Email rbrill@vims.edu Office Byrd Hall 308 Phone (804) 684-7875

Richard W. Brill Director, VIMS- Hampton University Cooperative Marine Education and Research Program (website: http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/omes/cmer/), National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center B.A., Lafayette College M.S., Northeastern University Ph.D., John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii

Research Interests Current Projects Selected Publications

My research interests center on the physiological ecology, sensory biology, and bioenergetics of fishes, in particular the effects of oceanographic conditions on the distribution, abundance, and fishing gear vulnerability of commercially important tunas and billfishes. As such, I am involved in studies of fish in the open ocean conducted using ultrasonic telemetry and electronic data recording tags, as well as direct investigation of the physiological abilities and tolerances of fish in the laboratory. These two approaches exist in a reciprocal relationship where each generates hypotheses that are subsequently tested in the other. I am also currently developing projects that include physiological investigations of Atlantic inshore and Chesapeake Bay fishes and invertebrates.

As Director of the Cooperative Marine Education and Research Program, I conduct and manage research and educational activities addressing issues relevant to the mission and goals of the National Marine Fisheries Service. These include working with and advising VIMS graduate students, conducting my own research, and teaching a graduate level course in fish physiology.

Current research projects involving VIMS students and other colleagues include:

• Development of a bait to replace horseshoe crabs in the commercial whelk pot fishery.
• Deployment of PSATs and archival tags on pelagic fishes (tunas, billfishes and sharks) to determine migratory patterns and rates of survival following release from longline fishing gear.
• The sensory biology of pelagic fishes and sea turtles with the objective of developing methods to reduce turtle-longline fishing gear interactions.
• Investigation of the hearing abilities and visual function of Chesapeake Bay fishes and sandbar sharks
• The effects of temperature on cardiac physiology of tunas, billfishes and sharks in relation to species-specific vertical movement patterns
• The cardio-respiratory physiology of juvenile sandbar sharks with the specific objective measuring their environmental tolerances and ability to recover from the exhaustive exercise associated with catch and release fishing.
• Investigation of the visual deficits caused by idiopathic lesions in the American lobster
• Hypoxia tolerance of selected Chesapeake Bay fishes

Brill, R.W. 1996. Selective advantages conferred by the high performance physiology of tunas, billfishes, and dolphin fish. Comp. Biochem. and Physiol. 113A: 3-15

Mathieu-Costello, O., R.W. Brill, and P.W. Hochachka. 1995. Design for a high speed path for oxygen: tuna red muscle ultrastructure and vascularization. pp. 1-13. In P.W. Hochachka and T. P. Mommsen (eds.), Metabolic Biochemistry. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of Fishes. Vol. 4. Elsvier.

Mathieu-Costello, O., R.W. Brill, and P.W. Hochachka. 1996. Structural basis for oxygen delivery: Muscle capillaries and manifolds in tuna red muscle. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 114A: 25-31.

Block, B.A., J.E. Keen, B. Castillo, H. Dewar, E.V. Freund, D.J.Marcinek, R.W. Brill, C. Farwell. 1997. Environmental preferences of yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) at the northern extent of their range. Mar. Biol. 130: 119-132.

Brill, R.W., K.L. Cousins, D.R. Jones, P.B. Bushnell, and J.F. Steffensen. 1998. Red cell space, plasma space, and blood volume of a high energy demand teleost, the yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). J. exp. Biol. 201: 647-654.

Lowe, T., R. Brill, and K. Cousins. 1998. Responses of the red blood cells from two high-energy-demand teleosts, yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) and skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), to catecholamines. J. Comp. Physiol. B 168: 405-418.

Brill, R., B. Block, C. Boggs, K. Bigelow, E. Freund, and D. Marcinek. 1999. Horizontal movements and depth distribution of large, adult yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) near the Hawaiian Islands, recorded using ultrasonic telemetry: implications for the physiological ecology of pelagic fishes. Mar. Biol. 133: 395-408.

Lutcavage, M.E., R.W. Brill, G.B. Skomal, B.C. Chase, and P.W. Howey. 1999. Results of pop up satellite tagging of spawning size class fish in the Gulf of Maine: Do North Atlantic bluefin tuna spawn in the mid-Atlantic? Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 56: 173-177.

Lowe, T., R. Brill, and K. Cousins. 2000. Blood O2-binding characteristics of bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus), a high-energy-demand teleost that is tolerant of low ambient O2. Mar. Biol. 136: 1087-1098.

Lutcavage, M.E., R.W. Brill, G.B. Skomal, B.C. Chase, J.L. Goldstein, and J. Tutein. 2000. Tracking adult northern bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) in the northwestern Atlantic using ultrasonic telemetry. Mar. Biol. 137: 347-358.

Brill, R., Y. Swimmer, K. Cousins, C. Taxboel, and T. Lowe. 2001. Na+-K+ ATPase activity and estimated osmoregulatory costs in three high-energy-demand teleosts: yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), and dolphin fish (Coryphaena hippurus). Mar. Biol. 138: 935-944.

