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Dr.
Craig F. Purchase Evolutionary
Ecology of Fishes Research
Program |
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Twitter: @CraigPurchase |
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Academic synopsis |
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Current |
Memorial
University Professor of Biology Cross-appointed to Dept. of Ocean
Sciences Cross-appointed to School of Fisheries Cognitive & Behavioural Ecology
Graduate Program Environmental Science Graduate Program |
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2019-20 |
Visiting
Professor, University of Western Australia |
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2014-20 |
Associate
Professor, Memorial University |
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2008-14 |
Assistant
Professor, Memorial University |
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2006-07 |
NSERC
Visiting Fellow, Fisheries
and Oceans Canada – Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre |
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2006 |
Research
Scientist, Fisheries
and Oceans Canada – Bedford Institute of Oceanography |
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2005 |
Lecturer,
Saint Mary’s University |
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2005 |
Sessional
Instructor, Dalhousie University |
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2004-05 |
NSERC
Postdoctoral Fellow, Dalhousie University |
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2004 |
Doctor
of Philosophy, University of Toronto |
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1999 |
Master
of Science, Memorial University |
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1997 |
Bachelor
of Science (Honours), Memorial University |
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Other appointments |
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2020-25 |
Past-President,
President, VP: Canadian Aquatic Resources Section, American Fisheries Society |
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2022- |
Director,
Salmonid Association of Eastern Newfoundland |
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2009-20 |
COSEWIC
Marine Fishes Specialist Subcommittee |
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2019 |
Forrest
Research Foundation International Visiting Fellow |
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2019 |
Visiting
Fellow, Institute of Advanced Studies, University of Western Australia |
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2011-19 |
Board
of Editors, Northeastern Naturalist |
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2015 |
President,
Canadian Conference for Fisheries Research |
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2014-15 |
Dobbin
Scholar, Ireland Canada University Foundation |
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2008 |
Chair
of the Board of Directors, Protected
Areas Association of Newfoundland & Labrador |
NEWS FROM THE LAB
January 2024
· Recruitment of new trainees.
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Recruitment continues for our upcoming salmon
team. This work is in collaboration with Prof. Shawn Leroux, and a
not-for-profit salmon focused group called ERMA.
o
Craig is recruiting a new student to work on
brown trout charisma and how it relates to movement and spawning. See this link
http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~cfpurchase/MScPosition-trout-CraigPurchase.pdf
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It looks like Craig will be recruiting a new
student to work on a special population of Acadian redfish. http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~cfpurchase/Postdoc_Position-MUN_redfish.pdf
December 2023
· Craig, and Prof. Shawn Leroux have received some large grants that will
enable several years of Atlantic salmon field work in the coming years. We have
started recruiting a variety of trainees to take part in this work.
· Three current and former MSc students have teamed up with Craig and have
submitted a manuscript on the potential for brown trout hybridization.
November 2023
· We had an intense month tagging spawning brown trout and conducting
sperm competition experiments between brown trout and Atlantic salmon for
Connor’s thesis.
September 2023
· We are gearing up for salmonid spawning season. MSc student Connor
Hanley is leading research on hybridization between native Atlantic salmon and
invasive brown trout.
· Welcome
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to Katlyn Rowsell, who
joins the lab as an undergraduate MUCEP student.
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back to Nick Murphy, who has worked with us for
the past two summers, and now joins us as an undergraduate research assistant.
· Craig was recently in Sweden and Norway where he
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attended the Biology of Spermatozoa conference
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presented seminars
§ Evolutionary ecology of salmonid gametes: the potential influence of die
ton hybridization, Sept 11 at the Institute of Freshwater Research of the
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, in Stockholm Sweden.
§ Sperm biology & post-ejaculatory female mate choice in salmonid
fishes, Sept 15 at University of Agder, in
Kristiansand Norway.
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sampled invasive brook trout and native brown
trout with researchers from the University of Gothenburg.
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met with researchers at the Kristineberg
and Tjärnä field stations.
January 2023
· Manuscript by former PhD student Marco Graziano was published in the
Journal of Experimental Biology.
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He was also featured in the early career
spotlight
§ https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.245427
Graziano, M., S. Palit, A. Yethiraj, S. Immler, M.J.G. Gage, & C.F. Purchase*. Frequency-dependent viscosity of salmon ovarian fluid has biophysical implications for sperm-egg interactions. Journal of Experimental Biology. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.244712
December 2022
· Craig applied for three new grants from the Atlantic Salmon Conservation
Foundation, and another from Fisheries & Oceans Canada, for future trainee
opportunities.
· Manuscript by former PhD student Heather Penney was accepted for
publication in Ecology & Evolution.
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Penney, H.D., D. Keefe, R. Perry, & C.F. Purchase*.
Evidence of hatch time-based growth compensation in the early life history of
two salmonid fishes. Accepted Ecology & Evolution. Pre-print DOI
October 2022
· Craig presented some our work on hybridization at the Wild Trout
Symposium
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Purchase, C.F. 2022. The undiscovered
contraception: does post-ejaculatory cryptic female choice reduce hybridization
in salmonids? Wild Trout Symposium XIII. West Yellowstone, Montana, USA.
· We began tagging brown trout in a nearby lake for future work on their
life histories and reproduction.
May 2022
· We have an opening for a
new MSc or PhD student to work on sperm competition. Interested
students should email Craig a CV, unofficial copy of transcripts, and a cover
letter. Part of this cover letter should include elaboration on any previous
work with behavioural ecology, sexual selection, sperm biology, fish biology,
or genetics. See links under Opportunities for more details.
