Thyroid Activity of Alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) and Rainbow Smelts (Osmerus mordax) in the Great Lakes

1977 ◽  
Vol 34 (8) ◽  
pp. 1242-1244 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Sonstegard ◽  
J. F. Leatherland ◽  
R. Moccia
Keyword(s):  
Thyroid Hormone ◽  
Great Lakes ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Thyroid Activity ◽  
Thyroid Glands ◽  
Sexually Mature ◽  
Annual Mortality

Thyroid glands, collected in 1974 and 1976 from sexually mature prespawning alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) captured in lakes Ontario, Huron, and Michigan and from sexually mature, spawning rainbow smelts (Osmerus mordax) from lakes Ontario and Erie, showed no evidence of the thyroid exhaustion described in these species collected from identical sites and seasons in 1952. The observations suggest a change in the apparent thyroid activity of these species from those in earlier studies, and that the annual mortality of alewives is not directly related to an inability to produce sufficient thyroid hormone. Key words: alewives, rainbow smelts, thyroid, mortality, Great Lakes

Early Life Stage Mortality Syndrome in Fishes of the Great Lakes and Baltic Sea

1998 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Prey Species ◽  
Lake Trout ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Species Variation ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Rainbow Smelt ◽  
Thiamine Content ◽  
Lake Variation

<em>Abstract</em>.—Thiamine concentrations in representative Great Lakes prey fish, including alewives <em>Alosa pseudoharengus</em>, rainbow smelt <em>Osmerus mordax</em>, slimy sculpin <em>Cottus cognatus</em>, bloater chub <em>Coregonus hoyi</em>, and lake herring <em>Coregonus artedi</em>, and their major dietary items, including mysids <em>Mysis relicta</em>, amphipods <em>Diporeia hoyi</em>, and net macroplankton, were measured to assess their potential involvement in depressed thiamine concentrations in lake trout <em>Salvelinus namaycush </em>of the Great Lakes. Mean thiamine concentrations in all biota were greater than the recommended dietary intake of 3.3 nmol/g for prevention of effects on growth, although the adequacy of these concentrations for reproduction is not known. Mean thiamine concentrations decreased in the order alewives > bloater chub, herring > smelt and differed from the order of associated egg thiamine concentrations published for lake trout feeding on these species (herring > alewives, smelt). As a result, these data strongly implicate the high thiaminase content, rather than the low thiamine content, of alewives and smelt as being responsible for the low egg thiamine concentrations of Great Lakes lake trout stocks that feed heavily on these species. Variations in thiamine content among prey species did not appear to be related to levels in their diet, because thiamine concentrations in <em>Mysis</em>, <em>Diporeia</em>, and macroplankton showed little consistency between group or between lake variation. There was no lake to lake variation in mean thiamine concentrations of prey species, but considerable within species variation occurred that was unrelated to size.

Early Life Stage Mortality Syndrome in Fishes of the Great Lakes and Baltic Sea

1998 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Lake Trout ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Rainbow Smelt ◽  
Inland Lakes ◽  
Early Mortality Syndrome ◽  
Thiamine Content

<em>Abstract</em>.—Lake trout <em>Salvelinus namaycush </em>eggs were collected from 18 separate locations in the Great Lakes and inland lakes to evaluate the relationship between diet and egg thiamine content. Thiamine concentrations in the eggs of lake trout whose diet consisted primarily of rainbow smelt <em>Osmerus mordax </em>and alewife <em>Alosa pseudoharengus </em>were one-ninth to one-seventeenth those of eggs of lake trout whose diet lacked either of these two species and was composed of lake herring <em>Coregonus artedi</em>, yellow perch <em>Perca flavescens</em>, cyprinids, or invertebrates. Within the Great Lakes, concentrations of thiamine in the eggs of lake trout increased in the order Ontario, Erie, Michigan, Huron < Superior and reflected the proportion of smelt, alewives, or both in the diet. Of the three forms of thiamine found in eggs, free thiamine was the most important and the form most affected by a diet of alewives or smelt. Collections from inland lakes were similar in terms of thiamine content and its relationship to diet composition. Average free thiamine concentrations in lake trout from Lakes Ontario, Erie, Michigan, and Huron were 1.5 to 4 times a threshold of 0.8 nmol/g that has been associated with the development of a thiamine-responsive early mortality syndrome. In contrast, the concentration of free thiamine in Lake Superior lake trout eggs was 26 times the threshold. We concluded that the reduction in egg thiamine concentrations in lake trout whose diet was primarily smelt or alewives was the result of their high thiaminase content, because published thiamine contents could not explain the patterns observed. Egg thiamine concentrations in lake trout were unaffected by maternal age.