Brill, R., and M. Lutcavage. 2001. Understanding environmental influences on movements and depth distribution of tunas and billfish can significantly improve stock assessments. Pages 179-198. In: G. R. Sedberry, editor. Island in the Stream: Oceanography and Fisheries of the Charleston Bump. American Fisheries Society Symposium 25, Bethesda, MD.

Brill, R.W. and P.G. Bushnell. 2001. The cardiovascular system of tunas. Pages 79-120. Fish Physiology, Vol. 19, Tuna -- Physiology, Ecology and Evolution. B. A. Block and E. D. Stevens (editors), Academic Press, San Diego.

Musyl, M.K., R.W. Brill, D.S. Curran, J.S. Gunn, J.R. Hartog, R.D. Hill, D.W. Welch, J.P. Eveson, C.H. Boggs, and R.E. Brainard. 2001. Ability of archival tags to provide estimates of geographical position based on light intensity. Pages 343-367. Proceedings of the Symposium on Tagging and Tracking of Marine Fish with Electronic Devices; J. R. Sibert and J. L. Nielsen (editors), Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht.

Brill, R., M. Lutcavage, G. Metzger, P. Bushnell, M. Arndt. J. Lucy, and C. Watson. 2002. Horizontal and vertical movements of juvenile bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) in the western north Atlantic determined using ultrasonic telemetry. Fish. Bull. 100: 155-167.

Olson, K.R., H. Dewar, J.B. Graham, and R.W. Brill. 2003. Vascular anatomy of the gills in a high energy demand teleost, the skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis). J. Exp. Zool. 297A: 17-31.

Sibert, J.R., M.K. Musyl, and R.W. Brill. 2003. Horizontal movements of bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) near Hawaii determined by Kalman filter analysis of archival tagging data. Fisheries Oceanography 12: 141-151.

Musyl, M.K., R.W. Brill, C.H. Boggs, D.S. Curran, T.K. Kazama, and M.P. Seki. 2003. Vertical movements of bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) associated with islands, buoys, and seamounts of the Hawaiian Archipelago from archival tagging data. Fisheries Oceanography 12: 152-169.

Braun, M.H., R.W. Brill, J.M. Gosline, and D.R. Jones. 2003. Form and function of the bulbous arteriosus in yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares): Dynamic properties. J. exp. Biol. 206: 3311-3326.

Braun, M.H., R.W. Brill, J.M. Gosline, and D.R. Jones. 2003. Form and function of the bulbous arteriosus in yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) and blue marlin (Makaira nigricans): Static properties. J. exp. Biol. 206: 3327-3335.

Wilson, S.G., M.E. Lutcavage, R.W. Brill, M.P. Genovese, A.B. Cooper, and A.E. Everly. 2005. Movements of bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean recorded by pop-up satellite archival tags. Mar. Biol. 146: 409-423.

Fritsches K.A., R.W. Brill, E.J. Warrant. 2005. Warm eyes provide superior vision at depth in swordfishes. Current Biology 15: 55-58.

Brill, R.W. K.A. Bigelow, M.K. Musyl, K.A. Fritsches, and E.J. Warrant. 2005. Bigeye tuna behavior and physiology... their relevance to stock assessments and fishery biology. Col. Vol. Sci. Pap. ICCAT 57: 142-161.

Swimmer, Y., L. McNaughton, C. Moyes, and R. Brill. 2005. Metabolic biochemistry of cardiac muscle in three tuna species (bigeye, Thunnus obesus; yellowfin, T. albacres; and skipjack, Katsuwonus pelamis) with divergent ambient temperature and oxygen tolerances. Fish Physiol. Biochem. 30: 27-25.

Swimmer, Y., R. Arauz, J. Ballestero, B. Higgins, L. McNaughton, M. McCracken, and R. Brill. 2005. Food Color and Marine Turtle Feeding Behavior: Can Blue Bait Reduce Turtle Bycatch in Commercial Fisheries? Marine Ecology Progress Series 295: 273-278.

Dowd, W., R. Brill, P. Bushnell, and J. Musick. 2006. Standard and routine metabolic rates of juvenile sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus Nardo), including the effects of body mass and acute temperature change. Fish. Bulletin 104: 323-331.

Dowd, W., R. Brill, P. Bushnell, and J. Musick. 2006. Estimating consumption rates of juvenile sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) in Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, using a bioenergetics model. Fish. Bulletin 104: 332-342.

Swimmer, Y., M. McMcracken, R. Arauz, L. McNaughton Mike Musyl, Keith Bigelow, C. Boggs, and R. Brill. 2006. Survivorship and dive behavior of olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea) sea turtles after their release from longline fishing gear off Costa Rica. Mar. Ecol. Progr. Ser. 323: 253-261.

Moyes, C. D., N. Frugoso, M. K. Musyl, and R. W. Brill. 2006 Predicting postrelease survival in large pelagic fish. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 135: 1389-1397.

Sibert, J. R., M. E. Lutcavage, A. Nielsen, R. W. Brill, and S. G. Wilson. 2006. Inter-annual variation in large-scale movement of Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) determined from pop-up satellite archival tags. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 63: 2154-2166.

Brill, R. W. and P. G. Bushnell. 2006. Effects of open- and closed-system temperature changes on blood O2 -binding characteristics of Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus). Fish Physiol. Biochem. 32: 283-294.