Collaborations with other groups and projects
Research Collaborations
•
QUB Modelling group member, Jennifer Houle, is a member of the IndiSeas
(Indicators for the Seas) network, where she is collaborating on
research to test the performance of ecological indicators using a
multi-model and multi-ecosystem study. She is leading the research
testing the specificity of indicators to fishing in the presence of
environmental change. Her collaboration is based on her Beaufort work
testing the sensitivity and specificity of indicators to fishing,
published in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences.
• Research collaboration of CMRC researchers (M. Cronin & M.
Jessopp) with marine mammal scientists at Sea Mammal Research Unit SMRU
St Andrews, including direct involvement of senior scientist Dr Paddy
Pomeroy and researcher William Patterson at SMRU in seal telemetry
research in SW Ireland, contributing to fieldwork in Feb 2009 and March
2011 and in ongoing data transfer and analysis. Plans in place for
co-authorship on papers. This contributes to task 4.3.
• Involvement of CMRC researchers (M. Cronin and M.
Jessopp) in cross-border initiatives with Scotland Wales/France to
develop a collaborative seal photo-id database to better understand
grey seal movements and population parameters in the NE Atlantic.
Recent training of CMRC staff by SMRU in use of photo-id matching
model. March 2011. Contributes to task 4.1.
• Collaboration between CMRC (M. Cronin &M. Jessopp)
and Centre for Ecological and Environmental Modelling (CREEM) St
Andrews Scotland (Dr. Monique McKenzie & Dr Carl Donovan) in
modelling of seal telemetry data (plans to co-author papers).
April-June 2011. Contributes to tasks 4.3 and 4.4.
• Collaboration between CMRC (M. Jessopp & M Cronin)
and Institute of Zoology/Oxford University London (Dr Tom Hart) in
analysis of seal telemetry data. M. Jessopp to visit and work on joint
paper in May. April 2010, May 2011. Contributes to task 4.3 and 4.4.
• Collaboration between National Parks and Wildlife Staff
(numerous) and CMRC (M Cronin and M Jessopp) in seal capture and tag
deployment Feb 2009, April 2010, March 2011. Contributes to task 4.3.
• Collaboration between CMRC (M. Jessopp & M. Cronin)
and University of Exeter (Dr Thomas Bodey) on seabird telemetry
fieldwork and data transfer (June 2010; July-Aug 2011) Contributes to
task 4.3 and 4.5.
• Collaboration between CMRC (M Cronin & M Jessopp)
with BEEs University College Cork (Prof. Tom Cross and Dr. Emer Rogan)
in aspects of seal diet including a study on DNA based evidence of
salmon in seal diet (2010-2011). Contributes to task 4.1.
• Collaboration between CMRC (M Jessopp) with BEES
University College Cork (Dr Tom Kelly) in analysis of at-sea bird
distribution data and production of book chapter. Contributes to task
4.3
• Collaboration between BIM (Ronan Cosgrove), Marine
Institute (Dave Reid) and CMRC (M Cronin & M Jessopp) in a study on
seal depredation and by-catch (March 2011-March 2012). Contributes to
task 4.2.
• CMRC (M Cronin) is currently pursuing collaboration with Professor
Noel O Connor DCU working on Beaufort award on ‘Sensors and
communications systems for the marine environment’ (remote sensors to
assess seal population at haul-out sites) April 2011. Will contribute
to task 4.1.
• Research exchange visits between the QUB team and
workers at the Technical University of Denmark, (DTU) Danish Fisheries
Research Institute and collaboration with Marine Scotland (Fisheries
Research Services) and CEFAS in England have continued throughout the
reporting period.
• QUB are maintaining close and productive collaborations with DTU Aqua
(formerly Danish Fisheries Research Institute), the Applied Systems
Analysis, Austria, and FRS (MarineLab) in Scotland as well as less
formal links with scientists in CEFAS (England); IFREMER (Nantes), Umea
University, Imperial College (London University), Aberdeen University
and various Japanese centres. We collaborate with non-Beaufort funded
colleagues in the Marine Institute (RoI) too.
• Mike Fitzpatrick (CMRC) with Dave Reid have set up
collaboration with Jan Hiddink of Bangor University, Wales, UK, on the
development of modelling to generate fishery impact maps by habitat and
gear type for Irish waters and particularly for the candidate ecosystem
areas.
• Mike Fitzpatrick (CMRC) with Dave Reid have set up collaborations
with Dr Aaron Hatcher (University of Plymouth), and Dr Luc van Hoof
(LEI – Netherlands). Immediately this is being developed using a
Beaufort Master Class on Fisheries Governance to be held in May 2011.
• Mike Fitzpatrick, Dave Reid & Norman Graham have
also collaborated with Dominic Rihan (EC, DG-Mare and ex of BIM) and
Phil MacMullen of SeaFish UK, on publications and presentations.
