Upcoming oral examinations

Student Supervisor Schedule & Location Title
Katie Innes, MSc Francis Juanes

Dec 13, 11AM

CLE B007

Feeding and bioenergetics of Chinook Salmon during the first winter at sea
Mackenzie Woods, MSc Francis Juanes

Dec 15, 1PM

CLE B007

The effects of anthropogenic noise on the behaviour and vocalizations of plainfin midshipman fish, Porichthys notatus
Eerik Piirtola, PhD Peter Constabel

Jan 11, 10:30AM

CLE B017

Chemistry and biochemistry of Populus leaf bud resin

2023 Summer

  • Chris Anderson(MSc, Bob Chow) Post-transcriptional regulation of Vsx1 in the developing mouse retina
  • Kaede Hirabayashi(MSc, Gregory Owens) Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) species origin and subspecies divergence through genome sequencing and assembly

2023 Spring

  • Claire McPolin(MSc, Barbara Hawkins) Ectomycorrhizal fungal endemism and rainforest nutrition in Pacific Northeast
  • Prathyusha Ravi Chander(MSc, Gatuam Awatramani) Orientation selectivity in the population of ON-OFF direction-selective ganglion cells in the mouse retina
  • Penny Young(MSc, Raad Nashmi) Investigating the Role of the Lateral Nigrostriatal Pathway in Modulating Voluntary Movement 

2022 Fall

  • Harley Gordon(PhD, Peter Constabel) Unexpected Connections: Salicinoid Biosynthesis in Poplar
  • Rhonda Reidy(PhD, Francis Juanes/ Laura Cowann) Fine-scale Prey and Foraging Behaviour of Humpback Whales in Southern British Columbia

2022 Summer

  • Hayley Barnes(MSc, John Taylor) A deep dive into the sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) opsin repertoire: insight into melanopsin expression, localization and function in an unlikely demersal model
  • Lise Nehring(MSc, Barbara Hawkins) Assessing the contribution of Red Alder (Alnus rubra) to forest stand nitrogen budgets
  • Alberto Ruiz de Chavez Ginzo(MSc, Bob Chow) The mechanism underlying bipolar cell subtype specificationThe mechanism underlying bipolar cell subtype specification

2022 Spring

  • Lia Chalifour(PhD, Julia Baum) Nearshore habitat use, estuarine residency, and conservation priorities for Pacific Salmon in the Fraser River, British Columbia
  • Camille Giuliano(MSc, Terri Lacourse) Holocene Fire Frequency and Links to Climate and Vegetation History on Pender Island, British Columbia, Canada 
  • Laura Hanson(PhD, Gautam Awatramani) Mechanisms and circuitry underlying direction selectivity in the mouse retina
  • Yalin Liu(MSc, Peter Constabel) CRISPR/Cas9 Mutation of MYB134 and MYB115 To Study Regulation and Functions of Proanthocyanidins in Poplar Roots

2021 Fall

  • Kieran Cox(PhD, Francis Juanes) Intertidal Resource Cultivation Over Millennia Structures Coastal Biodiversity

2021 Summer

  • Dominique Maucieri(MSc, Julia Baum) Impacts of local and global disturbances on coral biodiversity

2021 Spring

  • Kevin Bruce(MSc, Julia Baum) Application of structure-from-motion photogrammetry to quantify coral reef structural complexity change following a mass mortality event
  • Jillian Campbell(MSc, Francis Juanes) Examining the Influence of Depth and Tidal Current on Nearshore Fish Communities Using Scientific and Citizen Science Data
  • Garth Covernton(PhD, John Dower/ Sarah Dudas ) Microplastics in Coastal Marine Ecosystems: Some Methodological, Anthropogenic, and Ecological Considerations
  • Ainsley Fraser(MSc, Rana El-Sabaawi) Characterizing Phenotypic Diversity in Marine Populations of Threespine Sticklebacks
  • Audrey McPherson(MSc, Steve Perlman/ Paul Abram) Factors influencing the intriguing persistence of a Wolbachia symbiont in spotted wing Drosophila
  • Nicholas Planidin(MSc, Thomas Reimchen) Asymmetry in the lateral line of threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus: ecology, evolution and behaviour
  • Candice Powell(MSc, Steve Perlman) Fitness and transmission of a selfish X chromosome in female Drosophila testacea

