Jenni McDermid

 Research Associate      

Jenni McDermid joins WCS Canada in January 2007 as a Fisheries Research Associate working out of Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Jenni has concentrated her research on the diversity, management, and conservation of freshwater fish species across North America.

Jenni received a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Winnipeg, with her undergraduate research focusing on identifying the relationships and status of species within the lake whitefish complex.

For her PhD, Jenni examined the magnitude and mechanisms affecting variation in lake trout, a popular sport fish with a wide distribution across North American.

 Lake trout are particularly ill prepared to face the 21st century because they are a cold water species with lengthy generation times that inhabit lake with low productivity, therefore they are quite vulnerable to over-fishing, climate change, and introduced species.  Jenni examined variation across the species’ range and within small geographic areas to predict potential impacts and identify the adaptive potential of lake trout to future challenges.  She is presently awaiting the defense of her PhD in Zoology at the University of Toronto.

In her new position with WCS Canada, Jenni will become increasingly involved in conservation initiatives to examine threats to the biodiversity and viability of freshwater fishes.  She is excited to have the chance to work in relatively pristine habitats, and to determine how best to protect and preserve freshwater fish populations as they confront the many challenges (i.e. over-fishing of top predators, introduction of sport or bait fish, and changes in habitat as the result of logging in the nearby areas) that often come along with increased accessibility to remote areas.