Kate Hutson

Senior Aquaculture Scientist – Aquatic Health

Role at Cawthron

Kate leads Cawthron’s aquatic animal health programme which aims to develop methods for better detection, diagnosis, prediction and management of aquatic health and disease. Her research background integrates aquatic parasite diagnosis and experimental biology designed to deliver tangible outcomes for fisheries, aquaculture industry and biosecurity management. This combination of pure and applied research has led to the development of unique and strong partnerships between the aquaculture industry (including feed and pharmaceutical companies) and government agencies.

Kate has extensive experience in science communication and education having worked in the University sector for ten years. She continues to supervise higher degree research students as adjunct Associate Professor at James Cook University, Australia.

Technical skills, experience and interests

• Leadership and management of large scale R&D programmes
• Development of culture techniques for economically important parasite species
• Use of traditional and molecular approaches to diagnose parasitic disease issues
• Biosecurity and development of practical tools for successful implementation
• Development of decision support tools and risk analyses
• Business development and commercial client management

Qualifications

• PhD (Marine Parasitology) The University of Adelaide, Australia, 2007
• BSc (Hons, First Class, Zoology) The University of Melbourne, Australia, 2001