2020 Fall

  • Gerry Gourlay(PhD, Peter Constabel/ Barbara Hawkins) Condensed tannins as in vivo antioxidants in Populus tremula x tremuloides
  • Hollie Johnson(MSc, Ben Koop) Northern Pike of North America: Population Genomics and Sex Determination
  • David Ma(PhD, Peter Constabel) Functional Characterization of Flavonoid R2R3-MYB Activators and Repressors Transcriptional Regulators in Poplar
  • Jenny Smith(MSc, Julia Baum) Herbivorous coral reef fish responses to local and global stressorsHerbivorous coral reef fish responses to local and global stressors
  • Kristina Tietjen(MSc, Julia Baum) Implications of heat stress and local human disturbance on early life stage corals
  • Marie Vance(PhD, Barbara Hawkins/ Patrick von Aderkas) Population genomics of a timberline conifer, subalpine larch (Larix lyallii Parl.)

2020 Summer

  • Andrea Coulter(PhD, Patrick von Aderkas) Condensed tannins as in vivo antioxidants in Populus tremula x tremuloides
  • Hollie Johnson(MSc, Ben Koop) Northern Pike of North America: Population Genomics and Sex Determination
  • David Ma(PhD, Peter Constabel) Functional Characterization of Flavonoid R2R3-MYB Activators and Repressors Transcriptional Regulators in Poplar

2020 Spring

  • Yuriko Carrington(PhD, Juergen Ehlting) Biochemistry and evolution of the shikimate dehydrogenase/quinate dehydrogenase gene family in plants
  • Geoffrey Osgood(PhD, Julia Baum) Chondrichthyan conservation in marine protected areas: Elucidating species associations in two chondrichthyan hotspots using non-invasive techniques

2019 Fall

  • Gerry Gourlay(PhD, Peter Constabel/ Barbara Hawkins) Condensed tannins as in vivo antioxidants in Populus tremula x tremuloides
  • Hollie Johnson(MSc, Ben Koop) Northern Pike of North America: Population Genomics and Sex Determination
  • David Ma(PhD, Peter Constabel) Functional Characterization of Flavonoid R2R3-MYB Activators and Repressors Transcriptional Regulators in Poplar
  • Jenny Smith(MSc, Julia Baum) Herbivorous coral reef fish responses to local and global stressorsHerbivorous coral reef fish responses to local and global stressors
  • Kristina Tietjen(MSc, Julia Baum) Implications of heat stress and local human disturbance on early life stage corals
  • Marie Vance(PhD, Barbara Hawkins/ Patrick von Aderkas) Population genomics of a timberline conifer, subalpine larch (Larix lyallii Parl.)

2019 Summer

  • Rhea Ashmead(MSc, Francis Choy) Purification of Human Recombinant Naglu from Sf9 cells and Uptake Studies with MPS IIIB Fibroblasts
  • Emily Campbell(MSc, Francis Juanes & Travis Gerwing) Passive Restoration and Non-Invasive Monitoring of Soft-Sediment Ecosystems on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada
  • Therese Frauendorf(PhD, Rana El-Sabaawi) The effects of climate change and introduced species on tropical island streams
  • Kathrina Harms(MSc, Louise Page) Surprise in a small package: foregut metamorphosis in the marine ectoparasitic snail Odostomia tenuisculpta (Family Pyramidellidae)
  • Rande Kannne(MSc, Geraldine Allen & Barbabra Hawkins) Phylogeographic patterns and migration history of Garry oak (Quercus garryana)
  • Piata Marques(PhD, Rana El-Sabaawi) Characterizing the effects of urbanization on stream biota using a trait-based approach

2019 Spring

  • Jacob Weil(MSc, Francis Juanes) Variability in the energy density of prey and its consequences for growth in juvenile Chinook Salmon
  • Kennedy Boateng(PhD, Drs. Barbara Hawkins & Peter Constabel) Red alder (Alnus rubra) defense mechanisms against western tent caterpillar (Malacosoma californicum) defoliation

