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Direct and Molecular Observation of Movement and Reproduction by Candy Darter, Etheostoma osburni, an Endangered Benthic Stream Fish in Virginia, USA. FISHES 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/fishes7010030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Direct and indirect measures of individual movement provide valuable knowledge regarding a species’ resiliency to environmental change. Information on patterns of movement can inform species management and conservation but is lacking for many imperiled fishes. The Candy Darter, Etheostoma osburni, is an endangered stream fish with a dramatically reduced distribution in Virginia in the eastern United States, now known from only four isolated populations. We used visual implant elastomer tags and microsatellite DNA markers to directly describe movement patterns in two populations. Parentage analysis based on parent-offspring pairs was used to infer movement patterns of young-of-year and age-1 individuals, as well as the reproductive contribution of certain adults. Direct measurements of movement distances were generally similar between methods, but microsatellite markers revealed greater distances moved, commensurate with greater spatial frames sampled. Parent-offspring pairs were found throughout the species’ 18.8-km distribution in Stony Creek, while most parent-offspring pairs were in 2 km of the 4.25-km distribution in Laurel Creek. Sibship reconstruction allowed us to characterize the mating system and number of spawning years for adults. Our results provide the first measures of movement patterns of Candy Darter as well as the spatial distribution of parent-offspring pairs, which may be useful for selecting collection sites in source populations to be used for translocation or reintroductions. Our results highlight the importance of documenting species movement patterns and spatial distributions of related individuals as steps toward understanding population dynamics and informing translocation strategies. We also demonstrate that the reproductive longevity of this species is greater than previously described, which may be the case for other small stream fishes.
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Lyon JP, Bird T, Tonkin Z, Raymond S, Sharley J, Hale R. Does life history mediate discharge as a driver of multi-decadal changes in populations of freshwater fish? ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2021; 31:e02430. [PMID: 34309984 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Understanding how and why the size of populations varies is critical knowledge for conservation and management. While considerable work has explored how different demographic parameters affect population growth, less is known the drivers of variability in these parameters. Long-term time series tracking population size that are coupled with empirical data to examine the relative importance of different drivers are rare, especially in freshwater systems. Even rarer are studies that collect this information concurrently from multiple species with contrasting life history strategies in the same system to assess whether population size and the relative importance of drivers also vary. We studied changes in the abundance and size structure of four native freshwater fish species in the Murray River, southeastern Australia, over a continuous 19-yr period. Two species with traits typical of "equilibrium" species (Murray cod Maccullochella peelii and trout cod Maccullochella macquariensis) and two with traits of "periodic" species (golden perch Macquaria ambigua and silver perch Bidyanus bidyanus) were sampled annually and capture-mark-recapture modeling was used to ask (1) how did population size change during this period, (2) how were changes in population size related to variability in hydrology, and (3) how were changes in population size driven by different processes (local recruitment or migration events)? Populations of all four species varied throughout the study, and our results are consistent with the notion that local recruitment is an important driver of this variability for Murray cod and trout cod, whereas immigration is more important for the two other species. Increases in spring river discharge strongly influenced these responses for trout cod and golden perch. Our study provides fundamental insights into the population dynamics of these valued species, and how management strategies might differ based on their life histories. Management should focus on allowing connectivity for golden and silver perch, and on promoting local scale recruitment and survival for Murray cod and trout cod. More generally, our study highlights the importance of understanding the processes underpinning population persistence, how these processes may vary for different species, and ultimately how this knowledge can inform targeted management actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jarod P Lyon
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, 123 Brown Street, Heidelberg, Victoria, 3084, Australia
| | - Tomas Bird
- Department of Fisheries and Oceans, NorthWest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, St. John's, NL A1C 5X1, Canada
| | - Zeb Tonkin
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, 123 Brown Street, Heidelberg, Victoria, 3084, Australia
| | - Scott Raymond
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, 123 Brown Street, Heidelberg, Victoria, 3084, Australia
| | - Joanne Sharley
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, 123 Brown Street, Heidelberg, Victoria, 3084, Australia
| | - Robin Hale
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, 123 Brown Street, Heidelberg, Victoria, 3084, Australia
