Spawning behavior of lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens)

By R. Bruch, F. Binkowski. 2002

239 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Summary The spawning behavior of lake sturgeon, Acipenser fulvescens, was observed and characterized over a 16-year period on the Wolf and upper Fox rivers of the Winnebago system in East Central Wisconsin. Lake sturgeon display an intricate set of sexual behavior responses to water temperature during their spawning period. When water temperatures rise to 6.6–16.0C, sturgeon begin exhibiting a porpoising behavior in the vicinity of the spawning grounds. As the water continues to warm, this behavior increases in intensity and continues until slightly past the peak of spawning activity. In the range of 8.8–16.0C, males move onto the spawning grounds and begin cruising, apparently searching for signs of ovulating females. Individual females will move onto a site at water temperatures of 8.8–19.1C, with the maximum number of females and heaviest spawning activity on a site occurring generally within 11.5–16.0C. Lake sturgeon were observed spawning both during the day and night at wide temperature ranges, 8.8–21.1C. Whereas males arrive first at the spawning site, females ultimately determine the duration of spawning through the timing and intensity of their use of that site. During the spawning act, activity also keys off the females, with the males responding to cues from the female to participate in 2–4 s spawning bouts during which a relatively small number of eggs (estimated 947–1444 eggs per bout) are released by the female into a cloud of sperm (estimated 200– 800 billion sperm) from two to eight males. The males beat the abdomen of the female with their tails and caudal peduncles while ejaculating. While ejaculating, males emit a dull, thunderous vibrating sound which attracts other males to the area. The female initiates a spawning bout at approximately 1.5 min intervals and will continue oviposition for 8– 12 h, even if the water temperature decreases or increases outside the optimal range (11.5–16.0C). Spawning typically occurs for 2–4 days on each site, depending on the number of females utilizing the site. At cessation of the spawning season, Wolf River sturgeon quickly move back into the main river channel. While water temperature is a key environmental signal affecting the onset and duration of the spawning period, the rate of water temperature increase prior to spawning appears to influence the actual temperature at which spawning begins. Sturgeon exhibit complex polygamous mating behavior whereby several males may fertilize the eggs of a single female, and each male may participate in spawning with several females while on the spawning grounds. The breeding system is both polyandrous and polygynous, thereby maximizing the opportunities for mating with numerous individuals and subsequently maximizing the genetic diversity of the offspring.

Subfields: Ecology, Nature and Landscape Conservation

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/9bf1019e5d01cf5c6fd382e6a05cb06ac3393cd8

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Ecology

1. J. Janssen
2. S. Campana
3. R. Bruch
4. L. Kerr
5. W. Montevecchi
6. A. Hedd

In Nature and Landscape Conservation

1. S. Kerr
2. T. Haxton
3. R. Koenigs
4. A. Welsh
5. C. Jennings
6. J. Janssen
7. S. Campana
8. B. Mable

Citations in the corpus

• Lake Sturgeon Age Validation using Bomb Radiocarbon and Known-Age Fish (2009, methodology): “We calibrated age at capture and recapture to the nearest 0.01 year using year-specific hatching dates determined through spawning assessments on the Winnebago system (Folz and Meyers 1985; Bruch and Binkowski 2002).”
• Lake sturgeon response to a spawning reef constructed in the Detroit river. (2011, background): “Depth of substrate interstitial space on our spawning beds at NEFI needed to be at least 20 cm as recommended for adequate protection of lake sturgeon eggs from predation and dislodgement in Wisconsin (Bruch and Binkowski, 2002).”
• Status of Lake Sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque 1817) in North America (2016, methodology): “fish such as Catostomidae and Cyprinidae species, as well as by crayfish (Bruch and Binkowski, 2002).”
• Ecology and biology of the lake sturgeon: a synthesis of current knowledge of a threatened North American Acipenseridae (2007, background): “Although this behavior leaves most fish in poor post-spawning condition, Bruch and Binkowski (2002) suggest that this polygamous mating system may help guarantee the highest number of possible mates for both sexes while minimizing the energy expended in finding them.”
• Genome duplication in amphibians and fish: an extended synthesis (2011, background): “Typically, several males spawn with a single female (Bruch & Binkowski, 2002).”