SFS Annual Meeting

5/21/2018  |   14:00 - 14:15   |  430 B

CROSS-DISCIPLINARY SCIENCE AND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT IN THE MANAGEMENT OF WISCONSIN’S BROOK TROUT FISHERIES Native brook trout populate streams throughout Wisconsin. Management of these resources has long relied on science and public engagement to inform decision making. In recent years, new partnerships crossing disciplinary boundaries have become vital to further advancing our understanding of brook trout dynamics and angler participation in conservation success. Here I illustrate interdisciplinary approaches to brook trout management with two examples from Wisconsin: (1) Climate and fisheries scientists combined efforts in an academic-agency partnership to downscale global climate models and to project how environmental stressors may affect the future occurrence of brook trout in Wisconsin streams. This work now guides the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Trout Unlimited, and others in building resilience to climate change into stream habitat projects. (2) Wisconsin fisheries managers worked with social scientists to engage the public in setting new trout angling regulations. This effort included the use of surveys and public meetings to inform anglers about trout management, to understand how anglers utilize trout fisheries, and to elicit their desires about the future of brook trout in Wisconsin. We expect continued efforts such as these to be the key to brook trout management success.

Matthew Mitro (Primary Presenter/Author), Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, matthew.mitro@wisconsin.gov;


Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

5/21/2018  |   14:15 - 14:30   |  430 B

MOBILIZING COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT TO EXPAND RESEARCH: THE EFFECTS OF HISTORIC LAND-USE ON WILD BROOK TROUT (SALVELINUS FONTINALIS) IN NEW HAMPSHIRE Wild populations of Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) are the only native stream dwelling trout species in the eastern US and populations have drastically declined across their historic range. The headwaters of the Beebe River (Campton and Sandwich, NH) possess intact, robust populations of wild Brook Trout. Paralleling the Beebe River, a road and powerline traverse five tributaries with road crossings ranging from no impact to a complete barrier to aquatic organism passage. We hypothesize human manipulation has led to measurable negative impacts on trout movement and population demographics across this watershed. To measure the current influences, we have collaborated with NH Fish and Game Department to conduct two years of monitoring populations prior to crossing replacement (2017). Our data suggests undersized crossings and riparian loss has decreased population sizes, limited movement, reduced age structure and degraded stream habitat. Research integrates multiple approaches to iterative public inclusion through outreach presentations, volunteer-reliant field sampling and student mentoring, expanding value beyond science. This project is a unique opportunity to document and track the impacts human manipulation prior to restoration while increasing awareness and partnerships involving Brook Trout management throughout northern New England.

Tyson Morrill (Primary Presenter/Author), Plymouth State University, tmorrill1991@gmail.com;


Brigid O'Donnell, PhD (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Plymouth State University, bcodonnell@plymouth.edu;


Amy Villamagna, PhD (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Plymouth State University, amvillamagna@plymouth.edu;


Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

5/21/2018  |   14:30 - 14:45   |  430 B

RESTORATION OF A COASTER BROOK TROUT POPULATION AND A SPAWNING SITE IMPACTED BY FINE SEDIMENTS Adfluvial Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis, commonly known as coasters, were an important fisheries in Lake Superior until their abundance and distributions greatly declined by the early 1900s. The Salmon Trout River, Marquette County Michigan, is the south central Lake Superior tributary known to maintain a remnant breeding population of adfluvial coaster Brook Trout. Visual counts of coasters in spawning areas reveal a critically small number of adults with 134 ± 68 (SD) detected annually 2006-2016 across all identified spawning sites. Watershed degradation and resulting sedimentation likely limits current population recovery. Since 2004 fine sediment in the streambed substrates of the once primary spawning site have increased 3-4 fold, up to 98% sand. Because this site is low gradient, sand aggradation has been greater than at the other spawning sites, proportionately fewer adults are now aggregating at this site during spawning season. In 2013 we hydraulically removed sand from this spawning site and the subsequent counts of active redds increased 4-fold (4 to 16). Electrofishing surveys the following summer revealed increased juvenile Brook Trout densities in the site, motivating us to continue this restoration activity.

