Andy DanylchukAndy Danylchuk

Professor of Fish Conservation

Email: danylchuk

Phone: 413-545-2940

Office: Room 304 Holdsworth Hall

Lab Page: Fish Forward

Primary Interests

The overarching theme of Dr. Danylchuk’s research is to understand the factors that naturally influence the life history and ecology of fishes and other aquatic organisms, as well as how natural and anthropogenic disturbances can influence the dynamics of their populations.His work spans both marine and freshwater systems, and includes stress physiology, behavioral ecology, spatial ecology, predator-prey interactions, and adaptations in life history traits as a response to disturbance.Much of Dr. Danylchuk’s research focuses on evaluating the potential impacts of recreational angling on fish populations, and working with stakeholder groups to develop best practices for the recreational angling community.Some of this work involves the use of telemetry and associated emerging technologies to understand the ways fish function under ‘normal’ and disturbed conditions, and combines the results of these studies with laboratory and field manipulations to identity specific mechanistic causes of stress in fish. Dr. Danylchuk is also interested in sustainable aquaculture and the development of integrated food production models as a mechanism to reduce impacts on fish stocks and local, regional, and global ecosystems. He is also a strong proponent of experiential, hands-on opportunities that can enhance learning for students of all ages.

Current Research Areas

  • Spatial ecology, physiological stress response, and post-release behavior and survival of coastal fishes following recreational angling, including bonefish, great barracuda, striped bass, red drum, sea-run brook trout, and sharks
  • Impacts of climate change on fish and aquatic ecosystems, especially in conjunction with other stressors such as land use and recreational angling
  • Development of “best practices” for the conservation and management of recreational fisheries
  • Video media for science communication

Current Graduate Student/Post Doctoral Projects

Spatial ecology of permit in the Florida Keys.  Dr. Jake Brownscombe (Carleton U/UMass/BTT)

Spatial ecology of Atlantic tarpon in the Western Atlantic.  Lucas Griffin, (UMass/BTT)

Spatial ecology and disturbance of green sea turtles.  Lucas Griffin, PhD candidate (UMass – IMS)

Ecology of juvenile bonefish in The Bahamas.  Chris Haak, PhD candidate (UMass-IMS)

Spatial ecology and population dynamics of bonefish in Anaa Atoll.  Alex Filous, PhD student (UMass-Indify)

Electromagnetic sensitivity of elasmobranchs.  Kate McClellan-Press, PhD candidate (UMass-IMS/IGERT)

Marine spatial planning of offshore wind development.  Kendra Ryan, PhD candidate (UMass-IMS/IGERT)

Determinants of exhaustion in fishes.  Peter Holder, PhD student (Carleton U/UMass)

Spatial ecology of elasmobranchs in Buck Island National Monument.  Grace Casselberry, MS student (UMass-IMS)

Modelling detection efficiency of acoustic telemetry in coral reef ecosystems.  Roxann Cormier, MS student (UMass)

Response of steelhead to catch-and-release recreational angling.  Will Twardek, MS student (Carleton/UMass)

Spatial ecology of northern diamondback terrapins in Wellfleet, MA.  Matt Bolus, MS student (UMass)

Courses Taught

NRC 260 Fish Conservation & Management
NRC 570 Fish Ecology (included lab)
ECO 697RF  Recreational Fisheries Science and Conservation

Recent Publications

Book:

Webb, J.B., C. Hollingsworth, and A.J. DanylchukIn Prep.  Farming Freshwater Fish: Small-scale Sustainable Aquaculture Systems.  Storey Publishing, North Adams, MA, USA.

Book Chapters:

Bower, S.D., Raghavan, R., Mahesh, N., Danylchuk A.J., Cooke, S.J.  Inter-sectoral fisheries governance issues and solutions on the Cauvery River, India. In: A.M. Song, S.D. Bower, P. Onyango, S.J. Cooke, R. Chuenpagdee (Eds.), Inter-Sectoral Governance of Inland Fisheries. TBTI Publication Series, St John’s, NL, Canada.

