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Ontogenetic patterns in the calcification and element incorporation in fin rays of age-0 White Sturgeon

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Abstract

White Sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) are a long-lived, slow-growing, and late-reproducing anadromous fish common in estuaries and coastal habitats along the North American West Coast. These life history characteristics make populations vulnerable to human impacts and a challenge to study and manage. Previous studies in the San Francisco Estuary, California have provided insights into rearing habitats and migratory patterns but are limited in spatial and temporal scope. Fin ray geochemical analysis can provide a non-lethal approach to reconstruct migratory patterns and environmental conditions experienced throughout an individual fish’s lifespan. However, it is not known how soon post hatch age-0 White Sturgeon fin rays begin to calcify, reducing confidence in early life history temporal resolution using geochemical approaches. We used osteological (clear and stain) and geochemical techniques (laser-ablation-ICP-MS) to describe calcification initiation and completion, and element incorporation in the leading fin ray of known-age White Sturgeon reared at constant water temperature (18.6 °C) from 1 to 76 days post hatch (dph). We found that fin rays begin calcifying as early as ~20 dph (~27 mm total length) and are >95% calcified by ~72 dph (~70 mm total length). Consequently, the first ~20 dph are not likely to be recorded in the fin ray. Observed element (Li, Mg, Cu, Zn, Rb, Sr, Ba, Pb, U) incorporation patterns suggest that fin rays can provide a powerful tool to study White Sturgeon early movement and migratory patterns, habitat use, and environmental exposure.

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Acknowledgements

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Anadromous Fish Restoration Program (USFWS AFRP) funded this project (Grant #F11AC01162 and #F16AC01081-02). The UC Davis Agricultural Experiment Station (grant #2098-H) to NAF and the UC Davis Animal Biology Graduate Group fellowship also provided funding support. Fish husbandry was performed at the UC Davis CABA facility under IACUC protocol #1867. CABA facility staff, Fangue Laboratory staff and Todgham laboratory staff at UC Davis, especially S. Baird and D. Cocherell, provided experimental juvenile White Sturgeon and laboratory space. L. Zarri, K. Karpenko and J. Shen assisted with sample collection and data entry. The Wainwright laboratory at UC Davis, especially P. Wainwright and M. Rupp provided valuable information on clear and stain methods. H. Spero (Stable Isotope laboratory in the UC Davis Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences) provided laboratory space to process fin rays where elemental chemistry was conducted. J. Glessner and A. Cole (UC Davis Interdisciplinary Center for Plasma Mass Spectrometry) processed water samples. T. Hinkelman provided assistance and guidance with statistical analysis. Z. Jackson (USFWS), J. Glessner (UC Davis) and J. Cech (UC Davis) provided thoughtful comments and valuable feedback throughout the writing process. Finally, we would like to thank Jan-Michael Hessenauer and two anonymous reviewers who provided valuable suggestions and comments in the review of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    Jamie K. Sweeney, Malte Willmes, Levi S. Lewis, James A. Hobbs & Nann A. Fangue

  2. Cramer Fish Sciences, West Sacramento, CA, USA

    Jamie K. Sweeney, Kirsten Sellheim & Joseph E. Merz

  3. Institute of Marine Sciences/NOAA Fisheries Collaborative Program, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA

    Malte Willmes

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  1. Jamie K. Sweeney
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  2. Malte Willmes
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Correspondence to Jamie K. Sweeney.

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Sweeney, J.K., Willmes, M., Sellheim, K. et al. Ontogenetic patterns in the calcification and element incorporation in fin rays of age-0 White Sturgeon. Environ Biol Fish 103, 1401–1418 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-020-01031-1

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