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Shore‐Spawning and Survival of Eggs of the American Smelt
Author(s) -
Rupp Robert S.
Publication year - 1965
Publication title -
transactions of the american fisheries society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.696
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1548-8659
pISSN - 0002-8487
DOI - 10.1577/1548-8659(1965)94[160:sasoeo]2.0.co;2
Subject(s) - shore , smelt , hatching , fishery , biology , geography , ecology , fish <actinopterygii>
Eggs of the American smelt, Osmerus mordax, spawned naturally at 11 sites near shore at Branch Lake, Maine, experienced a mean survival‐to‐hatching of 1.065 per cent, with individual site values ranging as high as 2.096 per cent and as low as 0.027 per cent. Mean survival at shore sites did not differ importantly from survivals reported from stream‐spawning sites, leading to the conclusion that shore spawning imputes no intrinsic disadvantage to the eggs laid. The grinding actions of surf, declining water levels, and trampling are probable causes of mortality among shore‐spawned smelt eggs. Several features of shore‐spawning behavior among smelts show that density‐dependent intragroup stimulation is probably the main factor operating in the release of the spawning act and explain the absence of site selectivity.