I'm a Supervisory Fish Biologist working across center branches (Deepwater, Restoration and Conservation), supervising employees at two stations: The Lake Ontario Biological Station in Oswego NY, and the Tunison Laboratory of Aquatic Science in Cortland NY.
In my current role as supervisor of the Tunison – Lake Ontario Biological stations I am the administrative lead for 14 federal 10 contract scientists and technicians working on a variety of native species restoration and invasive species science topics. This current position builds on my former role as a Supervisory Research Fish biologist working on native salmonine and coregonine species restoration and conservation while supervising the Lake Ontario Biological Station (LOBS). LOBS is in the Deepwater branch for the Great Lakes Science Center (GLFC) and is home to the 70ft RV Kaho. The Tunison laboratory for Aquatic Science (TLAS) is in the Restoration and Conservation branch of GLSC and is an experimental facility with two large wet laboratories used recently to support coregonine and Atlantic salmon restoration. The two facilities were combined administratively in the summer of 2022 in anticipation of major renovations for TLAS and to foster synergy between the two offices less than two hours apart in central NY. The synergy between the two stations will build upon the existing programs and partnerships at LOBS and its access to Lake Ontario and the ability to stand up controlled laboratory experiments at the TLAS. My role is to provide leadership and support to restructuring science staff at both locations, hiring new staff, supporting major facilities initiatives, and fostering a new culture that embraces realignment of the research to support the high priority restoration and conservation science decided upon in collaboration between USGS and the regional management agencies and decision makers.
Professional Experience
Sep 2022 - present, Supervisory Fish Biologist (GS 13), Tunison - Lake Ontario Biological Stations (TLOBS), Oswego and Cortland NY.
Apr 2017 - Nov 2018, Acting Eastern Basin Branch Chief (GS-14) - USGS Lake Ontario Biological Station, Oswego NY.
Nov 2008- Sep 2022, Supervisory Research Fishery Biologist (GS-13) - USGS Lake Ontario Biological Station, Oswego NY.
April 2008-Nov 2008, Acting Station Supervisor (GS-13) - USGS Lake Ontario Biological Station, Oswego NY.
Nov 2005-Nov 2008, Research Fishery Biologist (GS-12) - USGS Lake Ontario Biological Station, Oswego NY.
Nov 2001- Nov 2005, Research Fishery Biologist (GS-11) - USGS Lake Ontario Biological Station, Oswego NY.
Jul 1997 - Nov 2001, Biologist, Aquatic - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Cape Vincent NY.
Education and Certifications
Environmental and Forest Biology / Aquatic Ecology Ph.D. May 1997, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Environmental and Forest Biology / Aquatic Ecology M.S. December 1991, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Environmental and Forest Biology / Fisheries Science B.S. December 1988, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Applied Science A.A.S. Dec. 1986, Herkimer County Community College
Affiliations and Memberships*
International Association for Great Lakes Research
American Fisheries Society
New York Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
Science and Products
Science pages by this scientist
Foundations for Future Restoration Actions: Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative - Lake Ontario, 2018
Aquatic Native Species and Habitat Restoration: Cisco Spawning Habitat Assessment
Publications by this scientist
A comparison of stable isotopes and polychlorinated biphenyls 1 among genetic strains of Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush)
Field and laboratory validation of new sampling gear to quantify coregonine egg deposition and larval emergence across spawning habitat gradients
Factors influencing egg thiamine concentrations of Lake Ontario lake trout: 2019–2020
Lake Ontario August gillnet survey and Lake Trout assessment, 2022
Diversity in spawning habitat use among Great Lakes Cisco populations
Balancing prey availability and predator consumption: A multispecies stock assessment for Lake Ontario
Bioaccumulation of perfluoroalkyl substances in a Lake Ontario food web
Results of the collaborative Lake Ontario bloater restoration stocking and assessment, 2012–2020
Evaluation of post-stocking dispersal and mortality of juvenile lake trout Salvelinus namaycush in Lake Ontario using acoustic telemetry
Great Lakes lake trout thiamine monitoring program annual report
Thiamine status of lake trout in lake Ontario and its relation to diet after the colonization of round goby, 2005–2006
Lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) rehabilitation in Lake Ontario, 2021
News about this scientist
Science and Products
- Science
Science pages by this scientist
Foundations for Future Restoration Actions: Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative - Lake Ontario, 2018
Environmental organizations from the United States and Canada have teamed up each year, as part of the Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative (CSMI) program, to assess conditions in one of the five Great Lakes. . Each year, the survey focuses on a series of research areas, such as phosphorus and nitrogen input and movement through the food web, phytoplankton and zooplankton populations, and...Aquatic Native Species and Habitat Restoration: Cisco Spawning Habitat Assessment
Cisco (formerly known as Lake Herring) Coregonus artedi are native shallow water coregonines which were formerly very abundant in the Great Lakes and provided large commercial fisheries and healthy prey to native piscivores. In most areas outside of Lake Superior, cisco abundance is greatly reduced and in Lakes Ontario and Erie they are uncommon to rare. - Multimedia
- Publications
Publications by this scientist
Filter Total Items: 70A comparison of stable isotopes and polychlorinated biphenyls 1 among genetic strains of Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush)
This study quantified stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotopes, polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations and growth rates among multiple genetic strains of Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) to evaluate the potential role of genetics in these parameters. Fish ranging in age from 1 to 31 years (n = 72) and representing nine genetic strains including wild-recruits to hatcheAuthorsNicole E. Saavedra, N. Roxanna Razavi, Donald J. Stewart, Brian F. Lantry, Gordon PatersonField and laboratory validation of new sampling gear to quantify coregonine egg deposition and larval emergence across spawning habitat gradients
The influence of habitat and environmental conditions on Great Lakes coregonine reproduction is not well described, in part, because we lack sampling gears for early life stages that are effective across habitats. We designed new egg and larval emergence traps to quantify coregonine reproductive success across variable depths and substrates and tested them in laboratory and field settings. In theAuthorsBrian C. Weidel, Cameron Davis, Brian O'Malley, Hannah Lachance, Christopher Osborne, Alexander J. Gatch, Stacy Furgal, Gregg Mackey, Marc Chalupnicki, Nicholas Sard, Aaron C. Heisey, Michael Connerton, Brian F. LantryFactors influencing egg thiamine concentrations of Lake Ontario lake trout: 2019–2020
In the Great Lakes region, thiamine deficiency is considered a recruitment bottleneck for lake trout Salvelinus namaycush and has been correlated with the consumption of non-native alewife Alosa pseudoharengus. While alewife, the most abundant forage fish in Lake Ontario, are the predominant prey for lake trout, they also consume benthic prey such as round goby Neogobius melanostomus. Because variAuthorsAaron Heisey, Christopher Osborne, Brian F. Lantry, Donald E. Tillitt, Jacques RinchardLake Ontario August gillnet survey and Lake Trout assessment, 2022
Lake Ontario Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush) rehabilitation has been annually assessed with fishery independent surveys since 1983, in an effort to evaluate program benchmarks and compare observations with management objectives. These surveys provide information on the abundance, strain composition, and condition of the adult Lake Trout stock, as well as information on levels of natural recruitmAuthorsBrian O'Malley, Brian F. Lantry, Scott P. Minihkeim, James Duncan Mckenna, Jessica A. Goretzke, Alexander J. Gatch, Dimitry GorskyDiversity in spawning habitat use among Great Lakes Cisco populations
Cisco (Coregonus artedi) once dominated fish communities in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Restoring the abundance and distribution of this species has emerged as a management priority, yet our understanding of Cisco spawning habitat use is insufficient to characterise habitat needs for these populations and assess whether availability of suitable spawning habitat could be a constraint to recovery. WAuthorsMatthew R. Paufve, Suresh Sethi, Brian C. Weidel, Brian F. Lantry, Daniel Yule, Lars G. Rudstam, Jory L. Jonas, Eric K. Berglund, Michael J. Connerton, Dimitry Gorsky, Matthew Herbert, Jason SmithBalancing prey availability and predator consumption: A multispecies stock assessment for Lake Ontario