Bower, S.D., Nguyen, V.M., Danylchuk, A.J., Beard Jr., T.D., and S.J. Cooke.  2014.  Inter-sectoral conflict and recreational fisheries of the developing world: Opportunities and challenges for co-operation. In: McConney, P., R. Medeiros and M. Pena. Eds. 2014. Enhancing Stewardship in Small-Scale Fisheries: Practices and Perspectives. Too Big To Ignore (TBTI) and Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies, The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados. CERMES Technical Report No. 73.

Murchie, K.J., A.J. Danylchuk, S.J. Cooke, A.C. O’Toole, A. Shultz, C. Haak, E. Brooks, and C.D. Suski.  2012.  Considerations for tagging and tracking fish in tropical coastal habitats: lessons from bonefish, barracuda, and sharks tagged with acoustic transmitters.  American Fisheries Society Special Publication – Handbook of Fish Telemetry. Bethesda, MD. pp. 389-412.

Danylchuk, A.J., et al.  2012. In Fishes of Wisconsin E-book. Wisc. Dep. Nat. Resources, Madison, and U.S. Geological Survey, Middleton, WI. http://www.fow-ebook.us.

Danylchuk, A.J et al.  2011. in The angler in the Environment: social, economic, biological, and ethical dimensions.  American Fisheries Society Symposium 75.

Refeered Journal Articles:

Markowitz, E.M., A.J. Danylchuk, M.C. Nisbet and S.I. Engelbourg.  In Press.  What’s that buzzing noise? Public opinion on the use of drones for conservation science.  BioScience 00:000-000.

Gallagher, A.J., N. Hammerschlag, A.J. Danylchuk and S.J. Cooke.  In Press.  Shark recreational fisheries: status, challenges, and research needs.  Ambio. 00:000-000

Cooke, S.J., R.J. Lennox, S.D. Bower, A.Z. Horodysky, M.K. Treml, E. Stoddard, L.A. Donaldson and A.J. Danylchuk. In Press.  Fishing in the dark – the science and management of recreational fisheries at night.  Bulletin of Marine Science. 00:000-000.

Gutowsky, L.F.G., Stoot, L.J., Cairns, N.A., Thiem, J.D., Brownscombe, J.W., Danylchuk, A.J., Blouin-Demers, G., Cooke, S.J.  In Press.  Biologgers reveal post-release behavioural impairments of freshwater turtles following interactions with fishing nets. Animal Conservation 00:000-000.

Danylchuk, A.J., J. Tiedemann, and S.J. Cooke.  2017.  Perceptions of recreational fisheries conservation within the fishing industry: knowledge gaps and learning opportunities identified at east coast trade shows in the United States.  Fisheries Research 186:681-687.

Cooke, S.J., A.J. Gallagher, N.M. Sopinka, V.M. Nguyen, R.A. Skubel, N. Hammerschlag, S. Boon, N. Young, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2017.  Considerations for effective science communication. FACETS 2:233-248.

Bower, S.D., A.J. Danylchuk, R. Raghavan, S. Clark Danylchuk, A.C. Pinder, A.M. Alter, and S.J. Cooke.  2017.  Involving recreational fisheries stakeholders in development of research and conservation priorities for mahseer (Tor spp.) of India through collaborative workshops. Fisheries Research 186:665-671.

Kerr S.M., T.D. Ward, R.J. Lennox, J.W. Brownscombe, J.M. Chapman, L.F.G. Gutowsky, J.M. Logan, W.M. Twardek, C.K. Elvidge, A.J. Danylchuk, and S.J. Cooke.  2017.  Influence of hook type and live bait on the hooking performance of inline spinners in the context of catch-and-release brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis fishing in lakes.  Fisheries Research 186:642-647.

Brownscombe, J.W., A.J. Danylchuk, J.M. Chapman, L.F.G. Gutowsky, and S.J. Cooke.  2017. Best practices for catch-and-release recreational fisheries – angling tools and tactics. Fisheries Research 186:693-705.

Gagne, T.O., K.L. Ovitz, L.P. Griffin, J.W. Brownscombe, S.J. Cooke, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2017.  Evaluating the consequences of catch-and-release recreational angling on golden dorado (Salminus brasiliensis) in Salta, Argentina.  Fisheries Research. 186:625-633.