2018 Fall

  • Matthew Adeleye(MSc, Terri Lacourse) A Multi-proxy Paleoecological Study of Anderson Fen, Central Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
  • Danielle Claar(PhD, Dr. Julia Baum) Coral Symbioses Under Stress: Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Coral-Symbiodinium Interactions
  • Caitlin Curtis(MSc, Dr. Steve Perlman) Genetics and ecology of an unusual sex ratio distorter in the booklouse Liposcelis sp.
  • Jennifer Magel(MSc, Dr. Julia Baum) Effects of heat stress and local human disturbance on the structure of coral reef ecosystems at multiple scales of biological organization
  • Monique Raap(MSc, Drs. Ben Koop & Helen Gurney-Smith) Anthropogenic modifications and their impacts on shellfish physiology

2018 Summer

  • Juan Aldana(PhD, Drs. Barbara Hawkins & John Russell) Resistance mechanisms to Didymascella thujina  (Durand) Maire in Thuja plicata  Donn ex D. Don, Thuja standishii  (Gord.) Carrière and Thuja standishii × plicata   
  • Nova Hanson(MSc, Dr. Louise Page) Developmental modularity in the adult feeding structures of the predatory gastropod, Amphissa columbiana (Neogastropoda; Columbellidae)
  • Lucianne Marshall(MSc, Dr. Diana Varela) Progression of Marine Phytoplankton Blooms and Environmental Dynamics from Sea- Ice Coverage to Open Waters in the coastal Arctic: Comparing experimental data with continuous cabled observations
  • Jillian McAllister(MSc, Dr. Patrick Gregory) Natural History of Common Gartersnakes (Thamnophis sirtalis) in East-Central British Columbia

2018 Spring

  • Kyle Beer(MSc, Dr. Terri Lacourse) Holocene Ecosystem Dynamics of a Central Vancouver Island Wetland: Development, Vegetation Change, and Carbon Accumulation
  • Mauricio Carrasquilla(PhD, Dr. Francis Juanes) Ecological importance of nearshore habitats to sustain small-scale fisheries
  • Graeme Keais(MSc, Dr. Steve Perlman) X Chromosome Drive in Drosophila testacea
  • Anastasia Litke(MSc, Dr. Bob Chow) Investigating the pathogenicity of missense mutations in VSX1 and their association with corneal dystrophies
  • Amanda McLaughlin(PhD, Dr. John Taylor) Na+ channels enhance low contrast signalling in the superior-coding direction-selective circuit
  • David Minkley(MSc, Dr. Ben Koop) Transposable Elements in the Salmonid Genome
  • Michael Minkley(MSc, Drs. Raad Nashmi & Patrick Walter) Ironing out the Pathophysiology of Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation (NBIA) -  Clinical Investigations and Disease Modelling Yield Novel Evidence of Systemic Dysfunction and Provide a Robust and Accurate Disease Model of NBIA
  • Amy Teffer(PhD, Dr. Francis Juanes) Impacts of cumulative thermal and fishery stressors and infection development on the health and survival of adult Pacific salmon during freshwater residence

2017 Fall

  • Aaron Eger(MSc, Dr. Julia Baum) The role of predators and species diversity in structuring marine ecosystems
  • Cameron Freshwater(PhD, Drs. Francis Juanes & Marc Trudel) Ecological drivers of variation in juvenile sockeye salmon marine migrations
  • Eric Rondeau(PhD, Dr. Ben Koop) Conserved synteny in the genomes of teleost fish aids in the rapid development of genomic tools to query fundamental biological and evolutionary questions
  • Debra Wertman(Msc, Drs. Steve Perlman & Kathy Bleiker)The light at the end of the tunnel: Photosensitivity in developing mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae)

2017 Summer

  • Erin Hornell(MSc, Dr. Brad Anholt) Diet dependent sex ratios in Tigriopus californicus: Evidence for environmental sex determination in a system with polygenic sex determination
  • Ramnique Ubhi(MSc, Dr. Barbara Hawkins) Nitrogen Form Uptake Capacities by Arbuscular Mycorrhizae and Ectomycorrhizae
  • Di Wu(MSc, Dr. Robert Chow) The role of Hh signaling in mouse retinal bipolar cell subtype development

