Bimodal size distributions in Arctic char, Salvelinus alpinus: artefacts of biased sampling

2003 ◽  
Vol 60 (9) ◽  
pp. 1104-1110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anders Gravbrøt Finstad ◽  
Peder Andreas Jansen ◽  
Heikki Hirvonen
Keyword(s):  
Population Size ◽  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
Biased Sampling ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Size Distributions ◽  
Gill Net

Bimodal population size and age distributions in Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus (L.)) and hypotheses on growth patterns generating bimodality have drawn considerable attention during the last decade. However, such bimodality has also been suggested to be an artefact of biased sampling. We examined published data sets reporting bimodal size distributions in gill-net samples of Arctic char in order to confront hypotheses on growth patterns generating bimodal population size distributions. Growth patterns were derived from published length-at-age data. Simulations revealed that the observed growth patterns evidently could not generate a bimodal population size distribution. The basic reason for this was that growth did not stagnate strongly enough in the largest size classes of Arctic char. The reliability of growth approximations from length-at-age data was supported by empirical data on back-calculated growth trajectories. Furthermore, differences in year-class strength cannot explain all of the observed bimodal size and age distributions in gill-net samples, as they have been reported to persist over time. Thus, bias in the sampling procedure, which overestimates the frequency of old and large fish, is retained as the only plausible explanation for stable bimodal size distributions often observed in Arctic char gill-net samples.

Gillnet selectivity and size and age structure of an alpine Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) population

2000 ◽  
Vol 57 (8) ◽  
pp. 1718-1727 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anders G Finstad ◽  
Peder A Jansen ◽  
Arnfinn Langeland
Keyword(s):  
Age Structure ◽  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Behavioural Change ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
Biased Sampling ◽  
Niche Shift ◽  
Size And Age Structure ◽  
Successive Removal

The aim of the present study was to address possible implications of biased sampling for the commonly adopted uni- and bi-modal size structures and unimodal age structures in Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) populations. Multimesh gill nets were used to sample an allopatric population of Arctic char in an alpine lake in central Norway. Direct estimates of gillnet selectivity for different length-classes of Arctic char were obtained by mark-recapture experiments and by successive removal methods. The observed size and age structure in gillnet samples was significantly different from the estimated size and age structure of the Arctic char population when catches were corrected for gillnet selectivity. An observed unimodal size and age structure was a direct result of gillnet selectivity, as smaller and younger fish were underrepresented in gillnet catches. Moreover, an abrupt increase in gillnet selectivity for large Arctic char was related to a niche shift to cannibalism. A model that explains bimodal size distributions in gillnet catches as a result of ontogenetic behavioural change is presented. Complex ontogenetic growth and mortality patterns that have been suggested to be essential in structuring modal Arctic char populations were superfluous in explaining the observed modal population structure in the present study.

Morphometric and genetic analyses of two sympatric morphs of Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) in the Canadian High Arctic

2011 ◽  
Vol 89 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Arbour ◽  
D. C. Hardie ◽  
J. A. Hutchings
Keyword(s):  
High Efficiency ◽  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
High Arctic ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
Resource Polymorphism ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Low Efficiency ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
Head Morphology

Multivariate morphometric analyses were used to examine variation in head, body, and fin shape between two sympatric morphotypes of Arctic char ( Salvelinus alpinus (L., 1758)) from Lake Hazen, Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada. Population structure of the Lake Hazen Arctic char was examined using five microsatellite loci. The “small” morph was found to have a larger (primarily deeper) head, larger and more elongate fins, and a deeper lateral profile than the “large” morph. The morphs also differed in allometric growth patterns. The large and small morphs do not appear to represent genetically distinct populations. The head morphology of the Lake Hazen small and large morphs exhibited similarities to benthic and pelagic morphs (respectively) from other lakes. We hypothesize that the large morph may be adapted to high-efficiency swimming and that the small morph may be adapted to low-efficiency, high-acceleration swimming. Such functional trade-offs are not uncommon among fish specializing in dispersed or mobile prey (fish and plankton) and benthic prey, respectively. The lack of apparent genetic differentiation between the morphs may suggest that the morphological differences result, to some extent, from phenotypic plasticity. Based on these results and previous analyses, it seems reasonable to conclude that Lake Hazen Arctic char represent a resource polymorphism.

