McGill University
Postdoctoral fellow candidate
Supervisor: Murray Humphries
Start: 2019-09-01
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Project

Winter ecology, seasonality, and resource availability of fish and wildlife in Nunavik
Winter research has been long-neglected by ecologists. Although the extreme and seasonally-changing environmental conditions at high latitudes are well described, there is surprisingly little data on how different taxa respond to this seasonal variation. The overall goal of the proposed research is to test the hypothesis that differentiation in the seasonal responses of wildlife species contributes to the maintenance of biodiversity and defines the seasonal contributions of wildlife to the country food system. Every species is affected by seasonality, but their differential responses may account for niche partitioning and species coexistence in unproductive northern environments. The country food system involves the harvest and consumption of locally-available wildlife and is a primary source of nutrition, culture, and identity for northern Indigenous Peoples.

Keywords

winter ecology, Nunavik, Eeyou Istchee, Indigenous food systems, seasonality, climate change