Dr. E.J. (Ed) Crossman’s scientific contributions on muskellunge: celebrating a lasting legacy

Abstract

Dr. E.J. (Ed) Crossman’s first association with fish, and muskellunge, was as he was growing up in Niagara Falls, Ontario, a few blocks from the lower gorge of the Niagara River, an area that he frequented often. We are especially fortunate that from this early association with fish and the river, Ed decided to make ichthyology his career and make muskellunge a particular favourite. His first in-depth involvement with muskellunge began when he conducted his master’s at the University of Toronto on ‘‘The Maskinonge Population of Nogies Creek, Ontario’’. (Note the early spelling of the common name of the species—nomenclature became a subject of special interest). Under the guidance of Dr. F.E.J. Fry, this early research had a strong element of field biology, which was initiated by practical hands-on experience with muskellunge, trap-netting and tagging fish in the Nogies Creek Sanctuary near Bobcaygeon, Ontario. Handling the living organism in its natural environment was inspiring and whetted a curiosity about the species. This association continued for almost five decades and involved a diverse range of subjects, with the fish always the focus of special attention. Ed’s very first published scientific contribution came from his master’s research (Crossman 1956), and it was the first of many on the species. Ed continued his graduate studies with a Ph.D. program at the University of British Columbia but immediately afterwards was recruited by Dr. W.B. (Bev) Scott, who became a life-long friend and colleague, to return to Ontario and join the Department of Ichthyology and Herpetology at the Royal Ontario Museum. He immediately began to develop a research program on muskellunge, assembling a comprehensive wellindexed reference library that formed the basis of future bibliographies and reference material that became well known and were frequently visited by students of the subject. He published widely on esocids and soon became a world authority, but muskellunge was, above all, his species of special interest. Throughout his entire career, until his untimely death in December 2003, he conducted in-depth studies on muskellunge populations across the province of Ontario, ranging from the Niagara River and the Kawartha Lakes in the south to the muskellunge lakes in the northwest (Wabigoon and Eagle). In spite of a broadening interest, he continued studies and based graduatestudent programs on his favourite Nogies Creek Sanctuary population and took a personal interest in rejuvenating the Nogies Creek field station and participating in studies there. In graduate-student programs through the Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, J. M. Casselman (&) Department of Biology, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6 e-mail: casselmj@biology.queensu.ca