Hollema, H.M., J. Kneebone, S.D. McCormick, G.B. Skomal, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2017.  Movement patterns of striped bass (Morone saxatilis) in a tidal coastal embayment in New England.  Fisheries Research. 187:168-177.

Becker, S.L., J.T. Finn, A.J. Danylchuk, C.G. Pollock, Z. Hillis-Starr, I. Lundgren, and A. Jordaan.  2016.  Influence of detection history and analytical tools on quantifying the spatial ecology of a predatory fish in a marine protected area.  Marine Ecology Progress Series 562:147-161.

McClellan Press, K., J. Mandelman, E. Burgess, S.J. Cooke, V.M. Nguyen, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2016.  Catching sharks: recreational saltwater angler behaviors and attitudes regarding shark encounters and conservation.  Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 26:689-702.

Gupta, N., S.D. Bower, S.J. Cooke, A.J. Danylchuk and R. Raghavan.  2016.  Practices and attitudes of Indian catch-and-release anglers: identifying opportunities for advancing the management of recreational fisheries.  Journal of Threatened Taxa 8:8659-8665

Snook, E.L., B.H. Letcher, T.L Dubreuil, J. Zydlewski, M.J. O’Donnell, A.R. Whiteley, S.T. Hurley, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2016.  Movement patterns of brook trout in a restored coastal stream systems in southern Massachusetts.  Ecology of Freshwater Fish 25:360-375.

Bower, S.D., A.J. Danylchuk, R. Raghavan, S. Clark-Danylchuk, A. Pinder, and S.J. Cooke.  2016.  Rapid assessment of the physiological impacts caused by catch-and-release angling on blue-finned mahseer (Tor sp.) of the Cauvery River, India. Fisheries Management and Ecology  23:208-217.

Thiem, J.D., J.W. Dawson, D. Hatin, A.J. Danylchuk, P. Dumont, A.C. Gleiss, R.P. Wilson and S.J. Cooke. 2016. Swimming activity and energetic costs of adult lake sturgeon during fishway passage. Journal of Experimental Biology. 219; 2534-2544.

Arlinghaus, R., S.J. Cooke, S.G. Sutton, A.J. Danylchuk, W. Potts, K. De M.F. Freire, J. Alos, E.T. Da Silva, I.G. Cowx, and R. Van Anrooy.  2016.  Recommendations for the future of recreational fisheries to prepare the social-ecological system to cope with change.  Fisheries Management and Ecology 23:177-186.

Cooke, S.J., Z.S. Hogan, P.A. Butcher, M.J.W. Stokesbury, R. Raghavan, A.J. Gallagher, N. Hammerschlag and A.J. Danylchuk.  2016.  Angling for endangered fish: Conservation problem or conservation action?  Fish and Fisheries 17:249-265.

Bower, S.D., A.J. Danylchuk, J.W. Brownscombe, J.D Thiem, and S.J. Cooke.  2016.  Evaluating consequences of catch-and-release angling on the physiological status of peacock bass (Cichla ocellaris) in Puerto Rico: A rapid assessment approach. Fisheries Research.  175:95-102.

Webb, J.B, E.R. Hart, C. Hollingsworth, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2015.  A small-scale recirculating aquaculture system for global aquaculture education and industry development. Journal of Applied Aquaculture. 27:331-341.

Murchie, K.J., S. Clark Danylchuk, A.J. Danylchuk, and S.J. Cooke.  2015.  Fish community and habitat assessments of three adjacent tidal creeks on Cape Eleuthera, The Bahamas.  Pages 67-80 in K.J. Murchie and P.P. Daneshgar (Eds.), Proceedings of the Second International Symposium on Mangroves as Fish Habitat. Mazatlán, Mexico.  American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Maryland.

Nowell, L.B., J.W. Brownscombe, L.F.G. Gutowsky, K.J. Murchie, C.D. Suski, A.J. Danylchuk, A. Shultz and S.J. Cooke.  2015.  Swimming energetics and thermal ecology of adult bonefish (Albula vulpes): A combined laboratory and field study in Eleuthera, The Bahamas.  Environmental Biology of Fishes  98:2133-2146.

