Ian H. McQuinn

Image McQuinn, Ian
Emeritus Researcher

Responsible for the planning and execution of pelagic ecosystem research at the Maurice Lamontagne Institute including the implantation of novel techniques; responsible for the planning and execution of ecological and population dynamics studies of pelagic fishes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence used to advice fisheries managers and other stakeholders; responsible for the planning and execution of active acoustic studies with an emphasis on ecosystem research and the estimation of forage species biomass, distribution, trophic interactions and dynamics; responsible for the development of active acoustic science, technology and methodologies for the study of pelagic ecosystems; responsible for the planning and execution of passive acoustic studies concerning the impact of various sources of anthropogenic noise on the disturbance and potential harm to marine mammals.

Current research and/or projects

Mr. Ian McQuinn joined the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in 1983, as a biologist working on pelagic fish in the Quebec Region. He was Section Head for pelagic fish between 1991 and 2001, when he acquired an expertise in active and passive hydroacoustics, including the development of recording instrumentation, survey techniques and analysis software.

Mr. McQuinn has been heavily involved in the ICES Fisheries Acoustics Science and Technology Working Group since the early 1990s. Mr. McQuinn worked for many years on ecological and population dynamic studies and the assessment of fish stocks in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Since 1996, his work in hydroacoustics has led him into the study of vessel noise, principally in relation to avoidance of fish to survey vessels, measuring various sources of anthropogenic noise, such as seismic surveys and vessel traffic, and understanding their impact on marine mammal behaviour and disturbance. More recent research has been concentrated on zooplankton abundance and distribution in relation to baleen whale habitat description.

Education and awards

B. Sc., Dalhousie University, 1977

International experience and/or work

  • Member of the ICES Working Group for Fisheries Acoustics Science and Technology (WGFAST), 1995 - present;
  • Session co-chair for the ICES Symposium on Zooplankton Productivity, Bergen, Norway, 2016.
  • Member of the ICES Working Group on Small Pelagic Fishes, their Ecosystems and Climate Impact (WGSPEC), 2014 - present;
  • Member of the ICES Planning Group on the Common Data Exchange Format (PGHAC), 2001 - present;
  • Invited co-chair of the ICES Workshop on Testing the Entrainment Hypothesis (WKTEST), Nantes, France, 2007.
  • Topic Group Chairman for the ICES Working Group for Fisheries Acoustics Science and Technology (WGFAST), Hobart, Australia, 2006.
  • Topic Group Chairman for the ICES Working Group for Fisheries Acoustics Science and Technology (WGFAST), Gdynia, Poland, 2004.
  • Session Chairman for the ICES Symposium on Acoustics in Fisheries and Aquatic Ecology, Montpellier, France, 2002.
  • Project leader in collaboration with Tunisia within the « Programme de Renforcement Institutionnel Canadien en Tunisie » (PRICAT);
  • Invited scientist by IFREMER (France) on the PEL2000 survey of the Bay of Biscay (17 April - 2 May, 2000) aboard the R\V Thalassa as an expert on hydroacoustic surveys for pelagic fishes.

Key publications

List of publications

Chion, C., Lagrois, D., Dupras, J., Turgeon, S., McQuinn, I.H., Michaud, R., Ménard, N., and Parrott, L. 2017. Underwater acoustic impacts of shipping management measures: Results from a social-ecological model of boat and whale movements in the St. Lawrence River Estuary (Canada). Ecol. Model. 354: 72-87. 

Jech, J. M., and McQuinn, I. H. 2016. Towards a balanced presentation and objective interpretation of acoustic and trawl survey data, with specific reference to the eastern Scotian Shelf. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences: 1-8.

Maps, F., Plourde, S., McQuinn, I. H., St-Onge-Drouin, S., Lavoie, D., Chassé, J., and Lesage, V. 2015. Linking acoustics and finite-time Lyapunov exponents reveals areas and mechanisms of krill aggregation within the Gulf of St. Lawrence, eastern Canada. Limnology and Oceanography, 60: 1965-1975.

McQuinn, I. H., Plourde, S., St-Pierre, J.-F., and Dion, M. 2015. Spatial and temporal variations in the abundance, distribution and aggregation of krill (Thysanoessa raschii and Meganyctiphanes norvegica) in the lower estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence. Progress in Oceanography, 131: 159-176.

McQuinn, I. H., Dion, M. and St.-Pierre, J.-F. 2013. The acoustic multifrequency classification of two sympatric euphausiid species (Meganyctiphanes norvegica and Thysanoessa raschii) with empirical and SDWBA-model validation. ICES Journal of Marine Science, doi:10.1093/icesjms/fstoo4.

Plourde, S., McQuinn, I. H., Maps, F., St-Pierre, J. F., Lavoie, D. and Joly, P. 2013. Daytime depth and thermal habitat of two sympatric krill species in response to surface salinity variability in the Gulf of St Lawrence, eastern Canada. ICES Journal of Marine Science, doi:10.1093/icesjms/fst023.

