John Olney

Education

• B.S., M.A., College of William & Mary
• Ph.D., University of Maryland

Research Interests

My broad research goals are to conduct taxonomic and systematic investigations of marine, estuarine and freshwater fishes with emphasis on early ontogeny; to promote an understanding of the biotic and abiotic factors that regulate egg, larval and juvenile fish survival; to conduct basic research on the reproductive ecology of marine, estuarine and freshwater fishes; and to develop fisheries survey techniques useful in assessment and monitoring of important finfish stocks. These goals are expressed in the following specific research areas: ichthyology; taxonomy and systematics of marine fishes; identification of early life history stages of marine fishes; taxonomy and ecology of marine zooplankton; ecology of estuarine zooplankton communities; the role of physical processes in ichthyoplankton distribution and survival; survival and recruitment of fishes; population dynamics; fisheries-independent stock assessment; and fisheries management.

Projects

• Monitoring, tagging and stock assessment studies of American shad, Alosa sapidissima, funded by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission
• Stock and substock identity of American shad, Alosa sapidissima, using otolith microchemistry analysis funded by the National Marine Fisheries Service (in association with Dr. Simon Thorrold, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
• Studies of the taxonomy and phylogeny of the pearlfishes (family Carapidae) and the oarfishes and their allies (order Lampridiformes)

