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Linking movements of lake sturgeon ( A cipenser fulvescens R afinesque, 1817) in a small hydroelectric reservoir to abiotic variables
Author(s) -
McDougall C. A.,
Blanchfield P. J.,
Anderson W. G.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of applied ichthyology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.392
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1439-0426
pISSN - 0175-8659
DOI - 10.1111/jai.12546
Subject(s) - lake sturgeon , acipenser , abiotic component , hydroelectricity , fishery , population , environmental science , seasonality , biology , hydrology (agriculture) , ecology , entrainment (biomusicology) , oceanography , sturgeon , fish <actinopterygii> , demography , geotechnical engineering , sociology , engineering , philosophy , geology , rhythm , aesthetics
Summary Quantifying the extent to which abiotic factors influence lake sturgeon ( Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque, 1817) movement and utilization of areas where they are susceptible to entrainment may be useful for management of hydroelectric operations. Over two open–water seasons, acoustic telemetry was used to monitor tagged adults (n = 25) and subadults (n = 24) throughout a 9.8 km long run‐of‐the‐river reservoir located on the Winnipeg River, Manitoba, Canada. Movement and utilization patterns were examined for correlation with abiotic variables. Despite considerable individuality, the adult sample population increasingly utilized the lower sections of the reservoir when air and water temperatures were high, daylight hours were long, river flow was increasing, and flows were high. However, our hypothesis of a pronounced concentration of Lake Sturgeon occurring immediately upstream of the generating station when high flows coincided with the summer/fall period was not supported. This may be attributed to the presence of a shallow river narrows located 2.1 km upstream of the station, which appeared to restrict the extent of seasonal/flow influenced downstream movement by adults. Movements of individual subadults were also correlated to seasonal and flow variables, but directionality was not consistent and population level trends in utilization did not appear to be correlated to abiotic variables. Results suggest that in small reservoirs, adult utilization of the areas immediately upstream of hydroelectric facilities may be influenced more by seasonality than by flow conditions.