Tuesday, June 5, 2007 - 11:30 AM
146

Ecology and conservation of benthic fishes: reproduction

Mark Wildhaber, Columbia Environmental Research Center, USGS, Columbia, MO 65201

Recovery efforts for threatened and endangered benthic fish species are often hampered by the lack of reproductive ecology knowledge.  Habitat requirements and environmental stimuli necessary for successful reproduction are often unknown and vary widely among species.  For benthic fishes found in turbid systems, determination of habitat requirements for successful reproduction is often complicated by the impossibility of direct visual observation of behavior.  Therefore, new and innovative methods for collecting behavioral data are required to better understand habitat requirements.  Additionally, information is required on reproductive physiology and the influence of environmental variables on sexual maturation and spawning to identify environmental conditions necessary for successful reproduction.  To minimize population impacts, non-lethal and minimally stressful laboratory and field methods must be employed that permit study and monitoring of reproductive behavior and success.  For Neosho madtoms (Noturus placidus), shovelnose sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus platorynchus), and pallid sturgeon (S. albus) research efforts have been focused on effects of timing of temperature, photoperiod, and flow events.  These species demonstrate a variety of physical requirements necessary for successful reproduction.  This presentation uses past and present research to demonstrate the complexity of knowledge necessary to facilitate conservation efforts for benthic fishes through the reproductive stage alone.

 


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