Amy Deveau

MSc Candidate

Amy’s primary interests lay in the field of ethnoecology and traditional food-gathering practises. Recently arrived in British Columbia from Nova Scotia, she’s very interested in better understanding the relationship between community health and coastal ecology. She wants to focus in particular on Porphyra abbottae harvesting on Vancouver Island and the traditions or concerns held by First Nation communities who would harvest this alga. Amy is co-supervised with Dr. Nancy Turner.

Valerie Ethier

MSc Candidate - Ecological sustainability of marine aquaculture, Farm-Level Aquaculture Performance Index

Val is currently working as a member of the GAPI (Global Aquaculture Performance Index) team. Over the next year the GAPI team will be analyzing the major viable finfish species raised in cultured conditions around the world. The system is a standardized approach that can be used across a country-species level using six key indicators: sustainability of feed source, benthic impacts, energy use, broodstock source, escapes and disease/parasites. Val’s undergraduate thesis was a cost/benefit analysis of salmon hatcheries in the Pacific Northwest, both ecological and political. Her interests lie in taking a multidisciplinary approach to encourage change in policy and legislation with up to date knowledge of ecological sustainability.

Kris Kloehn

MSc Candidate

Kris' research interests are broad in nature but have been focused by the pressing need for actionable research in the field of finfish aquaculture. Globally, production of high trophic level finfish species is growing as wild stocks fail to supply demand. While growth of aquaculture may remedy the gap in supply, the effect of the industry on wild species is not fully understood.

Nutrient input and structure created by salmon farms provide subsidies to the local marine environment. Kris is investigating the influence of these subsidies on host parasite dynamics of wild fish in the Broughton Archipelago of British Columbia. Research conducted in Chile has confirmed the aggregating effect of farms greatly increases the rate of successful transfer of parasites (internal and external) within the wild fish community. This effect has not been evaluated in British Columbia waters. The focus of Kris' research is to quantify the magnitude of change in parasite load in wild fish relative to ambient farm-free zones and to formulate predictions regarding the population level effects.

Valerie Mucciarelli

MSc Candidate - Marine habitat complexity and species succession, Ogden Point Reef Ball Project

The nutrient rich waters and rocky coastlines of British Columbia support some of the greatest marine biodiversity in the world. While we have some of the most diverse subtidal ecosystems across the globe, factors that drive this species diversity have rarely been studied. A few studies conducted in tropical subtidal environments have shown that habitat complexity increases the diversity of fish and gastropods. I am interested in studying this correlation in the temperate subtidal environment of BC and will be focusing on macroalgae and sessile invertebrates.

Ashley Park

MSc Candidate - ecotoxicological effects of salmon aquaculture chemical use on non-target crustaceans; SLICE and Spot Prawn Project

B.C. salmon aquaculture operations use the chemotherapeutant emamectin benzoate (trade name SLICE) delivered through feed to decrease sea lice abundance on production fish. Detectable amounts of emamectin can accumulate in the surrounding benthic environment presenting potential for exposure to populations of proximate non-target crustacean species. This research project seeks to address if emamectin benzoate has a biological impact on spot prawns (Pandalus platyceros), an economically important non-target crustacean, that inhabits benthic areas in proximity to salmon farms. Please visit the SLICE and Spot Prawn Project page for more information.

Dane Stabel

MSc Candidate

My research focuses on diseases and parasites in flatfish near BC salmon aquaculture sites. Effluent from net-pen farming is discharged directly into surrounding areas and may have an effect on the development and prevalence of disease in proximate animal communities. Qualitative data suggest high incidences of disease and parasites in areas near salmon farms compared to controls. The copepod parasite Phrixocephalus cincinnatus attaches to the eye of arrowtooth flounder, feeding off the vascular supply and eventually leading to blindness in the fish. This parasite species is known to increase near wastewater outfalls in California. I hypothesize that salmon farm effluent is driving increased prevalence of disease in proximate populations. The underlying mechanism is analogous to that already witnessed in California where pollutants decrease immune response and nutrient subsidies increase intermediate host populations resulting in increased abundance in the terminal host. These diseases and parasites could adversely affect fish populations and directly result in a significant loss of revenue. Further, changes in sole and flounder populations could also lead to drastic ecological effects. By elucidating the mechanisms by which these diseases and parasites are proliferating, I hope to provide valuable information which is required to maintain healthy and profitable fisheries and ecosystems.