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Validation of Age Estimation for the Lake Sturgeon
Author(s) -
Rossiter A.,
Noakes D. L.G.,
Beamish E. W.H.
Publication year - 1995
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(1995)124<0777:voaeft>2.3.co;2
Subject(s) - lake sturgeon , fish measurement , mark and recapture , fish fin , sturgeon , biology , fishery , acipenser , zoology , anatomy , fish <actinopterygii> , demography , population , sociology
The estimation of age of lake sturgeon Acipenser fulvescens by counting annuli in transverse sections of pectoral fin rays is validated through two methods: capture–recapture and examination of annuli laid down after injection of an oxytetracycline (OTC) marker. At first capture of each individual, the first ray of the right pectoral fin was removed. At recapture, 1–3 years later, the first ray of the left pectoral fin was removed. Differences between counts of annuli in rays collected at capture and at recapture were the same as the number of years that individual had been at large. At first capture lake sturgeons ranged in age and size from 4 years old and 43 cm fork length (FL) to 34 years and 115 cm FL. At recapture, they ranged from 6 years and 45 cm FL to 36 years and 122 cm FL. Fin ray sections of recaptured individuals previously injected with an OTC marker showed a discrete fluorescent band under ultraviolet light. The number of annuli outside this band corresponded to the number of years between OTC injection and recapture. This is the first validation of aging techniques in lake sturgeon. However, the close proximity of some annular rings can result in underestimation of true age if two rings are counted as one; thus, we urge care and caution when determining ages of lake sturgeon through enumeration of annuli in fin ray sections.