Maps, F., Plourde, S., Lavoie, D., McQuinn, I. H. and Chassé, J. 2013. Modelling the influence of daytime distribution on the transport of two sympatric krill species (Thysanoessa raschii and Meganyctiphanes norvegica) in the Gulf of St Lawrence, eastern Canada. ICES Journal of Marine Science, doi:10.1093/icesjms/fst021.

McQuinn, I.H., Lesage, V., Carrier, D., Larrivée, G., Samson, Y., Chartrand, S., Michaud, R., and Theriault, J. (2011). A threatened beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) population in the traffic lane: vessel-generated noise characteristics of the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park, Canada. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 130(6): 3661-3673

Petitgas, P., Secor, D., McQuinn, I., Huse, G., and Lo, N. (2010). Stock collapses and their recovery: mechanisms that establish and maintain life-cycle closure in space and time. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 67: 1841-1848.

McQuinn, I.H. (2009). Pelagic fish outburst or suprabenthic habitat occupation: legacy of the Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) collapse in eastern Canada. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 66:2256-2262.

McQuinn, I.H. and P. Nellis. 2007. An acoustic-trawl survey of upper St. Lawrence estuary demersal fishes to investigate the effects of dredged sediment disposal on Atlantic and lake sturgeon distribution Pages 257 – 271 in J. Munro, D. Hatin, K. McKown, J. Hightower, K. J. Sulak, A. W. Kahnle, and F. Caron, editors. Anadromous Sturgeons: habitats, threats, and management. American Fisheries Society Symposium 56, Bethesda, Maryland.

Charrier, G., S.H. Coombs, I.H. McQuinn, J. Laroche. 2007. Genetic structure of whiting (Merlangius merlangus) in the North East Atlantic and adjacent waters. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 330: 201-211.

McQuinn, I.H. and Carrier D. 2005. Far-field Measurements of Seismic Airgun Array Pulses in the Nova Scotia Gully Marine Protected Area. Can. Tech. Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 2615: v + 20 p.  

McQuinn, I. H., Simard, Y., Stroud, T. W. F., Beaulieu, J-L., and Walsh, S. J. 2005. An adaptive, integrated “acoustic-trawl” survey design for Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) with estimation of the acoustic and trawl dead zones. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 62:93-106.

McQuinn, I.H. and P.D. Winger. 2003. Tilt angle and target strength: target tracking of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) during trawling. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 60(3):575-583.

Hay, D. E., Toreson, R., Stephenson, R., Thompson, M., Claytor, R., Funk, F., Ivshina, E., Jakobsson, J., Kobayashi, T., McQuinn, I., Melvin, G., Molloy, J., Naumenko, N., Oda, K. T., Parmanne, R., Power, M., Radchenko, V., Schweigert, J., Simmonds, J., Sjöstrand, B., Stevenson, D. K., Tanasichuk, R., Tang, Q., Watters, D. L. and Wheeler, J. 2001. Taking stock: an inventory and review of world herring stocks in 2000. In Herring: expectations for a new millennium. pp 800. Ed. by F. Funk, J. Blackburn, D. Hay et al. University of Alaska Sea Grant. Fairbanks, Alaska.

McQuinn, I.H. 1997a. Metapopulations and the Atlantic herring. Rev. Fish Biol. Fish. 7:297-329.

McQuinn, I.H. 1997b. Year-class twinning in sympatric seasonal spawning populations of Atlantic herring Clupea harengus. Fishery Bulletin 95:126-136.

McQuinn, I.H., L. Cleary et R.N. O’Boyle. 1990. Estimation de la mortalité naturelle. Dans Méthodes d’évaluation des stocks halieutiques. J.-C. Brêthes et R.N. O’Boyle (éd.), Projet CIEO-860060, Centre international d’exploitation de océans, Halifax (Nouvelle-Écosse, Canada), 963 p.

McQuinn, I.H., L. Cleary et R.N. O’Boyle. 1990. La relation stock-recrue. Dans Méthodes d’évaluation des stocks halieutiques. J.-C. Brêthes et R.N. O’Boyle (éd.), Projet CIEO-860060, Centre international d’exploitation de océans, Halifax (Nouvelle-Écosse, Canada), 963 p.

McQuinn, I.H. 1989. Identification of spring- and autumn-spawning herring (Clupea harengus harengus L.) using maturity stages assigned from a gonadosomatic index model. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 46(6): 969-980.

McQuinn, I.H., L. Gendron and J.H. Himmelman. 1988. Area of attraction and effective area fished by a whelk (Buccinum undatum L.) trap under variable conditions. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 45(12):2054-2060.

McQuinn, I.H., G.J. FitzGerald and H. Powles. 1983. Environmental effects on embryos and larvae of the Isle Verte stock of Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus harengus). Le naturaliste Canadien, 110(3):344-355.