Changes in the Status of Native Brook Trout on Laurel Hill, Southwestern Pennsylvania

Argent, David G.; Kimmel, William G.; Gray, Derek K.

doi:10.1656/045.025.0101

Cited by 5 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…Approximately 39% of North American freshwater fish species are facing imperilment (Jelks et al., 2008), including populations of Pennsylvania's only native stream salmonid, the brook trout ( Salvelinus fontinalis ; Argent et al., 2018; Cooper, 1983). While previous studies have identified many drivers of brook trout extirpation across their native range (Heft, 2006), a recent survey of brook trout populations in Pennsylvania's Laurel Ridge documented a nearly 60% reduction over a 35‐year period, but could not identify a cause for these drastic population declines (Argent et al., 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dietary DNA metabarcoding reveals seasonal trophic changes among three syntopic freshwater trout species

et al. 2020

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Providing taxonomically precise dietary characterisations for freshwater fish species is critical for gaining a deeper understanding of the trophic dynamics present in freshwater ecosystems. However, our current understanding of freshwater trophic ecology has relied almost entirely upon direct observation of foraging attempts or morphological identification of partially digested prey. Due to the limitations of morphological dietary characterisations of soft‐bodied arthropod prey, these techniques offer dietary descriptions that can lack satisfactory taxonomic resolution and may bias our interpretations of freshwater food webs. Recent advancements in DNA‐based prey identification have allowed for species‐level prey characterisations for many terrestrial insectivores, although these techniques have seldom been applied to understand the diets of freshwater fish. This study used DNA metabarcoding with high‐throughput, next‐generation sequencing to provide species‐level descriptions of prey composition for three naturally reproducing, syntopic freshwater trout species. Our study supports previous findings that suggested that brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), brown trout (Salmo trutta), and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) are generalist predators that display a high degree of seasonal dietary flexibility. Prey composition varied significantly across sampling periods, with detection frequency of terrestrial prey greater in the spring/summer period compared to the autumn period. Pollution‐sensitive aquatic macroinvertebrates were detected frequently across both sampling periods, highlighting the importance of high‐quality streams that support such arthropod prey. DNA metabarcoding also detected a high richness of soft‐bodied, Lepidoptera prey species, a taxonomic group that has been largely underrepresented in previous trout dietary studies that used traditional morphological techniques. This study demonstrates the applicability of dietary DNA metabarcoding for the detection and species‐level identification of arthropods found in freshwater fish lavage samples and highlights the importance of taxonomically precise techniques when attempting to better understand trophic interactions within freshwater communities.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dietary DNA metabarcoding reveals seasonal trophic changes among three syntopic freshwater trout species

et al. 2020

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“…7, 8). The harvestmen not moved actively over surfaces such as it was observed in Maryland (Shultz, 2018), but hidden under stones. This species is predominately parthenogenetic.…”

Section: Caddo Agilismentioning

confidence: 96%

“…The length of palp and legs of specimens from Primorskii Krai are given in Table 2. (Gruber, 1974) USA, Pennsylvania (Shear, 1975) Japan, Hokkaido (Suzuki & Tsurusaki, 1983) Length of body (Suzuki, 1958;Shear, 1975;Cokendolpher & Lee, 1993;Giribet & Kury, 2007;Groh & Giribet, 2015;Shultz & Regier, 2009;Shultz, 2018).…”

Section: Family Caddidae Banks 1892mentioning

confidence: 99%

On northwestern distribution of the family Caddidae (Opiliones) in Asia

Prokopenko¹,

Sergeev²

2020

Far East. entomol.

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“…Although their study could not pinpoint the cause of this drastic decline, Argent et al. () postulated that climate change and habitat fragmentation may have played a role. The population genetic patterns of Brook Trout in parts of Appalachia have been documented (Hayes et al.…”

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confidence: 94%

“…Argent et al. () found that Brook Trout numbers in the Laurel Hill have declined by 64% since 1983 (Sharpe et al. ) despite relatively unchanged habitat and water quality.…”

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confidence: 99%

Genetic Assessment Reveals Population Fragmentation and Inbreeding in Populations of Brook Trout in the Laurel Hill of Pennsylvania

et al. 2019

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Whether natural or man-made, landscape features often influence the patterns of genetic variation within a species and can have important conservation implications. This is especially true for Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis, which are typically restricted to high-quality headwater streams. In this study, we characterized the patterns of genetic partitioning and diversity among Brook Trout populations in the Laurel Hill of southwestern Pennsylvania with respect to landscape features and potential barriers to migration. In total, 354 wild Brook Trout samples collected across 10 streams were analyzed using 12 microsatellite loci. Our results showed a wide range of genetic diversity (allelic richness A R = 3.404-7.124; expected heterozygosity H e = 0.432-0.727) and effective population size estimates (N e = 13.5-1,106.6) and indicated that some sites contained small, low-diversity populations of Brook Trout. Three populations were located upstream of reservoirs; however, our results did not show significant differences in the genetic diversity metrics between upstream and downstream populations. Although isolation by distance could be a factor, the patterns of genetic differentiation revealed minimal contemporary gene flow between watersheds and among most streams. Overall, our results highlight the need for continued population monitoring and habitat restoration for Brook Trout populations in southwestern Pennsylvania.

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Changes in the Status of Native Brook Trout on Laurel Hill, Southwestern Pennsylvania

Abstract: A Brief Introduction to R, the multilevel package and the nlme package

Cited by 5 publications

References 77 publications

Dietary DNA metabarcoding reveals seasonal trophic changes among three syntopic freshwater trout species

Dietary DNA metabarcoding reveals seasonal trophic changes among three syntopic freshwater trout species

On northwestern distribution of the family Caddidae (Opiliones) in Asia

Genetic Assessment Reveals Population Fragmentation and Inbreeding in Populations of Brook Trout in the Laurel Hill of Pennsylvania

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