2017 Spring

  • Jasem Estakr(MSc, Dr. Raad Nashmi) Cholinergic neurotransmission in different subregions of the substantia nigra differentially controls DA neuronal excitability and locomotion
  • Jamie McDevitt-Irwin(MSc, Dr. Julia Baum) The unseen world of coral reefs: impact of local and global stressors on coral microbiome community structure
  • Angeleen Olson(MSc, Drs. Francis Juanes & Margot Hessing-Lewis) Seagrass meadows as seascape nurseries for rockfish (Sebastes spp.): habitat adjacency impacts on recruitment and food webs
  • James Robinson(PhD, Dr. Julia Baum) Disentangling human degradation from environmental constraints: macroecological insights into the structure of coral reef fish and benthic communities
  • Anne Shaffer(PhD, Dr. Francis Juanes) Nearshore Restoration Associated with Large Dam Removal and Implications for Ecosystem Recovery and Conservation of Northeast Pacific Fish: Lessons Learned from the Elwha Dam Removal

2016 Fall

  • Annette Alber(PhD, Drs. Juergen Ehlting & Daniele Werck)
    Phenolic 3-hydroxylases in land plants: biochemical diversity and molecular evolution
  • Daniel Durston(MSc, Dr. Rana El-Sabaawi)
    How the evolution of bony traits influences resource interactions in threespine stickleback
  • Laura Kennedy(MSc, Drs. Rana El-Sabaawi & Francis Juanes)
     Eelgrass habitat as near-shore foraging grounds for juvenile Pacific salmon
  • Giulia Rossi(MSc, Dr. Verena Tunnicliffe)
    The reproductive and physiological condition of a deep-sea mussel (Bathymodiolus septemdierum Hashimoto & Okutani 1994) living in extremely acidic conditions
  • Philip-Edouard Shay(PhD, Drs. Peter Constabel & John A. Trofymow)
    The effects of condensed tannins, nitrogen and climate on decay, nitrogen mineralisation and microbial communities in forest tree leaf litter

2016 Summer

  • Brenna Collicutt(MSc, Drs. Francis Juanes & Sarah Dudas)
    The anthropogenic influence of shellfish aquaculture and microplastics on juvenile Pacific salmon on the east coast of Vancouver Island
  • Aharon Fleury (MSc, Dr. Francis Juanes)
    Reproductive biology and ecology of Pacific hagfish (Eptatretus stoutii) and Black hagfish (Eptatretus deani) off the coast of Vancouver Island, BC
  • Eric Hertz (PhD, Dr. Asit Mazumder)
    The drivers and implications of spatial and temporal variation in the feeding ecology of juvenile Chinook Salmon
  • Alex Hoggarth (MSc, Dr. Gautam Awatramani)
    Multiple Layers of Inhibition in the Direction Coding Circuit in Mouse Retina
  • Jessica Holden (MSc, Dr. Francis Juanes)
    Beach-cast deposition, food provision, and commercial harvesting of a non-indigenous seaweed, Mazzaella japonica, in Baynes Sound, British Columbia
  • Thomas Iwanicki (MSc, Dr. John Taylor)
    The visual opsins of the starry flounder (Platichthys stellatus), a new model for studying the physiological and molecular basis of fish vision and light sensitivity
  • Kim Kennedy (MSc, Dr. Rana El-Sabaawi)
    Exotic vs. Native: Global and urban investigations of leaf litter decay in streams
  • Jillian Lemmen (MSc, Dr. Terri Lacourse)
    Using Fossil Midges from Saltspring Island, British Columbia to Infer Changes in Temperature Over the Last 14,000 Years
  • Mary Toews (MSc, Dr. Francis Juanes)
    Managing human footprint with respect to its effects on large mammals: Implications of spatial scale, divergent responses and ecological thresholds

 