Selected Publications

• Hoffman J.C., Bronk D.A. and Olney J.E. 2007. Tracking Nursery Habitat Use in the York River Estuary, Virginia, by Young American Shad Using Stable Isotopes. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 136 (5): 1285-1297.
• Maki, K.L, J. M. Hoenig, D. M. Heisey, J. E. Olney. 2006. Comparing historical catch rates of American shad in multifilament and monofilament nets: A step towards setting restoration targets for stocks under moratorium in Virginia. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 26(2):282-288
• Kavanagh, K.D. and J.E. Olney. 2006. Ecological correlates of population density and behavior in the black triggerfish Melichthys niger (Balistidae). Environmental Biology of Fishes 76 (2): 387-398.
• Olney, J.E., D.M. Bilkovic, C. Hershner, L. Varnell, H. Wang and R. Mann. Six fish and 600,000 thirsty folks - A fishing moratorium on American shad thwarts a controversial municipal reservoir project in Virginia, USA. Proceedings of the World Fisheries Conference, Vancouver, B.C. 2004.
• Olney, J.E. 2005. Order Lampridiformes, Families Lamprididae, Stylephoridae, Lophotidae, Radiicephalidae, Trachipteridae, Regalecidae. In, W.J. Richards (Ed.), Guide to the early life history stages of fishes of the western central North Atlantic. CRC Press, Miami. pp 991-1026.
• Olney, J.E. 2005. Order Ophidiiformes, Family Carapidae. In, W.J. Richards (Ed.), Guide to the early life history stages of fishes of the western central North Atlantic. CRC Press, Miami.
• Olney, J.E., Robert J. Latour, Brian E. Watkins. 2006. Migratory behavior of American shad (Alosa sapidissima) in the York River, Virginia, with implications for estimating in-river exploitation from tag-recovery data. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 135 (4): 889-896.
• McBride, R., M. Hendricks and J. Olney. 2005. Testing the validity of Cating's criteria for age estimation of American shad from the Lehigh River. Fisheries 30(10): 10-17.
• Hoffman, J. and J.E. Olney. 2005. Cohort dynamics of juvenile American shad (Alosa sapidissima) in the Pamunkey River, Virginia. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 134:1-18.
• Olney, J.E. 2003. Order Ophidiiformes, Family Carapidae, Pearlfishes. Pages 963-964. In K.E.Carpenter (Ed.), FAO Species Identification Guide For Fishery Purposes, The Living Resources of the Western Central Atlantic, American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, Spec. Pub. N. 5, Rome.
• Olney, J.E. 2003. Order Lampridiformes, Families Stylephoridae, Radiicephalidae, Lophotidae, Trachipteridae, Regalecidae. Pages 953-959, In K.E. Carpenter (Ed.), FAO Species Identification Guide For Fishery Purposes, American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, Spec. Pub. N. 5, The Living Resources of the Western Central Atlantic, Rome.
• Olney, J.E. 2003. Incorrect use of the names "Alosidae" and "alosid" when referring to the shads in the subfamily Alosinae (Teleostei, Clupeidae). American Fisheries Society Symposium 35: xiii-xv.
• Olney, J.E. and R.S. McBride. 2003. Intraspecific variation in batch fecundity of American shad (Alosa sapidissima): revisiting the paradigm of reciprocal latitudinal trends in reproductive traits. American Fisheries Society Symposium 35: 185-192.
• Olney, J.E., D.A. Hopler, Jr., T.P. Gunter Jr., K.L. Maki and J.M. Hoenig. 2003. Signs of recovery of American shad (Alosa sapidissima) in the James River, Virginia (USA). American Fisheries Society Symposium 35: 323-329.
• Walter, J.F. and J.E. Olney. 2003. Feeding behavior of American shad during the spawning migration in the York River, Virginia. American Fisheries Society Symposium 35: 201-209.
• Wilhite, M.L., K.L. Maki, J.M. Hoenig and J.E. Olney. 2003. Towards validation of a juvenile index of abundance for American shad (Alosa sapidissima) in the York River, Virginia (USA). American Fisheries Society Symposium 35: 285-294.
• Olney, J.E. 2003. Ophidiiformes: Cusk-eels and relatives. Pages 15-24, IN M. Hutchins, D. Thoney, P. Loiselle and N. Schlager (Eds.), Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, The Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Mi.
• Olney, J.E. 2003. Lampridiformes, Opah and relatives. Pages 447-456, IN M. Hutchins, D. Thoney, P. Loiselle and N. Schlager (Eds.), Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, The Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Mi.
• Bilkovic, D.M., C.H. Hershner and J.E. Olney. 2002. Macroscale assessment of American shad spawning and nursery habitat in the Mattaponi and Pamunkey rivers, Virginia. Journal of North American Fisheries Management 22:476-492.
• Maki, K.L., J.M. Hoenig and J.E. Olney. 2002. Interpreting maturation data for American shad in the presence of fishing mortality - a look at historical data from the York River, Virginia. Journal of North American Fisheries Management 22:509-517.
• Bilkovic, D.N., J.E. Olney and C.H. Hershner. 2002. Spawning of American shad (Alosa sapidissima) and striped bass (Morone saxatilis) in the Mattaponi and Pamunkey rivers, Virginia. Fisheries Bulletin 100:632-640.
• Olney, J.E., S. Denny and J.M. Hoenig. 2001. Criteria for determination of maturity stage in American shad (Alosa sapidissima) and a proposed reproductive cycle. Bulletin Francais de la Peche et de la Pisciculture 362/363:881-901.
• Latour, R.J., J.M. Hoenig, J.E. Olney and K.H. Pollock. 2001. Diagnostics for multi-year tagging models with application to Atlantic striped bass (Morone saxatilis). Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 58:1716-1726.
• Arendt, M.D., J.E. Olney and J.A. Lucy. 2001. Stomach content analysis of cobia, Rachycentron canadum, from lower Chesapeake Bay. Fishery Bulletin 99:665-670.
• Maki, K.L., J.M. Hoenig and J.E. Olney. 2001. Estimating proportion mature when immature fish are unavailable for study, with application to American shad (Alosa sapidissima) in the York River, Virginia. Journal of North American Fisheries Management 21:703-716.
• Latour, R.J., J.M. Hoenig, J.E. Olney and K.H. Pollock. 2001. A simple test for non-mixing in multi-year tagging studies: application to striped bass (Morone saxatilis) tagged in the Rappahannock River, Virginia. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 130:848-856.
• Olney, J.E. and J.M. Hoenig. 2001. Managing a fishery under moratorium: Assessment opportunities for Virginia's stocks of American shad (Alosa sapidissima). Fisheries 26(2):6-12
• Olney, J.E., J.M. Leis and D. Rennis. 2000. Carapidae - Pearlfishes. pp. 104-108, J.M. Leis and B.M. Carson-Ewart (Eds.), IN, The Larvae of Indo-Pacific Coastal Fishes, Academic Publisher 750 p.
• Olney, J.E. and E.D. Houde. 1993. Evaluation of in-situ silhouette photography in studies of estuarine zooplankton and ichthyoplankton. Bulletin of Marine Science 52(2): 845-872 .
• Olney, J.E., C.C. Baldwin and G.D. Johnson. 1993. Phylogeny of Lampridiform fishes. Bulletin of Marine Science 52(1): 137-169.
• Markle, D.F. and J.E. Olney. 1990. Systematics of the pearlfishes (Pisces, ophidiiformes). Bulletin of Marine Science 47(2):269-410.
• McGovern, J.C. and J.E. Olney. 1988. Potential predation by fish and invertebrates on early life history stages of striped bass in the Pamunkey River, Virginia. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 117(2):152-161.
• Olney, J.E. and G. Boehlert. 1988. Nearshore ichthyoplankton assemblages associated with seagrass beds in the lower Chesapeake Bay. Marine Ecology-Progress Series 45:33-43.
• Olney, J.E. and D.F. Markle. 1986. Family Carapidae. M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (Eds.), IN, Smith's Sea Fishes, J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology, Grahamstown, South Africa.
• Olney, J.E. and four co-authors. 1983. Pterygiophore-interdigitation patterns in larvae of four Morone species (Teleostei, Percichthyidae). Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 112:525-531.
• Olney, J.E. 1983. Eggs and early larvae of the bay anchovy, Anchoa mitchilli, and the weakfish, Cynoscion regalis, in lower Chesapeake Bay with notes on associated ichthyoplankton. Estuaries 6(1):173-180.

Students

• Troy Tuckey, PhD, studies of American shad
• Aaron Aunins, MS, studies of American shad migration and recruitment
• Sally Upton, MS, studies of American shad
• Joel Hoffman, PhD, 2006
• Reid Hyle, MS, 2004
• Mary Lynn Aiken, MS, 2001
• Donna Marie Bilkovic, PhD, 2001
• Kristin L. Maki, MS, 2001
• Patrick Kilduff, MS, 2001
• Martin Cavalluzzi, Ph.D., 2000
• M. Lara, Ph.D., 2000
• Andrew Suntsov, MA, 1997
• Lewis Daniel, Ph.D., 1995
• Martin Cavalluzzi, MA, 1992
• Elizabeth Maddox, MA, 1992
• John McGovern, Ph.D., 1991
• John Field, MA, 1991
• Kathryn Kavanagh, MA, 1991
• Harry Johnson, MA, 1987

Courses Taught

• MS 657 Early Life History of Fishes
• MS 528 Marine Fisheries Science