Early Life Stage Mortality Syndrome in Fishes of the Great Lakes and Baltic Sea

1998 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Baltic Sea ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Lake Superior ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Early Life Stage ◽  
Whole Body ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Sampling Times

<em>Abstract</em>.—Smelt <em>Osmerus mordax </em>and alewives <em>Alosa pseudoharengus </em>were collected from Lakes Huron and Michigan in spring and fall and from Lake Superior in spring to determine the activity of thiaminase, a thiamine-destroying enzyme, in those species. Greater thiaminase activity was found in the viscera (1,902 pmol • g<sup>-1</sup> • min<sup>-1</sup> for smelt and 1,705 pmol • g<sup>-1</sup> • min<sup>-1</sup> for alewives) than in the eviscerated body (180 pmol • g<sup>-1</sup> • min<sup>-1</sup> for smelt and 235 pmol • g<sup>-1</sup> • min<sup>-1</sup> for alewives). The average whole body thiaminase activity when all of the samples were pooled was 362 pmol • g<sup>-1</sup> • min<sup>-1</sup> for smelt and 357 pmol • g<sup>-1</sup> • min<sup>-1</sup> for alewives. Large differences were found in thiaminase activities between smelt and alewives from different locations in the Great Lakes region and at different sampling times. These differences may be species-, location-, or season-specific.

Feeding-Behavior Repertoire of the Alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus, and the Ciscoes Coregonus hoyi and C. artedii

1978 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Janssen
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Feeding Behavior ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Lake Michigan ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Calanoid Copepods ◽  
Mysis Relicta ◽  
Particulate Feeding ◽  
Coregonus Hoyi

Particulate feeding, where fish orient to and take prey one at a time, is shown by the alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus, and the ciscoes Coregonus hoyi and C. artedii. Specialized particulate feeding is found in ciscoes and alewives for capturing strongly swimming prey such as Mysis relicta and calanoid copepods. This involves simultaneous darting and sucking. Alewives filter feed by swimming with the mouth fully agape for 0.5–2 s while driving hard with the tail. Ciscoes do not filter feed, but they and alewives display gulping behavior where fish open and close the mouth 2–3 times/s, do not drive hard with the tail, and may take more than one prey per gulp. The alewife has difficulty feeding near or on the bottom. The ciscoes feed easily on or near the bottom and will also take buried prey. Key words: Alosa pseudoharengus, Coregonus hoyi, C. artedii, feeding behavior, Great Lakes, Lake Michigan

Consumption of two exotic zooplankton by alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) in three Laurentian Great Lakes

2007 ◽  
Vol 64 (10) ◽  
pp. 1314-1328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam J Storch ◽  
Kimberly L Schulz ◽  
Carla E Cáceres ◽  
Peter M Smyntek ◽  
John M Dettmers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Stable Carbon Isotope ◽  
Gut Contents ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Bythotrephes Longimanus ◽  
Stable Carbon ◽  
Gut Content ◽  
Rainbow Smelt ◽  
Cercopagis Pengoi

Introductions of the zooplankton Bythotrephes longimanus and Cercopagis pengoi into the Great Lakes have drawn attention surrounding their suitability as prey for zooplanktivorous fishes. We used gut contents and stable carbon isotopes to quantify differential consumption and selection of the exotics by alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) in Lakes Erie, Michigan, and Ontario. The exotics were more often consumed by alewife (up to 70% of gut content biomass) than by smelt (up to 25% of gut content biomass). Measured stable carbon isotope ratios of fish and ratios predicted from mixing models confirmed that the “snapshot” descriptions of diet through gut contents were representative of longer-term diets. While B. longimanus generally was selected for (14 of 17 sampling dates), C. pengoi was not a preferred prey item. Cercopagis pengoi was sometimes a large component of alewife diet because of its high densities in the environment. The exotic zooplankton are more important for alewife than for smelt, and consumption of the cladocerans varies throughout the growing season and among lakes, generally related to patterns of exotic abundance. Effects associated with consumption of the exotics should be high in alewife-dominated systems invaded by B. longimanus or large numbers of C. pengoi.

