Introducing Alessandra Schnider, co-founder of Ice Fish Research

Hi there, I am Alessandra, originally from Switzerland. I never planned to move to Iceland or to work with fish. In fact, although I always loved to learn about nature, it took me a while to find my way to study Biology.

My start in the world of Biology

At 23 I started my biology studies at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. At the end of my bachelor’s I was offered a project on how relatedness and food availability impacted female behaviours in vervet monkeys. It involved collecting poop samples in South Africa, from which I extracted DNA to build a pedigree of the families we followed. I was hooked and I loved my work, but after five years of working non-stop I needed a break. So, I got a position as a part-time research assistant, working with orangutans and house mice, but mostly I used my newfound freedom to travel the world.

From Monkeys to fish

After two years I had still not found a PhD that incorporated the interdisciplinary character of my master’s project that I loved so much. Yet, when I came across the advertisement for my now PhD project in Iceland, my first reaction was “hello no!”. See, I love the warm and the sun and well Iceland, is mostly cold and really dark in winter. However, the project in Iceland sounded just too interesting to pass up. Many people were and still are surprised that I jumped from monkeys to fish, but I think I am still asking the same questions. How does your environment shape you? How much can we change in response to our environment? So, without ever having been to Iceland I moved here in August 2019 and started my PhD on threespine stickleback, that I knew nothing about.  

My work in Iceland

Since I arrived in Iceland almost five years ago, I have done an experiment, in which I raised stickleback from Lake Mývatn, over two years and three generations. I am testing the effects of temperature and diet on different traits such as growth and reproduction. Furthermore, I did one of the first studies on what juvenile freshwater stickleback eat in the wild and if their head shape matches what they eat. Currently I am writing up my PhD thesis and hope to defend it soon!

About me

Three years ago I adopted a kitten that I named Teddy and is still making me laugh every day. I love yoga, which I practice almost daily and I also teach classes. In my free time I love listening to music, singing, knitting and reading. My partner and I are building a house now and I feel pretty much at home here in Iceland, despite the cold 😉 

Learn more about me

What is your favourite fish? Honestly, I do not think I have one, though I just saw a documentary on hammerhead sharks and I am pretty impressed by these creatures! So I guess right now it is hammerheads 😊

What is your research topic? Plasticity in response to temperature and diet and how parental environment can affect their offspring (transgenerational effects).

What did you want to be when you grow up? Oh wow, so many things but I think the biggest two were marine biologist or singer

Where do you work? I work at the Hólar University facilities in Sauðárkrókur, northern Iceland

What inspired your research? My project is part of a big project that includes two postdocs and me as a PhD student, that together help us understand what shapes the threespine stickleback population in lake Mývatn, in northern Iceland. 

What is your favorite part of being a scientist? Oh wow that is hard! I love that there are so many different aspects of my work. I get to do field work, which is often in places that I usually would have not been able to go to otherwise. Then I also get to travel and meet people from all over the world. I get the freedom to make my own schedule (for most parts) and to just be curious. I also love supervising students and seeing them grow. 

How would you explain a scientist to a child? Somebody who asks questions and works to answer them by collecting clues.

How would you explain your research to a child? I want to know if warm or cold water and different food make fish grow better or worse. I also look at how well they can make babies in warm or cold water and when fed different food.

What recommendation do you have for students wanting to become a scientist? Work on what you are interested in, not what you think will look good on a CV. Your passion will carry you through the tough times that come no matter how cool your project.