Dr. James Reist

Section Head, Arctic Fish Ecology/Assessment
Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Current research and/or projects

Present research includes: principal investigator for the Beaufort Regional Environmental Assessment - Marine Fishes Project (2012-2016) and Canadian Beaufort Sea - Marine Ecosystem Assessment (2017-present) to document marine fish diversity, habitat usage, and ecosystem roles/linkages in the offshore Canadian Beaufort Sea and western Arctic. Also oversees a genetics and genomics research program investigating stock structure of key exploited fishes and the use of environmental DNA as an assessment tool for aquatic biodiversity and invasive species. Oversees a freshwater habitat research program in NWT for key 'at risk' fishes; oversees a biodiversity assessment program in support of Species at Risk; and oversees a coastal fishes research program in support of marine conservation and protected areas initiatives.

Research and/or project statements

Past research includes: resolution of taxonomic identities for chars, stock structure in coregonines, development of coastal and inland fish and ecosystem assessments in western Arctic; diversity studies on Arctic Char in eastern Arctic. Past activities in Arctic Assessments include participation in Arctic Biodiversity Assessment; Snow, Water, Ice and Permafrost in the Arctic Assessment; Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report, as well as internal DFO climate change risk assessments.

Education and awards

Education: BSc(Hons) - U of Calgary, 1975; MSc - Evolutionary Ecology of Brook Stickleback - U of Alberta, Dr. Joe Nelson (supervisor), 1978; PhD - Systematics of Esocoid Fishes - U of Toronto/Royal Ontario Museum, Dr. Ed Crossman (supervisor), 1983; Visiting Fellowship in Canadian Government Laboratories (NSERC) at Freshwater Institute (DFO), Winnipeg, 1984-1985; Research Scientist (DFO) Winnipeg, 1986-present.