Performance of Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush) Backcrosses, F1 Splake (S. fontinalis × S. namaycush), and Lake Trout in Lake Huron

1976 ◽  
Vol 33 (11) ◽  
pp. 2402-2407 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. R. Spangler ◽  
A. H. Berst
Keyword(s):  
Lake Trout ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Salvelinus Namaycush ◽  
Lake Huron ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Bathymetric Distribution ◽  
Rainbow Smelt ◽  
Sea Lampreys ◽  
Annual Mortality

This paper presents the results of plantings in Lake Huron waters of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush), F1 splake (S. fontinalis × S. namaycush), and the progeny of the backcross between splake males and lake trout females.The planted fish were piscivorous throughout age-groups II – V with rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax), sticklebacks (Pungitius [?]), and alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) the dominant food organisms. Hybrid stocks grew more rapidly but attained a somewhat smaller asymptotic length than did lake trout. The F1 hybrids were the earliest to mature with 34% of the males and 4% of the females spawning at age II. Earliest maturity occurred in the backcrosses at age III, in contrast to lake trout which matured predominantly at ages VI and VII. The backcrosses demonstrated a slightly broader thermal and bathymetric distribution during summer than did lake trout, while the F1 hybrids tended to concentrate in the thermocline. Total annual mortality rates (attributed mostly to predation by sea lampreys, Petromyzon marinus) ranged from 62 to 95% for all of the planted stocks.

The diet of herring gulls during the nesting period in Canadian waters of the Great Lakes

1990 ◽  
Vol 68 (6) ◽  
pp. 1075-1085 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. A. Fox ◽  
L. J. Allan ◽  
D. V. Weseloh ◽  
P. Mineau
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Foraging Strategies ◽  
Larus Argentatus ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Herring Gull ◽  
Alosa Pseudoharengus ◽  
Rainbow Smelt ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Herring Gulls ◽  
The One

We report the content of 132 boli and 2000 pellets regurgitated by adults and 1749 boli regurgitated for or by chicks in 25 herring gull (Larus argentatus) colonies in Lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron and Superior, between mid-April and mid-July, 1977–1983. Fish were the predominant food in all four lakes. Although 11 families of fish and a minimum of 16 species were identified, 80% of the fish were of two exotic species, the alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and the rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax). The dietary importance of these two fish species reflected their relative abundance within a lake. In addition, representatives of eight orders of insects and 11 families of birds were identified. In the one colony where diets of birds of known sex were quantified, male and female gulls fed on different proportions of alewife and smelt, suggesting the sexes have different foraging strategies. Although some food was scavenged, most was obtained alive. Dietary differences existed between colonies and between lakes, both within and between years. We suggest that diet, contaminant burden, and population size of Great Lakes herring gulls will be affected by fisheries policies which alter the predator–prey dynamics of this exotic-dominated ecosystem.

Fish community change in Lake Superior, 1970–2000

2003 ◽  
Vol 60 (12) ◽  
pp. 1552-1574 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles R Bronte ◽  
Mark P Ebener ◽  
Donald R Schreiner ◽  
David S DeVault ◽  
Michael M Petzold ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Fish Community ◽  
Lake Trout ◽  
Community Change ◽  
Osmerus Mordax ◽  
Rainbow Smelt ◽  
Additional Species ◽  
Community Agencies ◽  
Natural Reproduction

Changes in Lake Superior's fish community are reviewed from 1970 to 2000. Lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) and lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) stocks have increased substantially and may be approaching ancestral states. Lake herring (Coregonus artedi) have also recovered, but under sporadic recruitment. Contaminant levels have declined and are in equilibrium with inputs, but toxaphene levels are higher than in all other Great Lakes. Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) control, harvest limits, and stocking fostered recoveries of lake trout and allowed establishment of small nonnative salmonine populations. Natural reproduction supports most salmonine populations, therefore further stocking is not required. Nonnative salmonines will likely remain minor components of the fish community. Forage biomass has shifted from exotic rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) to native species, and high predation may prevent their recovery. Introductions of exotics have increased and threaten the recovering fish community. Agencies have little influence on the abundance of forage fish or the major predator, siscowet lake trout, and must now focus on habitat protection and enhancement in nearshore areas and prevent additional species introductions to further restoration. Persistence of Lake Superior's native deepwater species is in contrast to other Great Lakes where restoration will be difficult in the absence of these ecologically important fishes.

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