· The
summer 2022 capelin research team is in place. Welcome to Johanna Bosch, Maliya Cassels, Tatiana Hyde, Gage Moffatt, and Nick
Murphy.
· Kelly’s first paper has been submitted for peer-review and is available
as a preprint. https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-1514165/v1
January 2022
· Purchase, C.F., A.C. Rooke, M.J. Gaudry, J.R. Treberg, E.A. Mittell,
M.B. Morrissey & M.D. Rennie. A synthesis of senescence predictions for
indeterminate growth, and support from multiple tests in wild lake trout.
Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 289.
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https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.2146
· Congratulations to Kelly MacDonald for the
successful completion of her MSc thesis “Movers and shakers: exploring the
complex dynamics of aquatic biological invasions”
December 2021
· Tyler’s first paper has been submitted for
peer-review and is available as a preprint “Lantiegne, T.H., & C.F.
Purchase. Can cryptic female choice prevent invasive hybridization in external
fertilizing fish?”
Preprint DOI
November 2021
· Congratulations to Tyler whose MSc thesis has passed through examiners
with flying colours. “Cryptic female choice and
gamete-mediated paternal effects in the context of interspecific hybridization”
· We are moved into the new science building, and are slowly becoming
operational.
August 2021
· We are ready to move into new $325 million science building, and are
scheduled to begin August 16!
· A long distance welcome to Ranjan Wagle, who is
coming from Nepal to start a MSc with us in January 2022.
April 2021
· Welcome to Jayme Bonnell, who is joining the team under a Science
Undergraduate Research Award (SURA) for the summer.
September 2020
· We are getting use to the pandemic, and the lab is emerging from the
blue
· Kelly has been in the field since July, electrofishing for juvenile
salmonids
· Paper on how temperature affects catch and release mortality in salmonid
has been published in CJFAS, with Craig as co-author
January 2020
· Paper by Craig and Anna on freezing ovarian fluid for cryptic female
choice experiments was accepted by the Journal of Fish Biology.
December 2019
· Paper by Orbach, Rooke, Evans, Pitcher and Purchase on “mate choice in
capelin” was accepted for publication by the Journal of Evolutionary Biology.
November 2019
· Paper lead by Dara on “capelin sexual dimorphism” was published in the
Journal of Fish Biology.
· Craig gave two research talks at the University of Western Australia
October 2019
· Paper led by Heather on “reproductive constraints in killifish” was
published
· Kelly and Madison presented their research at the annual Salmonid
Council of Newfoundland & Labrador meeting
· Craig arrived in Perth Australia where he is spending part of his
sabbatical at UWA
September 2019
· Craig has been elected as the Vice-President (2020-2021) and President
(2022-2023) of the Canadian Aquatic Resources Section, of the American
Fisheries Society
August 2019
· Congrats to Steven Poulos for having his MSc thesis pass examination
· Craig presented the lake trout senescence project at the Biology of
Sperm meeting in Sweden
April 2019
· 2nd paper from our oil spill research has been published by
the journal Marine Environmental Research. Titled “Impact of crude oil and
dispersant on capelin embryo development” it stems from research funded by the
National Contaminants Advisory Group of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141113618307050
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The 1st paper from this project was
published in the fall in the journal Environmental Pollution, and is titled
“Chemically-dispersed crude oil and dispersant affects sperm fertilizing
ability, but not sperm swimming behaviour in
capelin”. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749118301714
· Paper titled “The impact of a changing winter climate on the hatch
phenology of one of North America’s largest Atlantic salmon populations” has
been accepted for publication by Conservation Physiology.
· Paper titled “Fish sperm competition in hatcheries and between wild and
hatchery origin fish in nature” has been accepted for publication in Theriogenology.
March 2019
· Craig was an invited expert on 3 DFO meetings this month: Regional
Science Advisory Processes for Atlantic salmon and capelin, and Recovery Action
Plan for lumpfish.
· Craig gave an invited talk at an upcoming WWF Salmon Habitat Restoration
Workshop on March 28, called “Global synthesis of the effectiveness of various
salmonid spawning habitat enhancements and key recommendations for Newfoundland
salmon”
February 2019
· Congratulations to Heather Penney, who successfully defended her PhD
thesis on Feb 1.
January 2019
· Craig and Anna, along with Mike Rennie (Lakehead U) and Jay Treberg (U
Manitoba) presented work on lake trout reproduction at the Canadian Conference
for Fisheries Research in London Ontario.
“Old funks don’t always have junk spunk: a clear lack of reproductive
senescence in sperm quality within the
long-lived indeterminate growing lake trout”
October 2018
· We had a team of 6 at the ERMA facilities on the Grandfalls
fishway, where we sampled 70 salmon for Madison’s project on among-individual
variation in sperm quality.
· We were thrilled to be hosting Geoff Parker (retired University of
Liverpool) who received an Honorary Doctor of Science from MUN on October 18.
· Craig was interviewed October 10 about “Cressie”
for an upcoming episode of the TV show “Rare Earth Uncovered” on APTN.
· Welcome to Taylor Hughes and Coady Fitzpatrick who join the lab as MUCEP
students, and Terry Sullivan who is back with us for the 3rd fall of
salmon spawning.
August 2018
· Craig spent 7 days in a remote site of Prince William Sound Alaska,
working with Peter Westley (UAF) on pink salmon reproduction