Jeremy Dykstra

Jeremy is a 3rd Year Honours Integrated Science, Biology Concentration student.  He joined ABEL this winter term of 2024.  He will be working on critical thermal maximum experiments with the Round Goby (Neogobius melanostomus) juveniles as a project student. He joins PhD student, Sina Zarini who is investigating movement ecology among juvenile round gobies. During the following summer and 2024/25 school year he will conduct my thesis in the ABEL Lab under the supervision of Dr. Sigal Balshine and Dr. Grant Mcclelland. His thesis is geared around the France Canada Research Grant which intends to investigate the constraining factors that affect the invasion and range expansion of the round goby. Phenotypic competition and plasticity will be examined through a variety of experiments. This project will compare data across continents, in both Canada and France, to better understand the invasion strategies of the round goby.

Jeremy has a passion for ecophysiology in marine organisms, in the context of human impacts and climate change. He is interested in developing more environmentally friendly, efficient, and welfare-focused food production systems, specifically in the field of aquaculture. With a growing demand for food worldwide, new approaches and methods to produce fish and marine organisms are becoming ever more important. He is also passionate about being involved in his local community and giving back as an Emergency Medical Responder on the Emergency First Response Team (EFRT) at McMaster University. In his free time, Jeremy enjoys spending time outdoors, biking, and scuba diving.