Key publications

  1. Coad, B.W., and Reist, J.D. (eds.). (2018) Marine Fishes of Arctic Canada. Canadian Museum of Nature and University of Toronto Press, Toronto. xiii + 618 p.
  2. McNicholl, D.G., Davoren, G.K.,. and Reist, J.D. (2018) Life history variation across latitudes: observations between capelin (Mallotus villosus) from Newfoundland and the eastern Canadian Arctic. Polar Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-017-2225-x
  3. McNicholl, D.G., Johnson, J.D., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Darnley Bay nearshore fish survey: synthesis of 2012 and 20147-2016 field programs. Canadian Technical Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 3229: ix + 101 p.
  4. Kissinger, B.C., Harris, L.N., Swainson, D., Anderson, W.G., Docker, M.F., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Fine-scale population structure in lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) influenced by life history variation in the Husky Lakes drainage basin, Northwest Territories, Canada. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2016-0524
  5. Gingera, T.D., Bajno, R., Docker, M.F., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Environmental DNA as a detection tool for zebra mussels Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1771) at the forefront of an invasion event in Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Management of Biological Invasions 8: 287-300. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3391/mbi.2017.8.3.03
  6. Phillips, B.F., Pérez-Ramírez, M., Hollowed, A.B., Cheng, W., Loeng, H., Logerwell, E., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Regional assessment of climate change impacts on Arctic marine ecosystems. In: Climate Change Impacts on Fisheries and Aquaculture: A Global Analysis, Volume I. Edited by: B.F. Phillips and M. Pérez-Ramírez.  John Wiley & Sons Ltd. pp. 703-728.
  7. McNicholl, D.G., Davoren, G.K., Majewski, A.R., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Isotopic niche overlap between co-occurring capelin (Mallotus villosus) and polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and the effect of lipid extraction on stable isotope ratios. Polar Biology. doi: 10.1007/s00300-017-2199-8
  8. Brewster, J.D., Giraldo, C., Choy, E.S., MacPhee, S.A., Hoover, C., Lynn, B., McNicholl, D.G., Majewski, A., Rosenberg, B., Power, M., Reist, J.D., and Loseto, L.L. (2017) A comparison of the trophic ecology of Beaufort Sea Gadidae using fatty acids and stable isotopes. Polar Biology 41: 149-162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-017-2178-0
  9. Kissinger, B.C., Bystriansky, J., Czehryn, N., Enders, E.C., Treberg, J., Reist, J.D., Whitmore, E., and Anderson, W.G. (2017) Environment-phenotype interactions: Influences of brackish-water rearing on lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) physiology. Environmental Biology of Fishes 100: 797-814. doi: 10.1007/s10641-017-0607-0
  10. Reid, S.M., Parna, M., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Collapse of Lake Whitefish Coregonus clupeaformis (Mitchill, 1818) species pair in Como Lake, Ontario. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 33: 933-939. doi: 10.1111/jai.13429
  11. Stasko, A., Swanson, H., Atchison, S., MacPhee, S., Majewski, A., de Montety, L., Archambault, P., Walkusz, W., Reist, J., and Power, M. (2017) Stable isotope data (δ15N, δ13C) for marine fishes and invertebrates from the Beaufort Regional Environmental Assessment Marine Fishes Project, August-September 2012 and 2013. Canadian Data Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 1270: vi + 63 p.
  12. Majewski, A.R., Atchison, S., MacPhee, S., Eert, J., Niemi, A., Michel, C., and Reist, J. (2017) Marine fish community structure and habitat associations on the Canadian Beaufort shelf and slope. Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers 121: 169-182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2017.01.009
  13. Harris, L.N., Palstra, F.P., Bajno, R., Gallagher, C., Howland, K.L., Taylor, E.B., and Reist, J.D. (2017) Assessing conservation risks to populations of an anadromous Arctic salmonid, the northern Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma malma), via estimates of effective and census population sizes and approximate Bayesian computation. Conservation Genetics 18: 393-410. doi: 10.1007/s10592-016-0915-5
  14. Brewster, J.D., Giraldo, C., Swanson, H., Walkusz, W., Loewen, T.N., Reist, J.D., Stern, G.A., and Loseto, L.L. (2016) Ecological niche of coastal Beaufort Sea fishes defined by stable isotopes and fatty acids. Marine Ecology Progress Series 559: 159-173. doi: 10.3354/meps11887
  15. Dunmall, K.M., Mochnacz, N.J., Zimmerman, C.E., Lean, C., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Using thermal limits to assess establishment of fish dispersing to high-latitude and high-elevation watersheds. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 73: 1750-1758. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2016-0051 
  16. Niemi, A., Schimnowski, O., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Arctic Large Aquatic Basin climate change assessment part 2: Impacts, vulnerabilities and opportunities (IVO) – A contribution to the Aquatic Climate Change Adaptation Services Program. Canadian Manuscript Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 3091: viii + 67 p.
  17. Reist, J.D., Sawatzky, C.D., and Johnson, L. (2016) The Arctic ‘Great’ Lakes of Canada and their fish faunas – An overview in the context of Arctic change. Journal of Great Lakes Research 42: 173-192. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2015.10.008
  18. Coad, B.W., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Bibliography on the Marine Fishes of Arctic Canada. Canadian Manuscript Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 3101: v + 509 p.
  19. Majewski, A.R., Suchy, K.D., Atchison, S.P., Henry, J., MacPhee, S.A., Walkusz, W., Eert, J., Dempsey, M., Niemi, A., de Montety, L., Geoffroy, M., Giraldo, C., Michel, C., Archambault, P., Williams, W.J., Fortier, L., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Uniqueness of fishes and habitat utilization in oil & gas lease blocks relative to non-lease areas in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. Environmental Studies Revolving Funds Report Series No. 203: xi + 90 p.
  20. Loewen, T.N., Carriere, B., Reist, J.D., Halden, N.M., and Anderson, W.G. (2016) Linking physiology and biomineralization processes to ecological inferences on the life history of fishes. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology 202: 123-140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpa.2016.06.017
