Abstract
Dispersal is an important early life history process that influences fish population dynamics and recruitment. We studied larval sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) dispersal by combining spatially explicit field sampling, genetic methods, and laboratory experiments to investigate how far sea lamprey larvae can disperse away from nests during their first growing season; subsequent dispersal by age 1 of sea lamprey; and the effect of density on larval dispersal. In two study streams sea lamprey larvae were observed to have moved >150 m downstream from the most likely source nest within 2–3 weeks of hatching. Conversely, randomization trials suggested that for both streams age 0 larvae were found closer to full siblings than would be expected if dispersal was not constrained by distance. Restricted dispersal was also observed for age 1 larvae in five streams, although for this age class full siblings were more commonly found to be separated by >1,000 m. Laboratory experiments indicated a significant effect of density on the movement of larval sea lamprey, with more larval movement at higher densities. Temperature also affected movement significantly, with reduced larval movements at cooler temperatures. Our findings suggest that larval sea lamprey dispersal is sufficient to minimize the likelihood of strong density-dependent effects on recruitment, even with large population sizes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Applegate VC (1950) Natural history of the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) in Michigan. US Fish and Wildlife Service Special Scientific Report 1950, Fisheries No 55
Applegate VC (1961) Downstream movement of lampreys and fishes in the Carp Lake River, Michigan. US Fish and Wildlife Service Special Scientific Report 1961, Fisheries No 387
Brown AV, Armstrong ML (1985) Propensity to drift downstream among various species of fish. J Freshw Ecol 3(1):3–17
Bryan MB, Libants SV, Warrillow JA, Li W, Scribner KT (2003) Polymorphic microsatellite markers for the landlocked sea lamprey, Petromyzon marinus. Conserv Genet 4:113–116
Christie GC, Goddard CI (2003) Sea lamprey International Symposium (SLIS II): advances in the integrated management of sea lamprey in the Great Lakes. J Great Lakes Res 29[Suppl 1]:1–14
Close TL, Anderson CS (1992) Dispersal, density-dependent growth, and survival of stocked steelhead fry in Lake Superior tributaries. North Am J Fish Manag 12:728–735
Copp GH, Cellot B (1988) Drift of embryonic and larval fishes, especially Lepomis gibbosus (L.), in the Upper Rhone River. J Freshw Ecol 4(4):419–424
Cunjak RA (1988) Physiological consequences of overwintering in streams: the cost of acclimatization? Can J Fish Aquat Sci 45:443–452
Economou AN (1991) Is dispersal of fish eggs, embryos and larvae an insurance against density dependence? Environ Biol Fish 31:313–321
Elliott JM (1994) Quantitative ecology and the brown trout. Oxford University Press, New York, p 286
Fonseca DM, Hart DD (1996) Density-dependent dispersal of black fly neonates is mediated by flow. Oikos 75:49–58
Frank KT, Leggett WC (1994) Fisheries ecology in the context of ecological and evolutionary theory. Annu Rev Ecol Systemat 25:401–422
Gaines SD, Bertness M (1993) The dynamics of juvenile dispersal: why field ecologists must integrate. Ecology 74(8):2430–2435
Gardiner WR, Geddes P (1980) The influence of body composition on the survival of juvenile salmon. Hydrobiologia 69(1–2):67–72
Griffiths RW, Beamish FWH, Morrison BJ, Barker LA (2001) Factors affecting larval sea lamprey growth and length at metamorphosis in lampricide-treated streams. Trans Am Fish Soc 130(2):289–306
Hastings A (1993) Complex interactions between dispersal and dynamics: lessons from coupled logistic equations. Ecology 74(5):1362–1372
Johnston TA (1997) Downstream movements of young-of-the-year fishes in Catamaran Brook and the Little Southwest Miramichi River, New Brunswick. J Fish Biol 51:1047–1062
Jones ML, Bergstedt RA, Twohey MB, Fodale MF, Cuddy DW, Slade JW (2003) Compensatory mechanisms in Great Lakes sea lamprey populations. J Great Lakes Res 29[Suppl 1]:113–129
Kalmer E (1992) Early life history of fish: an energetics approach. Chapman and Hall, London
Lomnicki A (1980) Regulation of population density due to individual differences and patchy environments. Oikos 35:185–193
Mallatt J (1983) Laboratory growth of larval lampreys (Lampetra (Entosphenus) tridentata Richardson) at different food concentrations and animal densities. J␣Fish Biol 22:293–301
Manion PJ, Mclain AL (1971) Biology of larval sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) of the 1960 year class, isolated in the Big Garlic River, Michigan, 1960–65. Great Lakes Fishery Commission Technical Report, October, 1971, p 35
Marshall TC, Slate J, Kruuk L, Pemberton JM (1998) Statistical confidence for likelihood-based paternity inference in natural populations. Mol Ecol 7:639–655
Meagher TR, Thompson EA (1986) The relationship between single and parent pair genetic likelihoods in genealogy reconstruction. Theoret Populat Biol 29:87–106
Morman RH (1987) Relationships of density to growth and metamorphosis of caged larval sea lampreys, Petromyzon marinus Linnaeus, in Michigan streams. J␣Fish Biol 30:173–181
Mullett KM, Bergstedt RA (2003) Agreement among observers classifying larval sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) habitat. J Great Lakes Res 29[Suppl 1]:183–189
Murdoch SP, Docker MF, Beamish FWH (1992) Effect of density and individual variation on growth of sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) larvae in the laboratory. Can J Zool 70:184–188
Palmer MA, Allan JD, Butman CA (1996) Dispersal as a regional process affecting the local dynamics of marine and stream benthic invertebrates. Trends Ecol Evol 11(8):322–326
Peck JR, Waxman D (1997) What determines fitness when dispersal is limited? Evolution 51(4):1036–1043
Robinson AT, Clarkson RW, Forrest RE (1998) Dispersal of larval fishes in a regulated river tributary. Trans Am Fish Soc 127:772–786
Shepard JG, Cushing DH (1980) A mechanism for density-dependent survival of larval fish as the basis of a stock recruitment relationship. J Cons Int Explor Mer 21:160–167
Shuter BJ, Post JR (1990) Climate, population viability, and the zoogeography of temperate fishes. Trans Am Fish Soc 119:314–336
Thompson EA, Meagher TR (1987) Parental and sib likelihoods in genealogical reconstruction. Biometrics 43:585–600
Thompson SK, Serber GAF (1996) Adaptive sampling. Wiley, New York
Wootton RJ (1990) Ecology of teleost fishes. Chapman and Hall, London
Yap MR, Bowen SH (2003) Feeding by northern brook lamprey (Ichthyomyzon fossor) on sestonic biofilm fragments: habitat selection results in ingestion of a higher quality diet. J Great Lakes Res 29[Suppl 1]: 15–25
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission. We thank the staff at the Hammond Bay Biological Station for technical advice and equipment, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans for providing data and animals for this work, and Kristi Filcek and Stacy Gilmore for assistance with the microsatellite work. The authors would also like to thank three anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Derosier, A.L., Jones, M.L. & Scribner, K.T. Dispersal of sea lamprey larvae during early life: relevance for recruitment dynamics. Environ Biol Fish 78, 271–284 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-006-9095-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-006-9095-3