Relationship between Concentrations of Copper and Zinc in Water, Sediment, Benthic Invertebrates, and Tissues of White Sucker (Catostomus commersoni) at Metal-Contaminated Sites

1992 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 978-984 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. A. Miller ◽  
K. R. Munkittrick ◽  
D. G. Dixon
Keyword(s):  
Benthic Invertebrates ◽  
Water Concentration ◽  
Fish Tissue ◽  
White Sucker ◽  
Catostomus Commersoni ◽  
Metal Mining ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Tissue Contamination ◽  
Liver And Kidney ◽  
Cu And Zn

The relationship of concentrations of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) tissues to concentrations of those metals in water, sediment, and benthic invertebrates (food) were investigated in a field study. Fish were collected from six northern Ontario lakes contaminated with mixed-metal mining wastes. The concentrations of Cu in invertebrates were correlated with water but not with sediment Cu concentrations. Conversely, Zn concentrations in invertebrates were correlated with sediment but not with water Zn concentrations. There were differences among fish from different lakes in the concentrations of Cu and Zn in liver, kidney, gill, and bone (Zn only). There were no significant correlations between tissue metal and invertebrate metal concentrations. This study suggests that liver and kidney are better indicators of chronic Cu and Zn exposure than muscle. Elevated Zn concentrations were reflected in bone tissue. For both metals, the water concentration was a better predictor of fish tissue contamination than the concentrations in either sediment or invertebrates.

Detection of food limitation in health of white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) 5 years after the closure of a bleached kraft pulp mill

2014 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 152-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. J. Arciszewski ◽  
M. E. McMaster ◽  
C. B. Portt ◽  
K. R. Munkittrick
Keyword(s):  
Food Limitation ◽  
Pulp Mill ◽  
Response Patterns ◽  
White Sucker ◽  
Pulp Mills ◽  
Catostomus Commersoni ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Bleached Kraft Pulp ◽  
The Status ◽  
Catch Rates

Recovery of fish after implementing better management of effluent or following the closure of pulp mills is not well studied. Results from existing studies suggest the predominant responses observed during the operation of mills would predict a pathway of recovery, but this hypothesis has not been tested at mills with variable effects on fish. Multiple studies done at a mill in northern Ontario showed variable responses in white sucker (Catostomus commersoni), including effects on reproductive endpoints. Data from most years failed, however, to meet strict definitions of response patterns used in Environmental Effects Monitoring. After the permanent closure of the mill in 2006, white sucker were collected in 2011 to determine the status of fish. We predicted that no effects would be observed in white sucker after the mill's closure. Five years after the closure of the mill, however, female white sucker showed statistical food limitation. Males showed a similar trend, but fewer statistical differences. These changes, coupled with reduced catch rates, have not been previously observed downstream of this mill. Our results suggest that recovery of fish after the closure of mills may not be clearly associated with effects found during operation. The absence of recovery after closure may more broadly suggest relevance of effects of operational mills.

Responses in a Fathead Minnow (Pimephales promelas) Lifecycle Test and in Wild White Sucker (Catostomus commersoni) Exposed to a Canadian Bleached Kraft Mill Effluent

2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne L. Parrott ◽  
L. Mark Hewitt ◽  
Tibor G. Kovacs ◽  
Deborah L. MacLatchy ◽  
Pierre H. Martel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Egg Production ◽  
Fathead Minnow ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Fish Reproduction ◽  
White Sucker ◽  
Catostomus Commersoni ◽  
Liver Size ◽  
Paper Mill Effluent ◽  
Kraft Mill Effluent ◽  
Kraft Mill

Abstract To evaluate currently available bioassays for their use in investigating the causes of pulp and paper mill effluent effects on fish reproduction, the responses of wild white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) collected from the receiving environment at the bleached kraft mill at La Tuque, Quebec, were compared with responses of fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) exposed to effluent in a laboratory lifecycle test. White sucker collected at effluent exposed sites had increased liver size but none of the reproductive effects that had been documented in earlier field studies at this site. Exposure to 1, 3, 10, 30, and 100% bleached kraft mill effluent (BKME) in the lab led to significantly decreased length, but increased weight and liver size in male fathead minnow. Female length was also decreased and liver size was increased at high effluent exposures. Most effluent concentrations (1 to 30%) significantly increased egg production compared with controls. The fathead minnow lifecycle assay mirrored the effects seen in wild fish captured downstream of the BKME discharge. These results will be used to select short-term fish tests for investigating the causes of and solutions to the effects of mill effluents on fish reproduction.

Survival to hatching of fishes in sulfate-saline waters, Devils Lake, North Dakota

1995 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 464-469 ◽  
Author(s):  
Todd M. Koel ◽  
John J. Peterka
Keyword(s):  
North Dakota ◽  
Sodium Sulfate ◽  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Hatching Success ◽  
Perca Flavescens ◽  
White Sucker ◽  
Catostomus Commersoni ◽  
Devils Lake ◽  
Common Carp Cyprinus Carpio ◽  
Species Survival

Laboratory-based bioassays were conducted to determine concentrations of sodium-sulfate type salinities that limit the hatching success of several fish species. Survival to hatching (SH) was significantly lower (P < 0.05) in sodium-sulfate type waters from Devils Lake, North Dakota, of ≥ 2400 mg/L total dissolved solids (TDS) than in fresh water of 200 mg/L. In waters of 200, 1150, 2400, 4250, and 6350 mg/L TDS, walleye (Stizostedion vitreum) SH was 41, 38, 7, 1, and 0%; northern pike (Esox lucius) SH was 92, 68, 33, 2, and 0%; yellow perch (Perca flavescens) SH was 88, 70, 73, 0, and 0%; white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) SH was 87, 95, 66, 0, and 0%; common carp (Cyprinus carpio) SH was 71, 69, 49, 63, and 25%.

Diet Selection and the Contribution of Detritus to the Diet of the Juvenile White Sucker (Catostomus commersoni)

1990 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly O. Ahlgren
Keyword(s):  
Field Data ◽  
Diet Selection ◽  
Dry Mass ◽  
Maximum Density ◽  
White Sucker ◽  
Quantitative Microscopy ◽  
Catostomus Commersoni ◽  
Invertebrate Prey ◽  
Invertebrate Abundance ◽  
Northern Michigan

The ash-free dry mass (AFDM) of detritus, invertebrates, and algae in the diet of juvenile white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) was determined by quantitative microscopy. Fish were collected from a northern Michigan pond from January through October 1986 and their seasonal diet was compared with benthc invertebrate abundance. The quantity of detritus in sucker foreguts was inversely related to benthic microcrustacean densities. In July, microcrustacean densities were high and they comprised 95% of the AFDM in foregut contents. By October, microcrustacean densities had declined to 13% of their maximum density and detritus comprised over 90% of the sucker's diet AFDM. In laboratory aquaria, sucker that were fed detritus mixed with four different densities of Artemia ingested significantly more detritus from diets that provided lower Artemia densities. In the presence of high Artemia densities, sucker completely rejected detritus and ingested only Artemia, The fact that juvenile sucker can separate detritus from invertebrates that they swallow demonstrates that detritus is not ingested incidentally. Both laboratory and field data support the hypothesis that detritus is ingested intentionally when preferred invertebrate prey are scarce.

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