• Emer Rogan & Susie Brown are working with Dr Peter Evans – Sea
Watch Foundation. Peter Evans presented a talk “Using long-term
datasets to assess the potential risk of ship strike to cetaceans in
the ASCOBANS region” at the 25th Annual Conference of the European
Cetacean Society, Cadiz, Spain, 21-25 March. Dr Evans described how he
derived relative densities of cetaceans from a 20 year dataset of
cetacean surveys, JNCC ESAS. These densities are available, with
numbers per unit effort, plotted on a grid cell basis, by season, for
different cetacean groupings. Task 3.4.1 requires the profiling and
mapping of spatial and temporal distribution of cetaceans and therefore
we have secured collaboration with Dr Evans which will enable us to
incorporate this information into Task 3.4.1. In addition to securing
use of the information we will be approaching all holders of the
primary data sources to secure all necessary permissions to use the
data.
• Emer Rogan & Susie Brown are working Dr Andrew Foote (University
of Copenhagen). As a result of observations on the mackerel/horse
mackerel fisheries, have established collaboration with Dr Foote and
will seek funding through ASCOBANS for a PhD student to investigate the
killer whale-trawl interaction more fully. This will help us further in
investigating temporal and spatial distribution (Task 3.4.1), elucidate
which “ecotype”/population of killer whale in the NE Atlantic uses this
specific type of foraging strategy (WP 5) and will also allow us to
assess the risk of this strategy, in terms of fisheries interactions
and foraging.
• Emer Rogan, Susie Brown & Dave Reid will convene an Expert panel
– defining selectivity scoring attributes. Work is currently underway
to gain the support of a series of experts in areas such as gear
selectivity, marine mammals and seabirds to form an expert panel. This
panel will then define, in a work shop setting, the selectivity scoring
attributes for a range of gear types. These attributes will then be
used in the Level 2 Productivity Susceptibility Analysis of the Risk
Assessment. A number of people have already been approached, including
Mike Pol (NOAA and current chair of ICES WGFTFB), Hans Polet &
Jochen Depestele (Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research,
Belgium) Dominic Rihan (EU Commission), Ronan Cosgrove (BIM) and Dr
Simon Northridge (SMRU and current chair of the ICES working group WG
BYC).
• Dave Reid has an ongoing collaboration with the
Commercial Fisheries Research Group at Galway Mayo Institute of
Technology, and in particular Drs Sam Shepherd, Deirdre Brophy, Rick
Officer and Coilin Minto
• Dave Reid has established strong links with the School
of Ocean Science at Bangor University North Wales, and in particular
Prof Michel Kaiser and Dr Jan Hiddink. He co-supervised an MSc student
with Prof Kaiser in 2011.
• Research exchange visits between the QUB team and workers at the Technical
University of Denmark, (DTU) Danish Fisheries Research Institute and
collaboration with Marine Scotland (Fisheries Research Services) and CEFAS in
England have continued throughout 2008/9.
Collaborations with industry
• Paul Connolly, Dave Reid, Norman Graham, Olly Tully, Colm Lordan,
Ciaran Kelly, Mike Fitzpatrick and others are regular members of the
Irish Fisheries Science Research Partnership with industry reps. The
project and its components have been presented and discussed and
significant input from industry taken on board
• As part of QUB stakeholder engagement effort the team
participated in the ‘Sustainable Ocean Summit’ held in Belfast, 2010.
This was an international meeting of mostly commercial stakeholders who
extract from world oceans.
• Fitzpatrick, T.M. 2009-2011. Invited member of the
Celtic Sea Herring Management Committee. Contributed to discussions on
Long Term Management Plan for Celtic Sea Herring re adaptive management
and social aspects and access restrictions in global pelagic fisheries.
• Fitzpatrick, T.M. & Reid D.G. 2010. Contributed to
Pelagic RAC workshop on implementation of the ecosystem approach,
Amsterdam, November 2010.
Training and Education contributions
•
Mark Jessopp: Lecture on seabird telemetry including current work on
puffins from Skelligs given to MSc Marine Biology students in UCC
• Susie Brown: Lectures to Marine Biology Masters UCC
Stable Isotopes: an introduction to applications in ecological studies
Seal ecology, abundance and distribution
• Mike Fitzpatrick: Lectures in Sustainable Fisheries - UCC Geography
Department Coastal Management and GIS MA Lectures are on Biological
Oceanography, Fisheries Science and Fisheries Management National
Maritime College in Ringaskiddy to 4th Year students in Marine Science.
• Dave Reid: Lectures to Marine Biology Masters UCC Ecosystem Approach
to Fisheries Management: Where we are Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries
Management: Problems & Solutions Joint Supervision of MSc Student
(Holly Truszkowska) – School of Ocean Sciences Bangor University, UK –
including 2 week placement in MI.
• Axel Rossberg:
Lectures on Experimental Design and Statistics for undergraduates at QUB