how marine organisms interact with a dynamic ocean environment.
The ACT Network meeting convenes scientists, engineers, and resource managers focused on shared marine telemetry infrastructure. Rutgers’ contributions highlighted its leadership in bridging physical and biological datasets—supporting improved decision-making for fisheries management, conservation, and maritime operations.
The meeting also strengthened regional collaborations and underscored the value of coordinated, multi-platform observing systems across the Mid-Atlantic.
