Issue |
Int. J. Lim.
Volume 60, 2024
Special issue - Biology and Management of Coregonid Fishes - 2023
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | 8 | |
Number of page(s) | 16 | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/limn/2024007 | |
Published online | 04 July 2024 |
Research article
Spawning behaviour of lake whitefish in Lake Huron revealed by fine-scale acoustic telemetry and Indigenous ecological knowledge
1
Environmental and Life Science Graduate Program, Trent University, 1600 W Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON K9L 0G2, Canada
2
Aquatic Research and Monitoring Section, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Trent University, DNA Bldg., 2140 East Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON K9L 1Z8, Canada
3
Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation Fisheries Assessment Program, 50 Farm Road, Neyaashiinigmiing, ON N0H 2T0, Canada
4
Trent School of the Environment, Trent University, 1600 W Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, K9L 0G2
5
Department of Forensic Science, Trent University, 1600 W Bank Drive, Peterborough, ON, K9L 0G2
* Corresponding author: camilla.ryther@ontario.ca
Received:
22
January
2024
Accepted:
22
May
2024
Lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) are ecologically, economically, and culturally significant across their range, yet little is documented about the species’ spawning behaviour. Here, we used a VEMCO Positioning System (VPS) and the local ecological knowledge of Saugeen Ojibway Nation in a Two-Eyed Seeing approach to characterize sex-specific movement patterns of lake whitefish at a spawning shoal in Georgian Bay, Lake Huron (Ontario, Canada). In fall 2020, 50 lake whitefish were tagged with acoustic transmitters and 28 of those fish were detected during the deployment of the VPS between 15 October 2021 and 18 January 2022. Occupancy of lake whitefish on the VPS followed a bell-shaped pattern, with an increase, plateau that lasted ∼1 week, and subsequent decrease in activity over a 48-day period demarcating the 2021 spawning season. Apart from 2 resident females, males appeared in the area first. Both sexes moved into shallower lake depths at night and deeper depths during the day. Females moved 18.0% faster than males during the day whereas males moved 39.5% faster than females at night. Depths occupied became shallower over time until the peak activity phase, followed by a transition back to deeper waters. Both sexes used a variety of habitats over the spawning season, including the main spawning shoal, sandy substrates, and steep slopes. These insights on the habitat usage and spawning phenology of lake whitefish provided through our Two-Eyed Seeing approach can help inform stewardship initiatives aimed at increasing recruitment of depleted populations of this important species.
Key words: coregonine restoration / GLATOS / Laurentian Great Lakes / spawning site fidelity
© C.M. Ryther et al., published by EDP Sciences, 2024
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Current usage metrics show cumulative count of Article Views (full-text article views including HTML views, PDF and ePub downloads, according to the available data) and Abstracts Views on Vision4Press platform.
Data correspond to usage on the plateform after 2015. The current usage metrics is available 48-96 hours after online publication and is updated daily on week days.
Initial download of the metrics may take a while.