2016 Spring

  • Jackson Chu (PhD, Dr. Verena Tunnicliffe)
    Influence of Seasonally Variable Hypoxia on Epibenthic Communities in a Coastal Ecosystem, British Columbia, Canada
  • Justin Suraci (PhD, Drs. Michael Clinchy & Brad Anholt)
    Fear in Wildlife Food Webs: Large Carnivore Predation Risk Mediates the Impacts of a Mammalian Mesopredator

2015 Fall

  • Robert Bourdon (MSc, Drs. Sarah Dudas & Francis Juanes)
    The interactions of fish communities and shellfish aquaculture in Baynes Sound, British Columbia
  • Geoffrey de Rosenroll (MSc, Dr. Kerry Delaney)
    Low-frequency Stimulation Inducible Long-term Potentiation at the Accessory Olfactory Bulb to Medial Amygdala Synapse of the American Bullfrog
  • Phineas (Finn) Hamilton (PhD, Dr. Steve Perlman)
    Defensive symbiosis in Drosophila: from multiple infections to mechanism of defense
  • Mark Hanson (MSc, Dr. Steve Perlman)
    Immune  evolution in the Immigrans-Tripunctata clade of Drosophila
  • Christina Hodson (MSc, Dr. Steve Perlman)
    Genomic conflict over reproduction in a booklouse (Psocodea: Liposcelis): consequences of a maternally transmitted reproductive manipulator on host ecology and genetics
  • Lisa Rodgers (MSc, Dr. Asit Mazumder)
    Synthesis of Water Quality Data and Modeling Non-Point Loading in Four Coastal B.C. Watersheds: Implications for Lake and Watershed Health and Management
  • Hannah Westlake (MSc, Dr. Louise Page)
    A Comparative Immunohistochemical Study of the Neuromuscular Organization of Haliclystus ‘sanjuanensis’ and Manania handi (Cnidaria: Staurozoa)
  • Rebecca Westley (MSc, Drs. Peter Constabel & Barbara Hawkins)
    Investigating potential physiological roles of condensed tannins in roots of Populus: Localization and distribution in relation to nutrient ion uptake

2015 Summer

  • Kathleen Donaleshen (MSc, Drs. Patrick von Aderkas & Juergen Ehlting)
    Interaction Between the Seed-Chalcid Wasp, Megastigmus spermotrophus and its Host, Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
  • Erika Dort (MSc, Dr. Will Hintz)
    Reprogramming the expression of the double-stranded RNA mitovirus OnuMV1c from the mitochondria to the cytoplasm in the fungal pathogen Ophiostoma novo-ulmi
  • Samuel Ferguson (MSc, Dr. Louise Page)
    Ontogenetic Correlation Between Muscle and Nervous System Novelties in a Neritimorph Gastropod
  • Marcos Lagunas (MSc, Dr. Diana Varela)
    Expression and Activity of the Enzyme Nitrate Reductase in the Marine Diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana: Light and Nutrient Effects
  • Jennifer Long (MSc, Dr. Diana Varela)
    Shining a Light on Silica Production in the Oceans: Using a Fluorescent Tracer to Measure Silica Deposition in Marine Diatoms
  • Geoffrey Morris (MSc, Dr. Francis Choy)
    Purification and Uptake Studies of Recombinant Human N-α-D-Acetylglucosaminidase from Sf9 Insect Cells
  • Alicia Rippington (MSc, Drs. Sarah Dudas & Louise Page)
    Effects of temperature, salinity and food stress on larval growth and development in Olympia oysters, Ostrea lurida

2015 Spring

  • Laura Braden (PhD, Dr. Ben Koop and Simon Jones)
    Investigating the Molecular Basis for Resistance of the Sea Louse, Lepseophtheirus Salmonis, among Salmonids
  • Russell Chedgy (PhD, Dr. Peter Constabel)
    The role of BAHD acyltransferases in poplar (Populus spp.) secondary metabolism and synthesis of salicinoid phenolic glycosides
  • Lu Guan (PhD,Dr. John Dower)
    Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Larval Fish Assemblages in the Strait of Georgia
  • Daniel Bevan (MSc, Dr. John Dower)
    Spatiotemporal Variability in Fatty Acid Profiles of the Copepod Calanus Marshallae off the West Coast of Vancouver Island