Casey Huckins (Primary Presenter/Author), Michigan Technological University, cjhuckin@mtu.edu;


Tony Matthys (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Michigan Technological University, admatthy@mtu.edu;


Brian Danhoff (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Michigan Technological University, bmdanhof@mtu.edu;


Amy Marcarelli (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Michigan Technological University, ammarcar@mtu.edu;


Edward Baker (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Michigan DNR, bakere1@michigan.gov;


Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

5/21/2018  |   14:45 - 15:00   |  430 B

SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL MOVEMENTS OF BROOK TROUT IN A SOUTHERN LAKE SUPERIOR TRIBUTARY A migratory life-history form of Brook Trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, known as Coasters, flourished in Lake Superior until the early 1900s. In Michigan tributaries, only one viable population is confirmed, although unidentified populations may persist. Restoration efforts are limited by this lack of data on existing populations. The Pilgrim River in Houghton County, Michigan flows into the Keweenaw waterway of Lake Superior and is known to support a robust Brook Trout population, however no data exist on possible movements between the river and lake habitats. We implanted Brook Trout in the Pilgrim River with PIT tags and operated four antenna stations to monitor their movements. Since 2014, we have tagged approximately 450 Brook Trout ranging from 15 to 420cm total length. We have documented extensive in-river movements of up to 14 kilometers and movements from the Pilgrim River into the Keweenaw waterway. At least 20 individuals made a complete late fall-winter outmigration and adfluvial spring return, thus displaying the Coaster life history. Documenting Coasters in the Pilgrim River and understanding how existing habitat is being utilized is important to justify and inform management actions aimed at preserving and expanding Coaster populations.

Christopher Adams (Primary Presenter/Author), Michigan Technological University, ccadams@mtu.edu;


Casey Huckins (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Michigan Technological University, cjhuckin@mtu.edu;


Amy Marcarelli (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Michigan Technological University, ammarcar@mtu.edu;


Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

5/21/2018  |   15:00 - 15:15   |  430 B

WITH CONNECTIVITY COMES CHALLENGES: BROOK TROUT METAPOPULATION DYNAMICS REVEAL UNIQUE MANAGEMENT CHALLENGES Brook trout populations are often characterized by low population connectivity, with little effective migration occurring between populations separated at relatively small spatial scales. However, recent studies suggest that brook trout metapopulations may go undetected due to cryptic patterns in genetic diversity and/or separation by atypical habitat features. We conducted studies of population genetic diversity and movement, using radio telemetry, to identify patterns of brook trout connectivity in Pennsylvania streams. We found at least moderate degrees of gene flow for populations connected by less than 7km, and increased connectivity among populations connected by a large mainstem river channel. Failure to protect brook trout movement corridors can isolate populations, resulting in a loss of genetic diversity and increased extirpation risk. However, increased connectivity also presents a unique challenge due to the potential colonization of stocked hatchery fish into wild populations. During genetic analyses, we detected interbreeding between hatchery and wild trout at streams located several kilometers from the nearest stocking source. Together, these results suggest that considering patterns of stream connectivity across large spatial extents may be important for brook trout conservation efforts.

Shannon White (Primary Presenter/Author), Pennsylvania State University, slw361@psu.edu;


Tyler Wagner (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), U.S. Geological Survey, Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Pennsylvania State University, txw19@psu.edu;


Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

5/21/2018  |   15:15 - 15:30   |  430 B

AN INTERDISCIPLINARY, COLLABORATIVE FUTURE FOR BROOK TROUT RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT In the midst of ecological complexities and disruptions, recreation-biodiversity conflicts, and the challenges brought by climate change, a healthy future for brook trout increasingly relies upon diverse and exploratory interdisciplinary approaches to research and management. Managers, scientists, and the public alike are co-constructing novel collaborations that aim to improve knowledge of this increasingly vulnerable species, while fostering opportunities for outreach and improving the success of management regimes. In light of this growing interdisciplinary and collaborative work, this final presentation builds from the presenter’s decade of work from California to New Hampshire in brook trout conservation and management to synthesize across panel presentations. Weaving threads through the humanities, ecological sciences, and social sciences, it considers how integration of multiple, diverse approaches contributes to a richer understanding of the social-ecology of brook trout and offers models for collaboration that break the mold of traditional inland fisheries management. Drawing upon session presentations, and calling upon the presenter’s multispecies, humanistic, and social science research, the final presentation showcases some of the possibilities that lay ahead for conservation, restoration, and management of brook trout within their native and introduced ranges.

Emma Lundberg (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Rhode Island, emma_lundberg@my.uri.edu;


Caroline Gottschalk Druschke (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin-Madison, caroline.gottschalk.druschke@wisc.edu;


Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.