PhD theses: Atlantic halibut

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Atlantic halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus) supports the most valuable groundfish fisheries per-unit-weight in Atlantic Canada. Despite its high socio-economic importance for 5 Canadian provinces, management of the stock in the Gulf of St. Lawrence is based on limited scientific knowledge. This project, funded by an NSERC Strategic Partnership grant, applies state-of-the-art technologies and methodologies to support the development of sustainable management tools for a fishery of key economic importance to eastern Canada.

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We are recruiting PhD students who will work on two complimentary objectives of this project:

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1- One PhD candidate (University of Quebec at Rimouski): This project aims to investigate spatial variability in halibut-environment associations (depth, temperature) using high-resolution data from pop-up satellite archival tags (PSATs) and capture data from the trawl and longline scientific survey time series. Generalised additive mixed models (GAMMs) will be developed to characterize monthly environmental preferences and predict probabilities of occurrence. The project will also examine potential density-dependent effects on spatial distribution over the survey time series. Results will be used in stock assessment to develop and refine a longline survey for the stock that started in 2017.

2- One PhD candidate (University of Quebec at Chicoutimi): This project will rely on otolith microchemistry to characterize the origin and migrations of individual halibut through ontogeny. Spatial distribution of elemental fingerprints will be mapped for the entire Gulf using historical otolith collections available from Fisheries and Oceans Canada. This project will quantify the level of population connectivity or isolation among the different sectors of the Gulf. Results will provide important information on stock structure that will be presented and incorporated into the stock assessment model.

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Place: Successful candidates will be based at the Institut des sciences de la mer of University of Quebec at Rimouski (UQAR-ISMER; Project 1) and at University of Quebec at Chicoutimi (UQAC; Project 2). Students will also be encouraged to travel among all institutions involved within this program, including Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) and Maurice Lamontagne Institute of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO-MLI) to acquire key expertise when needed.

Collaborators: The main academic and government scientists involved in this project are Dominique Robert (UQAR-ISMER), Pascal Sirois (UQAC), Jonathan Fisher (MUN), Arnault Le Bris (MUN), Dany Dumont (UQAR-ISMER), Hugues Benoît (DFO-MLI), Peter Galbraith (DFO-MLI) and Nell den Heyer (DFO-BIO). Students will also have the opportunity to collaborate with a team of students located in three different institutions and interact with Quebec, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island industry partners.

Requirements: MSc degree in oceanography, biology, marine ecology or related discipline from a recognized institution. Comprehensive examination and all other academic activities can be undertaken in either English or French. Knowledge of statistics or numerical ecology, as well as programming in a statistical programming environment such as R or SAS, will be considered an asset.

Start date: May 2018 or before.

Application: Please send a cover letter, curriculum vitae and past transcripts by email to dominique_robert@uqar.ca by January 10, 2018.