A headshot of Jennifer Dijkstra of the EOS Earth Systems Research Center.

Jennifer Dijkstra

Research Associate Professor
Research Associate Professor
Phone: (603) 862-1775
Office: Chase Ocean Engineering Laboratory, Durham, NH 03824
Websites:

Dr. Jenn Dijkstra is a Research Associate Professor the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping. She is currently the chair of the Diving Control Board and was the University member representative on the New Hampshire commission for Coastal Marine Natural Resources and Environment as well as the president of the Benthic Ecology Society. 

 

Broadly, we characterize the benthic environment (seafloor, including foundation and non-native species, and demersal fishes) communities using a combination of SCUBA (observation and experiments) and remote sensing (e.g., unmanned aerial imagery, photogrammetry, echosounders). We study mutliple ecosystems that span the deep sea to kelp forests and coastal coral reefs. However, our main focus is on nearshore communities. Our research questions mainly center around the causes and consequences of community change, habitat complexity, and species distribution. 

 

Dr. Dijkstra received a B.A. from the University of New Brunswick (Canada), a M.Sc. in Marine Biology from the University of Bremen (Germany), and a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of New Hampshire.

Courses Taught

  • BIOL 999: Doctoral Dissertation Research
  • INCO 790: Advanced Research Experience
  • ZOOL 999: Doctoral Research

Education

  • Ph.D., Zoology/Animal Biology, University of New Hampshire
  • M.S., University of Bremen
  • B.A., University of New Brunswick

Research Interests

  • Coastal Environment
  • Ecology
  • Invasive Species
  • Marine and Ocean Sciences
  • Marine Biology
  • Application of remotely sensed data and GIS
  • Climate Change - Impacts

Selected Publications

  • Trudeau, G. A., Lyon, M., Lowell, K., & Dijkstra, J. A. (2025). Mapping Coral Reef Habitats with ICESat-2 and Satellite Imagery: A Novel Spectral Unmixing Approach Compared to Machine Learning. Remote Sensing, 17(21), 3623. doi:10.3390/rs17213623

  • Tyler, C. N., Lowell, K., Parrish, C. E., & Dijkstra, J. A. (2025). Subtidal kelp habitat classification at the Isles of Shoals: An integrative Random Forest approach using bathymetry and Landsat imagery.. PLoS One, 20(12), e0338218. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0338218

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