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Lyon JP, Bird TJ, Kearns J, Nicol S, Tonkin Z, Todd CR, O'Mahony J, Hackett G, Raymond S, Lieschke J, Kitchingman A, Bradshaw CJA. Increased population size of fish in a lowland river following restoration of structural habitat. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2019; 29:e01882. [PMID: 30946514 PMCID: PMC6849704 DOI: 10.1002/eap.1882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2018] [Revised: 12/11/2018] [Accepted: 01/03/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Most assessments of the effectiveness of river restoration are done at small spatial scales (<10 km) over short time frames (less than three years), potentially failing to capture large-scale mechanisms such as completion of life-history processes, changes to system productivity, or time lags of ecosystem responses. To test the hypothesis that populations of two species of large-bodied, piscivorous, native fishes would increase in response to large-scale structural habitat restoration (reintroduction of 4,450 pieces of coarse woody habitat into a 110-km reach of the Murray River, southeastern Australia), we collected annual catch, effort, length, and tagging data over seven years for Murray cod (Maccullochella peelii) and golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) in a restored "intervention" reach and three neighboring "control" reaches. We supplemented mark-recapture data with telemetry and angler phone-in data to assess the potentially confounding influences of movement among sampled populations, heterogeneous detection rates, and population vital rates. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate changes in population parameters including immigration, emigration, and mortality rates. For Murray cod, we observed a threefold increase in abundance in the population within the intervention reach, while populations declined or fluctuated within the control reaches. Golden perch densities also increased twofold in the intervention reach. Our results indicate that restoring habitat heterogeneity by adding coarse woody habitats can increase the abundance of fish at a population scale in a large, lowland river. Successful restoration of poor-quality "sink" habitats for target species relies on connectivity with high-quality "source" habitats. We recommend that the analysis of restoration success across appropriately large spatial and temporal scales can help identify mechanisms and success rates of other restoration strategies such as restoring fish passage or delivering water for environmental outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jarod P. Lyon
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
- School of Biological SciencesUniversity of AdelaideAdelaideSouth Australia5005Australia
| | - Tomas J. Bird
- School of BotanyUniversity of Melbourne, School of BotanyMelbourneVictoria3010Australia
| | - Joanne Kearns
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Simon Nicol
- Institute for Applied EcologyUniversity of CanberraBruceAustralian Capital Territory2617Australia
- Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and SciencesDepartment of Agriculture and Water ResourcesGPO Box 858CanberraAustralian Capital Territory2601Australia
| | - Zeb Tonkin
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Charles R. Todd
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Justin O'Mahony
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Graeme Hackett
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Scott Raymond
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Jason Lieschke
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Adrian Kitchingman
- Department of Environment, Land, Water and PlanningArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research123 Brown StreetHeidelbergVictoria3084Australia
| | - Corey J. A. Bradshaw
- Global EcologyCollege of Science and EngineeringFlinders UniversityGPO Box 2100AdelaideSouth Australia5001Australia
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Montgomery FA, Reid SM, Mandrak NE. A habitat-based framework to predict the effects of agricultural drain maintenance on imperiled fishes. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2018; 206:1104-1114. [PMID: 30029344 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.11.087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2017] [Revised: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/30/2017] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
One third of the total global land viable for agricultural production has artificial drainage systems. These drainage systems can provide important habitat for fishes and, in some cases, imperiled fish species vulnerable to impact by drainage maintenance activities. A framework to provide quantitative assessments of the effects of maintenance activities on imperiled fish species is needed. In this study, a six-step habitat-based framework was developed to predict suitable habitat for two at-risk species in an agricultural drain: the Endangered Pugnose Shiner (Notropis anogenus) and the Special Concern Blackstripe Topminnow (Fundulus notatus). Using the framework, spatial models were developed to assess the effects of proposed drain maintenance on the overall amount of suitable habitat, habitat patch size, and connectivity of habitat patches. Maintenance had a significant impact on habitat connectivity, but did not significantly reduce the habitat size of isolated patches. The amount of suitable habitat available after maintenance fell below the minimum area for population viability (MAPV) for the Pugnose Shiner, but not the Blackstripe Topminnow. Future impact assessments of drain maintenance should incorporate population viability analysis, coupled with habitat patch analysis (patch size and connectivity), to quantitatively test consequences of proposed alteration to the viability of spatially structured populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- F A Montgomery
- University of Toronto Scarborough, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, ON, M1C 1A4, Canada.
| | - S M Reid
- Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, K9L 0G2, Canada
| | - N E Mandrak
- University of Toronto Scarborough, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, ON, M1C 1A4, Canada
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