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Blue sucker stock characteristics in the Wabash River, Indiana–Illinois, USA
Author(s) -
BACULA T. D.,
DAUGHERTY D. J.,
SUTTON T. M.,
KENNEDY A. J.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
fisheries management and ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1365-2400
pISSN - 0969-997X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2400.2008.00619.x
Subject(s) - sucker , fishing , biology , fishery , range (aeronautics) , overfishing , population , stock (firearms) , habitat , age structure , geography , ecology , zoology , demography , archaeology , materials science , sociology , composite material
Blue sucker, Cycleptus elongatus (Lesueur), populations have declined because of habitat degradation and overharvest, and little information exists on the population characteristics and stock dynamics of this species. We examined size and age structure, mortality, growth and condition of blue sucker in the Wabash River, Indiana–Illinois, USA. A total of 356 fish collected by electric fishing from June 2003 to April 2006 ranged from 238 to 775 mm total length and 85 to 5288 g wet weight. Age ranged from 3 to 16 years and annual mortality ranged from 22 to 25%. Annual growth was greatest among younger age classes (range 48–141 mm yr −1 ) and declined after age 6, likely at the onset of reproductive maturity. Variation in the relative condition factor (range 66–141) was heteroscedastic over the size range of fish sampled, perhaps attributable to seasonal differences in reproductive condition among mature fish.