Skip to main content

Temperature has a reduced effect on routine metabolic rates of juvenile shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum)

Fish Physiology and Biochemistry volume 40, pages 551–559 (2014)Cite this article

Abstract

This study examined the effects of acclimation temperature (10, 15, 20, or 25 °C) and an acute exposure to various temperatures on the routine metabolism of juvenile (~11 g) shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum). For the acclimation experiment, the minimum, mean, and maximum routine metabolic rates were established for sturgeon at each temperature. Mean routine metabolic rates for 10, 15, 20, and 25 °C were 134, 277, 313, and 309 mg O2 kg−1 h−1, respectively, with significant differences occurring between 10 and 15, 10 and 20, and 10 and 25 °C. For the acute exposure, similar patterns and significant differences were observed. Temperature quotient (Q 10) values indicate that the greatest effect of temperature occurred between 10 and 15 °C for both the acclimation and acute temperature experiments. In addition, the effect of temperature on the metabolic rate of sturgeon was nearly negligible between 15 and 25 °C. These results suggest that juvenile shortnose sturgeon are sensitive to temperature changes at the lower end of the range, and less sensitive in the mid-to-upper temperature range.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

References

  • Allen PJ, Nicholl M, Cole S, Vlazny A, Cech JJ (2006) Growth of larval to juvenile green sturgeon in elevated temperature regimes. Trans Am Fish Soc 135:89–96

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beitinger TJ, Lutterschmidt WI (2011) Measures of thermal tolerance. In: Farrell AP, Stevens ED, Cech JJ, Richards JG (eds) Encyclopedia of fish physiology—from genome to environment. Academic Press, Waltham

    Google Scholar 

  • Billard R, Lecointre G (2001) Biology and conservation of sturgeon and paddlefish. Rev Fish Biol Fisher 10:355–392

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Birstein VJ, Bemis WE (1997) How many species are there within the genus Acipenser? Environ Biol Fish 48:157–163

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brett JR (1971) Energetic responses of salmon temperature. A study of thermal relations in the physiology and freshwater ecology of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). Am Zool 11:99–113

    Google Scholar 

  • Brett JR, Glass NR (1973) Metabolic rates and critical swimming speeds of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) in relation to size and temperature. J Fish Bd Can 30:379–387

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brett JR, Groves TDD (1979) Physiological energetics. In: Hoar WS, Randall DJ, Brett JR (eds) Fish physiology, vol 7. Academic Press, New York, pp 279–352

    Google Scholar 

  • Cano JM, Nicieza AG (2006) Temperature, metabolic rate, and constraints on locomotor performance in ectotherm vertebrates. Funct Ecol 20:464–470

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carlson JK, Parsons GR (1999) Seasonal differences in routine oxygen consumption rates of the bonnethead shark. J Fish Biol 55:876–879

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cooke SJ, Kassler TW, Philipp DP (2001) Physiological performance of largemouth bass related to local adaptation and interstock hybridization: implications for conservation and management. J Fish Biol 59:248–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dadswell MJ, Taubert BD, Squiers TS, Marchette S Buckley J (1984) Synopsis of biological data on shortnose sturgeon, Acipenser brevirostrum LeSuer 1818. National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Technical Report NMFS 14, Washington, D.C

  • Deslauriers D, Kieffer JD (2012) The effects of temperature on swimming performance of juvenile shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum). J Appl Ichth 28:176–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fry FEJ (1971) The effect of environmental factors on the physiology on fish. In: Hoar WS, Randall DJ (eds) Fish physiology, vol VI. Academic Press, New York, pp 1–98

    Google Scholar 

  • Fry FEJ, Hart JS (1948) The relation of temperature to oxygen consumption in the goldfish. Biol Bull 94:66–77

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kieffer JD, Cooke SJ (2009) Physiology and organismal performance of centrarchids. In: Cooke SJ, Philipp DP (eds) Centrachid fishes: diversity, biology and conservation. Oxford Press, Wiley, pp 207–263

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Kieffer JD, Wakefield AM (2009) Oxygen consumption, ammonia excretion and protein use in response to thermal changes in juvenile Atlantic salmon Salmo salar. J Fish Biol 74:591–603

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kieffer JD, Alsop D, Wood CM (1998) A respirometric analysis of fuel use during aerobic swimming at different temperatures in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). J Exp Biol 201:3123–3133

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kieffer JD, Wakefield AM, Litvak MK (2001) Juvenile sturgeon exhibit reduced physiological responses to exercise. J Exp Biol 204:4281–4289

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kynard B (1997) Life History, latitudinal patterns, and status of the shortnose sturgeon, Acipenser brevirostrum. Environ Biol Fishes 48:319–334

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lassalle G, Crouzet P, Gessner J, Rochard E (2010) Global warming impacts and conservation responses for the critically endangered European Atlantic sturgeon. Biol Cons 143:2441–2452

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee CG, Farrell AP, Lotto A, MacNutt MJ, Hinch SG, Healey MC (2003) The effect of temperature on swimming performance and oxygen consumption in adult sockeye (Oncorhynchus nerka) and coho (O. kisutch) salmon stocks. J Exp Biol 206:3239–3251

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mayfield RB, Cech JJ (2004) Temperature effects on green sturgeon bioenergetics. Trans Am Fish Soc 133:961–970

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKenzie DJ, Piraccini G, Steffensen JF, Bolis CL, Taylor EW (1995) Effects of diet on spontaneous locomotor activity and oxygen consumption in Adriatic sturgeon (Acipenser maccarii). Fish Physiol Biochem 14:341–355

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Prosser CL (1991) Environmental and metabolic animal physiology. Wiley, New York, pp 109–166

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott WB, Crossman EJ (1973) Freshwater fishes of Canada, 184th edn. Fisheries Research Board of Canada Bulletin, Canada

    Google Scholar 

  • Secor DH, Gunderson TE (1998) Effects of hypoxia and temperature on survival, growth, and respiration of juvenile Atlantic sturgeon, Acipenser oxyrinchus. Fish Bull 96:603–613

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson JA, McKinley RS (2004) Distribution, habitat and movements. In: LeBreton GTO, Beamish FWH, McKinley RS (eds) Sturgeons and paddlefish of North America. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Netherlands, pp 40–72

    Google Scholar 

  • Ziegeweid JR, Jennings CA, Peterson DL (2008) Thermal maxima for juvenile shortnose sturgeon acclimated to different temperatures. Environ Biol Fish 82:299–307

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

Funding for this research was provided by a Natural Science and Engineering Council Grant of Canada (NSERC) discovery grant to J.D.K. Support was also provided by the MADSAM fish group and the Marguerite and Murray Vaughan Graduate Fellowship in Marine Science to F.M.P. All procedures followed the guidelines of animal use set out by the Canadian Council of Animal Care and were approved by the Institutions Animal Care Committee.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology and MADSAM Sturgeon Physiology Lab, University of New Brunswick, Saint John, NB, E2L 4L5, Canada

    James D. Kieffer, Faith M. Penny & Vasoula Papadopoulos

Authors
  1. James D. Kieffer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Faith M. Penny
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Vasoula Papadopoulos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to James D. Kieffer.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Kieffer, J.D., Penny, F.M. & Papadopoulos, V. Temperature has a reduced effect on routine metabolic rates of juvenile shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum). Fish Physiol Biochem 40, 551–559 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-013-9865-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10695-013-9865-8

Keywords

  • Temperature
  • Acute
  • Acclimation
  • Oxygen consumption rate
  • Shortnose sturgeon