Passage performance and physiological stress response of adult white sturgeon ascending a laboratory fishway

Abstract

Our study objective was to test passage performance of adult wild-caught white sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus (123-225 cm TL) in a simulated mid-section of a 24.4-m-long experimental fishway incorporating vertical barriers, a 4% bed slope, and a series of five, paired vertical baffles (with 0.61-m slot widths) to dissipate flowing-water kinetic energy as well as to provide guidance for upstream migration. Fish, in good physical condition, reaching the upstream end of our flume in both the low (50% of the fish) and high (48%) tailwater treatments exceeded that of fish in poor condition (5%). To assist in evaluating performance we examined the physiological stress responses of a small sample of these sturgeon. Blood samples from four, cannulated fish showed post-swimming peaks in hematocrit and plasma cortisol concentrations, compared with pre-swimming and (24-h) post-experiment levels. In addition, plasma pH showed decreases and mean plasma lactate showed increases post-swimming, indicating white-muscle recruitment. Overall, a relatively high percentage of adult white sturgeon in good physical condition, successfully ascended the sturgeon-compatible fishway and displayed burst-swimming-associated stress responses typical of many teleostean fishes, followed by complete recovery after 24 h.

Swimming activity and energetic costs of adult lake sturgeon during fishway passage

“…Although the sample size of successful individuals was low (n=7) and the causal mechanisms for inter-individual variability were not identified, the variability in passage behaviour observed in this study is consistent with previous observations of lake sturgeon at this site by Thiem et al (2011). Cocherell et al (2011) likewise identified variability in passage behaviour of white sturgeon (A. transmontanus) ascending a laboratory fishway. Unlike the findings of the present study, Cocherell et al (2011) identified that individual condition, based on a health index that quantified external injuries rather than derived from length and weight, accounted for the observed variability in passage success of white sturgeon.…”

“…Cocherell et al (2011) likewise identified variability in passage behaviour of white sturgeon (A. transmontanus) ascending a laboratory fishway. Unlike the findings of the present study, Cocherell et al (2011) identified that individual condition, based on a health index that quantified external injuries rather than derived from length and weight, accounted for the observed variability in passage success of white sturgeon.…”

“…To test whether individual variability in fishway passage success was related to condition (e.g. Cocherell et al, 2011), individual lengthweight data were used to calculate Fulton's condition factor (Anderson and Neumann, 1996). We compared the condition of lake sturgeon that entered the fishway with that of those that did not, and the condition of lake sturgeon that entered and successfully ascended the fishway with those that entered but were unsuccessful.…”

“…Sturgeon have a relatively limited capacity for high-speed swimming, resulting from high profile drag (Webb, 1986) and poor aerobic capacity (Peake et al, 1997). Considerable attention has been devoted to facilitating upstream passage of sturgeon at fishways via laboratory-derived swimming models (Peake et al, 1997), observations of captive sturgeon ascending experimental fishways (Cheong et al, 2006;Cocherell et al, 2011;Kynard et al, 2011;Webber et al, 2007) and field observations of passage behaviour including quantification of fishway efficiency (Parsley et al, 2007;Thiem et al, 2011). Given their poor aerobic swimming ability, it is possible that fishways impose a particularly high energetic cost to migrating sturgeon, and that energetic expenditure may explain differences in passage success.…”

Comparative Physiology and Relative Swimming Performance of Three Redhorse (Moxostomaspp.) Species: Associations with Fishway Passage Success

“…Knowledge of the swimming ability of different fishes has been used to identify potential velocity barriers (Peake et al 1997a(Peake et al , 1997b) and generate models for use in the evaluation of different fishway passage facilities (Haro et al 2004), thus informing biological design criteria (Rodriguez et al 2006;Katopodis and Gervais 2012). Physiological methods such as muscle and blood biochemistry and respiratory energetics (e.g., metabolic rate, aerobic capacity) have been identified as useful ways to measure the physiological consequences of fishway passage (e.g., Connor et al 1964;Dominy 1971;Cocherell et al 2011;Roscoe et al 2011;Pon et al 2012). Additionally, physiological methods have also been used to evaluate factors determining passage success (Peake and Farrell 2004;Hasler et al 2009;Pon et al 2009).…”