The legacy of Jack Musick for the development of elasmobranch research in Brazil

Résumé fourni par la source

Abstract The late John Andrew Musick (1941–2021), widely known as Jack Musick, was a prominent marine scientist of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science who worked chiefly on sea turtles (Chelonioidea) and elasmobranchs. Here, we aim to disclose Jack’s impact on the development of elasmobranch research in Brazil by reconstructing Jack’s academic genealogy and by compiling the volume of elasmobranch scientific production in Brazil authored by Jack-linked researchers. We found 64 Jack-linked researchers in Brazil, distributed into four generations, from Jack’s academic children to great-great-grandchildren, with women predominating (~60%) from the second generation onwards. They produced 252 scientific articles on elasmobranchs in Brazil until September 2023. Potamotrygonidae was the most studied elasmobranch family (57 publications), followed by Carcharhinidae (35), while multifamily studies comprised 60 publications. Genetic-based studies prevailed in the scientific output, with a steep increase starting in 2005. Jack’s influence is revealed by not only the volume of scientific production, but also the research foci, including life history, feeding, age and growth, reproduction, genetics, fisheries, and conservation. We conclude that the contribution of Jack Musick is highly influential and pervasive in the development of elasmobranch science in Brazil, thus pivotal to convey his legacy for the future generations of scientists.

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