  21. Walkusz, W., Paulic, J.E., Wong, S., Kwasniewski, S., Papst, M.H., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Spatial distribution and diet of larval snailfishes (Liparis fabricii, Liparis gibbus, Liparis tunicatus) in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. Oceanologia 58: 117-123. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oceano.2015.12.001
  22. Stasko, A.D., Swanson, H., Majewski, A., Atchison, S., Reist, J., and Power, M. (2016) Influences of depth and pelagic subsidies on the size-based trophic structure of Beaufort Sea fish communities. Marine Ecology Progress Series 549: 153-166. doi: 10.3354/meps11709
  23. Tran, L., Reist, J.D., and Power, M. (2016) Northern Dolly Varden charr total mercury concentrations: variation by life-history type. Hydrobiologia 783: 159-175. doi: 10.1007/s10750-016-2666-1
  24. Kissinger, B.C., Gantner, N., Anderson, W.G., Gillis, D.M., Halden, N.M., Harwood, L.A., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Brackish-water residency and semi-anadromy in Arctic lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) inferred from otolith microchemistry. Journal of Great Lakes Research 42: 267-275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2015.05.016
  25. Majewski, A.R., Walkusz, W., Lynn, B.R., Atchison, S., Eert, J., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Distribution and diet of demersal Arctic Cod, Boreogadus saida, in relation to habitat characteristics in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. Polar Biology 39: 1087-1098. doi: 10.1007/s00300-015-1857-y
  26. McNicholl, D.G., Walkusz, W., Davoren, K., and Reist, J.D. (2016) Dietary characteristics of co-occurring polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and capelin (Mallotus villosus) in the Canadian Arctic, Darnley Bay. Polar Biology 39: 1099-1108. doi: 10.1007/s00300-015-1834-5
  27. Turgeon, J., Reid, S.M., Bourret, A., Pratt, T.C., Reist, J.D., Muir, A.M., and Howland, K.L. (2016) Morphological and genetic variation in Cisco (Coregonus artedi) and Shortjaw Cisco (C. zenithicus): multiple origins of Shortjaw Cisco in inland lakes require a lake-specific conservation approach. Conservation Genetics 17: 45-56. doi: 10.1007/s10592-015-0759-4
  28. Harris, L.N., Bajno, R., Gallagher, C.P., Koizumi, I., Johnson, L.K., Howland, K.L., Taylor, E.B., and Reist, J.D. (2015) Life-history characteristics and landscape attributes as drivers of genetic variation, gene flow, and fine-scale population structure in northern Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma malma) in Canada. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 72: 1477-1493. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2015-0016
  29. Eert, J., Meisterhans, G., Michel, C., Niemi, A., Reist, J., and Williams, W.J. (2015) Physical, chemical and biological oceanographic data from the Beaufort Regional Environmental Assessment: Marine Fishes Project, August-September 2012. Canadian Data Report of Hydrography and Ocean Sciences 197: vii + 84 p.
  30. Sinnatamby, R.N., Dempson, J.B., Reist, J.D., and Power, M. (2015) Latitudinal variation in growth and otolith-inferred field metabolic rates of Canadian young-of-the-year Arctic charr. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 24: 478-488. doi: 10.1111/eff.12166
  31. Geoffroy, M., Majewski, A., LeBlanc, M., Gauthier, S., Walkusz, W., Reist, J.D., and Fortier, L. (2015) Vertical segregation of age-0 and age-1+ polar cod (Boreogadus saida) over the annual cycle in the Canadian Beaufort Sea. Polar Biology 39: 1023-1037. doi: 10.1007/s00300-015-1811-z
  32. Giraldo, C., Stasko, A., Choy, E.S., Rosenberg, B., Majewski, A., Power, M., Swanson, H., Loseto, L., and Reist, J.D. (2015) Trophic variability of Arctic fishes in the Canadian Beaufort Sea: a fatty acids and stable isotopes approach. Polar Biology 39: 1267-1282. doi: 10.1007/s00300-015-1851-4
  33. Loewen, T.N., Reist, J.D., Yang, P., Koleszar, A., Babaluk, J.A., Mochnacz, N., and Halden, N.M. (2015) Discrimination of northern form Dolly Varden Char (Salvelinus malma malma) stocks of the North Slope, Yukon and Northwest Territories, Canada via otolith trace elements and 87Sr/86Sr isotopes. Fisheries Research 170: 116-124. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2015.05.025
  34. Mee, J.A., Bernatchez, L., Reist, J.D., Rogers, S.M., and Taylor, E.B. (2015) Identifying designatable units for intraspecific conservation prioritization: a hierarchical approach applied to the lake whitefish species complex (Coregonus spp.). Evolutionary Applications 8: 423-441. doi:10.1111/eva.12247
  35. Moore, J.-S., Bajno, R., Reist, J.D., and Taylor, E.B. (2015) Post-glacial recolonization of the North American Arctic by Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus): genetic evidence of multiple northern refugia and hybridization between glacial lineages. Journal of Biogeography 42: 2089-2100. doi:10.1111/jbi.12600
  36. Niemi, A., Michel, C., Dempsey, M., Eert, J., Reist, J., and Williams, W.J. (2015) Physical, chemical and biological oceanographic data from the Beaufort Regional Environmental Assessment: Marine Fishes Project, August-September 2013. Canadian Data Report of Hydrography and Ocean Sciences 198: vii + 144 p.
  37. Babaluk, J.A., Sawatzky, C.D., Watkinson, D.A., Tate, D.P., Mochnacz, N.J., and Reist, J.D. (2015) Distributions of fish species within the South Nahanni River Watershed, Northwest Territories. Canadian Manuscript Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 3064: vii + 91 p.
  38. Swanson, H.K., Lysy, M., Power, M., Stasko, A.D., Johnson, J.D., and Reist, J.D. (2015) A new probabilistic method for quantifying n-dimensional ecological niches and niche overlap. Ecology 96: 318-324. http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/14-0235.1.sm
  39. Tran, L., Reist, J.D., and Power, M. (2015) Total mercury concentrations in anadromous Northern Dolly Varden from the northwestern Canadian Arctic: A historical baseline study. Science of the Total Environment 509-510: 154-164. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.04.099

Contact

Research facility

Freshwater Institute
501 University Avenue
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N6
Canada

Expertise

Aquatic Science›Ecology and Ecosystems›Climate›Population Dynamics
Aquatic Science›Ecology and Ecosystems›Marine›Environmental Impacts
Aquatic Science›Fisheries›Fish Stock Assessment/Population Modeling›Bio-Informatics

Language

English