Fat Lake Trout like Lots Of Fathoms!
Ann Arbor, MI — Consider the question: does anything live at the deepest spot in the Great Lakes? (That's in Lake Superior by the way.) To answer your next likely question, it is 1,330 ft (222 fathoms).
Although Lake Superior is the deepest of the Great Lakes, averaging more than 480 ft, little is known about fishes that live out in its abyss. In the past, most fish sampling has been done in near shore, shallower areas of Lake Superior (less than 300 ft or 50 fathoms). However, recent efforts have sent research teams out to explore the vast amounts of deep water in search of fish. As part of these efforts in 2006, the research team aboard the Michigan Department of Natural Resources' Research Vessel Judy ventured about 30 miles offshore of Munising and for the first time found siscowet near the deepest recorded site in the Great Lakes.
"Although we knew siscowets, burbot, and chubs live out in the deep, we weren't sure if these fishes would live at the deepest spot," says Shawn Sitar, a research biologist at the Marquette Fisheries Research Station in Marquette, Michigan.
The siscowet or commonly called the fat trout, is a lake trout form that has features such as big eyes, big fins, and high body fat which are adaptations for living in the deep, dark waters of the abyss. Although siscowets were the only fish caught at the deepest spot this time, other fishes such as deepwater sculpins, chubs, and burbot were found in the siscowet stomachs, indicating that other fishes likely inhabit those deeper waters. Interestingly, terrestrial insects were also found in the stomachs of these siscowets, indicating that fat trout may move up to the surface and perhaps closer to shore. Similar to lake trout in near shore areas, siscowets in deepwater had sea lamprey wounds.
Original Publication Information
Results of this study, "Survey of Siscowet Lake Trout at Their Maximum Depth in Lake Superior," are reported by Shawn P. Sitar, Helen M. Morales, Melissa T. Mata, Brandon B. Bastar, Dawn M. Dupras, Gregory D. Kleaver and Kevin D. Rathbun in the latest issue (Volume 34, No. 2, pp. 276-286) of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, published by the International Association for Great Lakes Research, 2008.
Contacts
For more information about the study, contact contact Shawn Sitar, Marquette Fisheries Research Station, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, 484 Cherry Creek Road, Marquette, MI 49855; , (906) 249-1611.
For information about the Journal of Great Lakes Research, contact Marlene Evans, Editor, National Water Research Institute, 11 Innovation Boulevard, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 3H5, Canada; editor@iaglr.org; (608) 692-1076.
Links
Since 1967, IAGLR has served as the focal point for compiling and disseminating multidisciplinary knowledge on North America's Laurentian Great Lakes and other large lakes of the world and their watersheds. In part, IAGLR communicates this knowledge through publication of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, available to members in print and electronic form. A searchable archive of the journal is available online and includes the abstracts of articles from the journal's inception in 1975 through the most recent issue. In addition, complete articles are available to members who have signed up for an electronic subscription.
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