Morphometric measures of health in fish from the St. Clair River AOC in 2002/3 and 2014

Session: Poster session

Jim Sherry, Environment Canada, [email protected]
Gerald Tetreault, Environment and Climate Change Canada, [email protected]
Mark McMaster, Environment and Climate Change Canada, [email protected]
Annette Muttray, Consultant, [email protected]
Derek Muir, Environment & Climate Change Canada, [email protected]

Abstract

To complement our study of temporal and spatial trends of contaminant body burdens in wild fish from the St. Clair River AOC, we also assessed various morphometric measures of fish health. In late Fall 2002/3, we sampled adult shorthead redhorse sucker (RHS) and yellow perch from a site within the river’s industrial zone (Stag Island (SI)), from a downstream site (Chenal Ecarte (CE)), and from Lake Huron (LH), our reference. We repeated the collections in 2014 with the addition of emerald shiner (ES).  The river and lake fish were captured by electrofishing and trap nets respectively. We used ANCOVA to explore the following trends across sites: condition, liver weight, gonad weight, and fecundity. We observed reduced condition in male RHS from SI in 2003 and in female RHS from SI in 2014. The adjusted mean liver weight was elevated in RHS from SI in 2002/3; whereas in 2014 RHS from CE/Walpole had larger adjusted mean liver weights (p<0.05). In 2003, female RHS from SI had larger adjusted mean gonad weights than the LH fish; whereas in 2014 the converse was observed.  In 2014, the adjusted mean egg counts for RHS indicated that fecundity was not affected by site.

1. Keyword
fish

2. Keyword
St. Clair River

3. Keyword
environmental effects