First confirmation of salmonid alphavirus infection in Arctic char Salvelinus alpinus and in Austria

2018 ◽  
Vol 130 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-76
Author(s):  
E Lewisch ◽  
T Frank ◽  
H Soliman ◽  
O Schachner ◽  
A Friedl ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
Alphavirus Infection

Update on the Boundaries of the Curly Birch Range

2020 ◽  
pp. 9-21
Author(s):  
L.V. Vetchinnikova ◽  
◽  
A.F. Titov ◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Population Size ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Forest Tree ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Population Approach ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
History Of ◽  
Individual Trees ◽  
Karelian Birch

The article reports on the application of the best known principles for mapping natural populations of curly (Karelian) birch Betula pendula Roth var. carelica (Mercklin) Hämet-Ahti – one of the most appealing representatives of the forest tree flora. Relying on the synthesis and analysis of the published data amassed over nearly 100 years and the data from own full-scale studies done in the past few decades almost throughout the area where curly birch has grown naturally, it is concluded that its range outlined in the middle of the 20th century and since then hardly revised is outdated. The key factors and reasons necessitating its revision are specified. Herewith it is suggested that the range is delineated using the population approach, and the key element will be the critical population size below which the population is no longer viable in the long term. This approach implies that the boundaries of the taxon range depend on the boundaries of local populations (rather than the locations of individual trees or small clumps of trees), the size of which should not be lower than the critical value, which is supposed to be around 100–500 trees for curly birch. A schematic map of the curly birch range delineated using this approach is provided. We specially address the problem of determining the minimum population size to secure genetic diversity maintenance. The advantages of the population approach to delineating the distribution range of curly birch with regard to its biological features are highlighted. The authors argue that it enables a more accurate delineation of the range; shows the natural evolutionary history of the taxon (although it is not yet officially recognized as a species) and its range; can be relatively easily updated (e.g. depending on the scope of reintroduction); should be taken into account when working on the strategy of conservation and other actions designed to maintain and regenerate this unique representative of the forest tree flora.

scholarly journals Investigating the morphological and genetic divergence of arctic char ( Salvelinus alpinus) populations in lakes of arctic Alaska

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen L. Klobucar ◽  
Jessica A. Rick ◽  
Elizabeth G. Mandeville ◽  
Catherine E. Wagner ◽  
Phaedra Budy
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Divergence ◽  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
Arctic Alaska

scholarly journals The Sampling Distribution of Disease-Associated Alleles

Genetics ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 147 (4) ◽  
pp. 1855-1861 ◽  
Author(s):  
Montgomery Slatkin ◽  
Bruce Rannala
Keyword(s):  
Low Frequency ◽  
Null Model ◽  
Sampling Distribution ◽  
Death Process ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Likelihood Functions ◽  
Alternative Hypotheses ◽  
Size Standard ◽  
Birth Death

Abstract A theory is developed that provides the sampling distribution of low frequency alleles at a single locus under the assumption that each allele is the result of a unique mutation. The numbers of copies of each allele is assumed to follow a linear birth-death process with sampling. If the population is of constant size, standard results from theory of birth-death processes show that the distribution of numbers of copies of each allele is logarithmic and that the joint distribution of numbers of copies of k alleles found in a sample of size n follows the Ewens sampling distribution. If the population from which the sample was obtained was increasing in size, if there are different selective classes of alleles, or if there are differences in penetrance among alleles, the Ewens distribution no longer applies. Likelihood functions for a given set of observations are obtained under different alternative hypotheses. These results are applied to published data from the BRCA1 locus (associated with early onset breast cancer) and the factor VIII locus (associated with hemophilia A) in humans. In both cases, the sampling distribution of alleles allows rejection of the null hypothesis, but relatively small deviations from the null model can account for the data. In particular, roughly the same population growth rate appears consistent with both data sets.

