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Jonathan Pruitt, an evolutionary biologist who joined McMaster University's science faculty in 2018 billed as an international leader in his field," has been found by the university to have fabricated his research multiple times.

A news release posted by McMaster on May 11 said after an investigation into Pruitt's research misconduct," a hearings committee concluded that he engaged in data falsification and fabrication in several papers," and that it happened at different institutions" prior to joining the faculty.

Pruitt was 32 when he was hired by Mac, and his research focused on spider behaviour. He resigned from the faculty in July 2022, before the hearing process was concluded.

The allegations against him were based on research he conducted between 2011 and 2015.

Pruitt, who grew up outside Orlando, Fla., had previously conducted research at institutions including the University of Tennessee, the University of California, Davis, the University of Pittsburgh, and the University of Santa Barbara.

When reached by The Spectator, Pruitt declined to comment on McMaster's findings.

A co-author on two of Pruitt's retracted research papers who was interviewed by McMaster investigators told The Spectator she is pleased the findings were released.

It was difficult to go through, and it's a relief, for one, that we have a conclusive end, and to know the investigation found the same things that I thought were going on," said Kate Laskowski, an assistant professor of evolution and ecology at UC Davis.

On May 10, Laskowski tweeted that Pruitt Survivors" like herself had been sent the results of the investigation by McMaster.

She told The Spectator Pruitt had tried to disrupt the investigation process as much a possible, which is understandable given that he was fighting for his career, but it also meant he tried to un-retract our papers, and he accused me of acting with malice, and he threatened to sue me. So that was very difficult ... Luckily the broader (science) community wasn't questioning my integrity, but he certainly was."

An article in the journal For Better Science in March 2020 said Canadian shooting star" Pruitt had deployed lawyers against his critics." The headline read: Spiderman's lawyer is having you for dinner tonight."

Laskowski said she spent time with Pruitt at conferences years ago. They became friends, and he invited her to visit his lab at the University of Pittsburgh. She knew him to be a charismatic, gregarious, outspoken guy, and lots of people in the field liked him."

The news release said McMaster first received complaints about Pruitt's research early in 2020, and that more surfaced during the ensuing investigation, requiring the review of thousands of documents." Pruitt was interviewed eight times, and 13 others were interviewed.

The university posted a summary of findings, but not the investigative report. McMaster spokesperson Wade Hemsworth said the school did not release the report because it must remain confidential based on the university's Research Integrity Policy and applicable law."

The summary suggested Pruitt - a former Canada 150 Research Chair - concluded his research on life cycle behaviours of spiders too quickly, and that inadequate record keeping did not allow his work to be properly verified or replicated.

On a balance of probabilities," the summary reads, McMaster University's Research Integrity Policy was breached by Dr. Pruitt."

Laskowski said she was pleased to receive the summary, but also wishes McMaster would release the report to learn more of the findings, and whether others were also at fault, although that seems unlikely ... this really seemed to be (Pruitt's) thing."

One of those who replied to Laskowski's tweet about McMaster's findings was Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde, director of the Centre for Evolutionary and Ethical Conservation at Laurentian University. He tweeted that McMaster should make the report public.

He told The Spectator that while complaints against Pruitt were known literally years ago," he believes McMaster did not act quickly enough or with sufficient transparency to address the situation.

The research funds that supported the Canada 150 Research Chair that Pruitt held were public monies, and all Canadians deserve to hear what happened in a timely manner," he wrote in an email.

Schulte-Hostedde said the Pruitt controversy is incredibly damaging to science ... We trust scientists to be objective." But he added it's also notable that the science community corrected the record," and Pruitt's co-researchers were transparent at an unprecedented scale."

He added that he uses the Pruitt case to teach his students about scientific integrity and research misconduct."

Jon Wells is a feature writer at The Spectator. jwells@thespec.com