The influence of lake attributes and predatory bass on the distribution of northern crayfish (Orconectes virilis) in central New Hampshire

2018 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-95
Author(s):  
N.C. Ramberg-Pihl ◽  
K.L. Yurewicz ◽  
T.R. Boucher
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Introduced Species ◽  
New Hampshire ◽  
Micropterus Salmoides ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
Orconectes Virilis ◽  
Shoreline Development ◽  
Nonconsumptive Effects

Introduced species influence the dynamics and structure of freshwater systems; understanding the variables that shape introduced species’ distributions can aid in anticipating their spread. We examined multiple factors that may influence the distribution of northern crayfish (Orconectes virilis (Hagen, 1870)), an introduced species, in New Hampshire, USA. Sampling occurred July to August 2010 in 20 lakes. We tested catch per unit effort (CPUE) and body size of crayfish against lake trophic status, size, depth, and shoreline development, as well as substrate type. We also compared CPUE and body size in the presence or absence of known predators, smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu Lacepède, 1802) and largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides (Lacepède, 1802)). Crayfish body size was not strongly associated with any tested variables, nor were there significant correlations between lake-level parameters and CPUE. CPUE increased with rocky substrates and decreased with macrophyte cover. We also found significantly lower CPUE in lakes with bass predators; this could be due to consumptive effects directly lowering crayfish abundance, nonconsumptive effects of bass on crayfish behavior, or both. Our work provides a baseline for future surveys examining northern crayfish or bass expansion in New Hampshire and highlights a variable that could be important as this crayfish colonizes additional locations outside its native range.

scholarly journals Relationship between ontogenetic changes in foraging ecology and muscle lactate dehydrogenase activity in wild smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu)

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (9) ◽  
pp. 1389-1394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frédéric Laberge ◽  
Nicholas Edmunds ◽  
Irene Yin-Liao ◽  
Kevin S. McCann
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Lactate Dehydrogenase ◽  
Foraging Ecology ◽  
Trophic Position ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Diet Shift ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Muscle Lactate ◽  
Lactate Dehydrogenase Activity ◽  
Ldh Activity

The activity of muscle glycolytic enzymes scales positively with body size in active fish, a phenomenon thought to counter the increased costs of burst swimming faced by larger individuals. Recent work argued that changes in these enzymes during ontogeny additionally reflect changes in foraging ecology. Here, we evaluated the relationship between muscle anaerobic metabolism and foraging ecology in a population of wild smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) by relating activity of muscle lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) to estimates of trophic position and habitat use obtained from stable isotope signatures. As expected, LDH activity increased with body size. However, further analysis showed associations between foraging ecology and LDH activity. Specifically, a shift to higher trophic position, indicating a change in diet, was paralleled by a shift to increased LDH activity. However, a steady mass-specific decrease in LDH activity was observed as the fish grew above the size associated with this diet shift. Further, lower LDH activity was associated with increasing use of littoral carbon sources. These findings contribute to our understanding of how plasticity in muscle anaerobic potential is associated with fish foraging ecology.

scholarly journals Year-class variation drives interactions between warm-water predators and yellow perch

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (9) ◽  
pp. 1330-1341 ◽  
Author(s):  
William W. Fetzer ◽  
Collin J. Farrell ◽  
James R. Jackson ◽  
Lars G. Rudstam
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Largemouth Bass ◽  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Micropterus Salmoides ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Class Strength

Walleye (Sander vitreus), smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), and largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) are common top predators across many north temperate lakes, but no previous analyses have assessed factors driving their combined impact on mortality of a shared prey, yellow perch (Perca flavescens). We estimated consumption dynamics of walleye, smallmouth bass, and largemouth bass during 3 years that differed in age-0 yellow perch year-class strength and evaluated the relative contribution of each predator to age-0 yellow perch mortality, in Oneida Lake, New York, USA. Habitat-specific diet composition and population densities were integrated with temperature and growth rates to parameterize a bioenergetics model and estimate annual consumption of major diet items. Walleye were the dominant predator in both offshore and inshore habitats, while smallmouth bass and largemouth bass were also important inshore predators. Consumption of age-0 yellow perch by all three predators was positively correlated to age-0 yellow perch year-class strength, but our ability to account for age-0 yellow perch mortality decreased during years when year-class strength was strong. Within each year, predation by the three species accounted for all observed age-0 yellow perch mortality in late summer and fall, but not in the early summer, suggesting other predators in the lake likely predate on the youngest, most vulnerable yellow perch. These results are important for understanding how diverse predator communities can alter the spatial and temporal availability of prey refuges and influence mortality of a shared prey.