Influence of Parr Growth, Lake Morphology, and Freshwater Parasites on the Degree of Anadromy in Different Populations of Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) in Northern Norway

1994 ◽  
Vol 51 (6) ◽  
pp. 1229-1246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Knut Kristoffersen ◽  
Morten Halvorsen ◽  
Lisbeth Jørgensen
Keyword(s):  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Relative Size ◽  
Significant Negative Correlation ◽  
Relative Volume ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
Northern Norway ◽  
Length Relationship ◽  
Lake Morphology ◽  
Different Populations ◽  
Profundal Zone

Anadromy of nine lake populations of Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) in northern Norway was scored on the following criteria: prevalence of marine parasites, fish size, and size at maturity. In general, anadromy dominated in shallow lakes and residency dominated in deep lakes. The anadromy scores of the populations were significantly higher in lakes without a profundal zone compared with lakes with a profundal zone. There was also a significant negative correlation between the relative volume of the profundal zone (RPV) and the degree of anadromy and between RPV and mean parr length at ages 2+ and 3+. However, differences in parr growth could not explain all the observed variation in anadromy, and the correlation between mean parr length at ages 2+ and 3+ and the degree of anadromy in the different populations was not significant. In addition to the effect on parr growth, lake morphology seemed to influence the degree of anadromy through the relative size of different habitats, which in turn affects the number of available niches. The parr weight/length relationship and infection with the freshwater parasites Phyllodistomum umblae and Diphyllobothrium spp. did not affect the degree of anadromy.

Respiratory development in Arctic char Salvelinus alpinus under conditions of normoxia and chronic hypoxia

1977 ◽  
Vol 55 (9) ◽  
pp. 1461-1467 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. G. McDonald ◽  
B. R. McMahon
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Surface Morphology ◽  
Chronic Hypoxia ◽  
Prolonged Exposure ◽  
Salvelinus Alpinus ◽  
Ventilation Rate ◽  
Arctic Char ◽  
Adult Fish ◽  
Weighted Averages ◽  
Secondary Lamellae

Changes in surface morphology of the gills, ventilation rate, and heart rate were examined in Arctic char larvae exposed to normoxia (pO2 = 121 ± 6 (SE) mmHg) or chronic hypoxia (pO2 = 33 ± 3.5 mmHg) for 47 days after hatching. A modified weighted-averages technique was developed to measure aspects of gill morphology.Early development of the gills was characterized by rapid increases in filament size and number, and the emergence and proliferation of secondary lamellae. Variations in the dimensions of the gills, as noted in adult fish, were particularly evident in the larval fish.Hypoxia caused increases in both ventilation rate and heart rate. Prolonged exposure led to a retardation of gill growth, particularly the proliferation of secondary lamellae. However, growth of individual lamellae was stimulated between 38 and 47 days.

Relative testis size and mating systems in anurans: large testis in multiple-male mating in foam-nesting frogs

2011 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen Bo Liao ◽  
Zhi Ping Mi ◽  
Cai Quan Zhou ◽  
Ling Jin ◽  
Xian Han ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sperm Competition ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Testis Size ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Monogamous Species ◽  
Large Testis ◽  
Testes Size ◽  
Testis Mass

AbstractComparative studies of the relative testes size in animals show that promiscuous species have relatively larger testes than monogamous species. Sperm competition favours the evolution of larger ejaculates in many animals – they give bigger testes. In the view, we presented data on relative testis mass for 17 Chinese species including 3 polyandrous species. We analyzed relative testis mass within the Chinese data set and combining those data with published data sets on Japanese and African frogs. We found that polyandrous foam nesting species have relatively large testes, suggesting that sperm competition was an important factor affecting the evolution of relative testes size. For 4 polyandrous species testes mass is positively correlated with intensity (males/mating) but not with risk (frequency of polyandrous matings) of sperm competition.

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