Ruairi graduated from the National University of Ireland Galway with a B.Sc. in Marine Science in 2008 and a Ph.D. in Zoology in 2012. He has been involved in fisheries research projects on a variety of freshwater and marine species in Europe and North America. Ruairi joined Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute in 2015 as a Postdoctoral Research Associate to assess the feasibility of replenishing alternative species by stocking. Since 2019 he has been the Stock Enhancement Research Coordinator, working on the Institute’s programs involving white seabass and California halibut. Current research areas include assessment of stock enhancement (though approaches such as quantitative modeling and development of genetic tagging) and efforts to maximize cultured fish quality and survival in the wild (specifically the impacts of early rearing conditions on fish behavior, morphology and sex determination).

Selected Publications

MacNamara, R., Stuart, K., & Drawbridge, M. (2023). Reduction of malpigmentation rates in intensive larviculture of California halibut (Paralichthys californicus). Aquaculture, 739419.

MacNamara R, Camp E, Shane M, Lorenzen K & Drawbridge M (2022). Optimizing marine stock enhancement through modeling: A sex-specific application with California halibut Paralichthys californicus. Fisheries Research 252, 106341.

MacNamara R, Shane M & Drawbridge M (2021) Understanding long-term movement patterns of hatchery-reared white seabass. Environmental Biology of Fishes DOI: 10.1007/s10641-021-01183-8

MacNamara R, Coulter D, Glover D, Lubejko A & Garvey J (2018) Acoustically derived habitat associations of sympatric invasive bigheaded carp in a large river ecosystem. River Research and Applications 34, 555–564

Coulter D, MacNamara R, Glover D & Garvey J (2018) Possible unintended effects of management at an invasion front: reduced prevalence corresponds with high condition of invasive bigheaded carps. Biological Conservation 221, 118–126

MacNamara R, Glover D, Garvey J, Bouska W & Irons K (2016) Bigheaded carps (Hypophthalmichthys spp.) at the edge of their invaded range: using hydroacoustics to assess population parameters and the efficacy of harvest as a control strategy in a large North American river. Biological Invasions 18, 3293–3307

MacNamara R, McCarthy TK, Wickström H & Clevestam PD (2016) Fecundity of silver-phase eels (Anguilla anguilla) from different habitat types and geographic locations. ICES Journal of Marine Science 73, 135–141

MacNamara R, Koutrakis ET, Sapounidis A, Lachouvaris D, Arapoglou F, Panora D & McCarthy TK (2014) Reproductive potential of silver eels (Anguilla anguilla) migrating from Vistonis Lake (North Aegean Sea, Greece). Mediterranean Marine Science 15, 539–544

MacNamara R & McCarthy TK (2014) Silver eel (Anguilla anguilla) population dynamics and production in the River Shannon, Ireland. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 23, 181–192

MacNamara R & McCarthy TK (2012) Size-related variation in fecundity of European eel (Anguilla anguilla). ICES Journal of Marine Science 69, 1333–1337