Trophic interactions are drivers of ecosystem change and stability, yet are often excluded from fishery assessment models, despite their potential capacity to improve estimates of species dynamics and future fishery sustainability. In Lake Ontario, recreational salmonine fisheries, including Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush), depend on a single prey spAuthorsKimberly B. Fitzpatrick, Brian C. Weidel, Michael J. Connerton, Jana R. Lantry, Jeremy P. Holden, Michael J. Yuille, Brian F. Lantry, Steven R. LaPan, Lars G. Rudstam, Patrick J. Sullivan, Travis O. Brenden, Suresh SethiBioaccumulation of perfluoroalkyl substances in a Lake Ontario food web
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of synthetic chemicals detected throughout the environment. To better understand the distribution of PFAS in an aquatic system (the Laurentian Great Lakes), stable isotope enrichment (δ13C and δ15N), fatty acid (FA) profiles, and PFAS were measured in various species from the Lake Ontario (LO) aquatic food web. Sampled organisms included top pAuthorsJunda Ren, Adam Point, Sadjad Fakouri Baygi, Sujan Fernando, Philip K. Hopke, Thomas M. Holsen, Brian F. Lantry, Brian C. Weidel, Bernard S. CrimminsResults of the collaborative Lake Ontario bloater restoration stocking and assessment, 2012–2020
Bloater, Coregonus hoyi, are deepwater planktivores native to the Laurentian Great Lakes and Lake Nipigon. Interpretations of commercial fishery time series suggest they were common in Lake Ontario through the early 1900s but by the 1950s were no longer captured by commercial fishers. Annual bottom trawl surveys that began in 1978 and sampled extensively across putative bloater habitat only yieldeAuthorsBrian C. Weidel, Amanda Susanne Ackiss, Marc Chalupnicki, Michael Connerton, Steve Davis, John M. Dettmers, Timothy Drew, Aaron T. Fisk, Roger Gordon, S. Dale Hanson, Jeremy Holden, Mark E. Holey, James H. Johnson, Timothy B. Johnson, Colin Lake, Brian F. Lantry, Kevin K. Loftus, Gregg (Contractor) E Mackey, James E. McKenna, Michael J. Millard, Scott P. Minihkeim, Brian O'Malley, Andrew C. Todd, Steven Lapan, Adam RupnikEvaluation of post-stocking dispersal and mortality of juvenile lake trout Salvelinus namaycush in Lake Ontario using acoustic telemetry
Wild reproduction by stocked lake trout Salvelinus namaycush in Lake Ontario has yet to produce a self-sustaining population, requiring a reliance on stocking. Once released, age-1 juvenile lake trout are not typically surveyed until age-2, creating a gap in knowledge of fine-scale post-release behaviors. A method to track fine-scale movements and estimate mortality of juvenile lake trout could coAuthorsAlexander J. Gatch, Stacy L. Furgal, Dimitry Gorsky, J. Ellen Marsden, Zy F. Biesinger, Brian F. LantryGreat Lakes lake trout thiamine monitoring program annual report
The U.S. Geological Survey’s Great Lakes Science Center (GLSC), Eastern Ecological Science Center, and Columbia Environmental Research Center (CERC), and the State University of New York (SUNY) Brockport have conducted in collaboration with partner agencies a cooperative program to monitor thiamine concentrations in lake trout eggs since the late 1990s. In 2021, egg thiamine concentrations were hiAuthorsJacques Rinchard, Thomas Blowers, Brian F. LantryThiamine status of lake trout in lake Ontario and its relation to diet after the colonization of round goby, 2005–2006
A predominance of alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus), a species having high thiaminase activity, in Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) diets, has been related to thiamine deficiency in lake trout eggs during 1994–2004. The late 1990s invasion by round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), that appear to have thiaminase activity of low biological activity, represented a potential to reduce the diAuthorsJohn D. Fitzsimons, Brian F. Lantry, Dale C. Honeyfield, Robert O'Gorman, Scott A. Rush, Shawn P. SitarLake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) rehabilitation in Lake Ontario, 2021
Each year we report on the progress toward rehabilitation of the Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) population, including the results of stocking, annual assessment surveys, creel surveys, and evidence of natural reproduction observed from standard surveys performed by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). The catch per unitAuthorsBrian F. Lantry, Brian C. Weidel, Scott P. Minihkeim, Michael Connerton, Jessica A Goretzke, Dimitry Gorsky, Christopher Osborne - News
News about this scientist
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government