Effect of introduced piscivores on native minnow communities in Adirondack lakes

2000 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 570-580 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Scott Findlay ◽  
Daniel G Bert ◽  
Ligang Zheng
Keyword(s):  
Strong Evidence ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Micropterus Salmoides ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Semotilus Atromaculatus ◽  
Rhinichthys Atratulus ◽  
Adirondack Lakes ◽  
Pimephales Notatus ◽  
Creek Chub

We compared the minnow assemblages of Adirondack lakes with top piscivores with those of lakes having similar physiochemical and biotic characteristics but no top piscivores using a subset of data collected from 1984 to 87 by the Adirondack Lake Survey Corporation. Native minnow richness in lakes with top piscivores was about one third that of lakes without piscivores, with piscivore assemblages dominated by introduced species such as northern pike (Esox lucius), largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), and smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu). There was strong evidence that at least four minnow species, including creek chub (Semotilus atromaculatus), northern redbelly dace (Phoxinus eos), blacknose dace (Rhinichthys atratulus), and common shiner (Luxilus cornutus), were less likely to occur in lakes with piscivores; for a fifth species (pearl dace (Margariscus margarita)), the evidence is suggestive but not as strong. Of 13 minnow species, only for two nonnative species (bluntnose minnow (Pimephales notatus) and golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas)) was there strong evidence that their occurrence was unaffected by the presence of introduced piscivores. These results add to the growing body of evidence that the introduction of top piscivores to small temperate lakes puts native minnow communities at high extinction risk.

Parental care patterns and energetics of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) and largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) monitored with activity transmitters

2002 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 756-770 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven J Cooke ◽  
David P Philipp ◽  
Patrick J Weatherhead
Keyword(s):  
Parental Care ◽  
Largemouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Salmoides ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Respiration Rates ◽  
Care Patterns ◽  
Burst Swimming ◽  
Care Activity ◽  
Diurnal Behaviour

Male smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) and largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) care for their offspring from fertilization until the offspring disperse after becoming capable of avoiding predators. We used activity transmitters to monitor round-the-clock parental activity of both species throughout the nesting period, coupled with direct observational data collected while snorkeling, to determine whether nocturnal behaviour varied similarly to diurnal behaviour. In general, nesting males of both species were equally active during day and night, developmental-stage-specific patterns being evident during both periods. Consistent with theory, parental males of both species exhibited elevated levels of burst swimming (indicative of chasing nest predators) early in the nesting period. Unlike male smallmouth bass, however, male largemouth bass showed no decline in overall activity and energy expenditure in the later nesting stages as predicted from the greater mobility and dispersion of their broods, although burst-swimming activity decreased. Activity of nesting fish was approximately double that of non-nesting conspecifics, causing an increase in respiration rates of fish, estimated using a bioenergetics model. The results of our study suggest that physiological telemetry devices which provide both behavioural and energetic information enhance the study of parental care activity in centrarchid fishes, and may be equally useful in a variety of other taxa.

scholarly journals SAT-732 Historical Occurrence of Intersex in Largemouth Bass (Micropterus Salmoides) and Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus Dolomieu)

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David O Norris ◽  
Angela Geiger ◽  
Alan Milan Vajda
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Largemouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Salmoides ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Museum Specimens ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Widespread Occurrence ◽  
Estrogenic Chemicals ◽  
Wastewater Effluents

Abstract The widespread occurrence of gonadal intersex (presence of testicular oocytes) has been recently reported in populations of Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides) and Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu) from populations across North America. To evaluate the historical occurrence of intersex in bass species, gonads were examined visually and histologically from Largemouth Bass and Smallmouth Bass from museum specimens collected from 16 States. These fishes were collected between 1823-1965, before the widespread discharge of estrogenic chemicals to surface waters via wastewater effluents. All females examined had normal ovaries. Intersex gonads were identified in 17.8 % of male Largemouth Bass, and in 14.2% of male Smallmouth Bass. The intensity of testicular oocytes in some males was as great as observed since 2000. These results indicate that the occurrence of this form of intersex in these bass species is not a recent phenomenon.

scholarly journals Is energetics or competition a stronger driver of male smallmouth bass seasonal reproductive timing?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert A.S. Laroche ◽  
Kelly L. Weinersmith ◽  
Lisa Angeloni ◽  
Jeffrey R. Baylis ◽  
Steven P. Newman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Paternal Care ◽  
Extended Period ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Starvation Period ◽  
Reproductive Timing ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Degree Days ◽  
Timing Of Reproduction ◽  
Energetic Constraints

ABSTRACTIntraspecific competitive ability is often associated with body size and has been shown to influence reproductive timing in many species. However, energetic constraints provide an alternative explanation for size-related differences of reproductive timing. In temperate fishes that experience a winter starvation period, for instance, a negative allometric relationship between body size and winter energy loss might explain why larger males spawn earlier in a season than smaller males, especially in fishes that exhibit paternal care, which is energetically costly and limits parental foraging opportunities. Male smallmouth bass, Micropterus dolomieu, defend nesting territories in which they care for offspring over an extended period. In northern populations, males rely on energy reserves over a winter starvation period and in spring must recoup energy losses before initiating reproduction, making them ideal systems in which to study contributions of competition and energetic allometry on differences of reproductive timing. Here, we harness data on parental male M. dolomieu from a 10-year study and show that larger males required fewer degree days-a measure of thermal energy experienced-in spring before they spawned each year and that the time of peak seasonal reproduction in the population was negatively related to the number of degree days accumulated before reproduction started. Furthermore, we found that growth of individual males between seasons better predicted changes in timing of reproduction than changes in size relative to competitors. Together, these results suggest that timing of reproduction in this population is more strongly influenced by energetic constraints than size-based competition amongst males.

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