Gupta, N., S.D. Bower, R. Raghavan, A.J. Danylchuk, and S.J. Cooke. 2015. Status of recreational fisheries in India: development, issues and opportunities.  Reviews in Fisheries Science and Aquaculture. 23:291-301.

Lennox, R.J., J.W. Brownscombe, S.J. Cooke, A.J. Danylchuk, P.S. Moro, E.A. Sanches, and D. Garonne-Neto. 2015. Evaluation of catch-and-release angling practices for the fat snook Centropomus parallelus in a Brazilian estuary. Ocean and Coastal Management. 113:1-7.

Thiem, J.D., J.W. Dawson, A.C. Gleiss, E.G. Martins, A. Haro, T. Castro-Santos, A.J. Danylchuk, R.P. Wilson and S.J. Cooke.  2015.  Accelerometer-derived activity correlates with volitional swimming speed in lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens).  Canadian Journal of Zoology 93: 645-654.

Brownscombe, J.W., A.D.M. Wilson, E. Samson, L. Nowell, S.J. Cooke and A.J. Danylchuk. 2015. Individual differences in activity and habitat selection of juvenile queen conch evaluated using acceleration biologgers. Endangered Species Research 27: 181-188.

Cull, F., C.M. O’Connor, C.D. Suski, A.D. Shultz, A.J. Danylchuk and S.J. Cooke.  2015.  Puff and bite: The relationship between the glucocorticoid stress response and anti-predator performance in checkered puffer (Sphoeroides testudineus).  General and Comparative Endocrinology  214:1-8.

Cull, F., C.D. Suski, A. Shultz, A.J. Danylchuk, C.M. O’Connor, K.J.  Murchie and S.J. Cooke.  2015.  Consequences of experimental cortisol manipulations on the thermal biology of the checkered puffer (Sphoeroides testudineus) in laboratory and field environments.  Journal of Thermal Biology 47:63-74.

Danylchuk, A.J., C.D. Suski, J.W. Mandelman, K.J. Murchie, C.R. Haak, A.M.L. Brooks, and S.J. Cooke.  2014.  Hooking injury, physiological status, and short-term mortality of juvenile lemon sharks (Negaprion bevirostris) following catch-and-release recreational angling.  Conservation Physiology 2:1-10.

Hart, E.R., James B. Webb, C. Hollingsworth, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2014.  Managing expectations for aquaponics in the classroom: enhancing academic learning and teaching an appreciation for aquatic resources.  Fisheries 39:525-530.

Brownscombe, J.W., L.F. Gutowsky, A.J. Danylchuk and S.J. Cooke.  2014.  Foraging behaviour and activity of a marine benthivorous fish estimated using tri-axial accelerometer biologgers. Marine Ecology Progress Series 505: 241-251.

Finn, J.T., J.W. Brownscombe, C.R. Haak, S.J. Cooke, R. Cormier, T. Gagne, and A.J. Danylchuk.  2014 Applying network methods to acoustic telemetry data: modeling the movements of tropical marine fishes. Ecological Modelling 293: 139-149.

Raby, G.D., J.R. Packer, A.J. Danylchuk, and S.J. Cooke. 2014. The understudied and underappreciated role of predation in the mortality of fish released from fishing gears. Fish and Fisheries 15: 489-505.

Brownscombe, J.W., L. Nowell, E. Samson, A.J. Danylchuk, and S.J. Cooke.  2014.  Fishing-related stressors inhibit refuge-seeking behavior in released sub-adult great barracuda, Sphyraena barracuda.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 143:613-617.

Pszekeres, P., J.W. Brownscombe, F. Cull, A.J. Danylchuk, A.D Shultz, C.D. Suski, K.J. Murchie, and S.J Cooke.  2014. Physiological and behavioral consequences of cold shock on bonefish (Albula vulpes) in The Bahamas.  Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 459:1-7.

Other Publications

Documentary Films

What We Fish For.  2015.  Producer; 59 min; Fish Navy Films.

Raising Shrimp.  2013.  Host and scientific advisor; 50 min.  Fish Navy Films.

Fish Meat.  2011.  Host and scientific advisor; 52 min.  Fish Navy Films.