Mary Catherine graduated with an honours degree (BSc) in Zoology from UCC in 2011. Following that, she worked in the education centre in Fota Wildlife Park, where she was responsible for giving talks and tours to the public and school groups as well as assisting with field ecology courses for second level students.
Mary Catherine then undertook a masters degree (MSc) in marine biology in UCC. This involved a 6-month research project which was focused on the ecology of an invasive algae species. This research developed her interest in the area of invasive species ecology, which led to Mary Catherine carrying out a PhD on an invasive barnacle species from 2013-2016. Mary Catherine has also worked as a marine biology tutor for primary school children and as a marine ecology walks leader on blue flag beaches.
Since joining Wetland Surveys Ireland Mary Catherine has been gaining a range of experience in habitat surveys and mapping, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), report compilation and work on the Pearl Mussel Project.
