Fluvial Fishes Lab 2016

What mattered in 2016? Did we get published? Did it get read? Did it get cited? Did it make any difference? Can we make the next paper even better?   The research cycle continues as we celebrate the end of 2016.  

It never fails.  Whenever a submitted, revised, and revised and revised manuscript is finally acceptable for publication in a journal, I feel vindicated.  Sometimes I will spontaneously begin singing Queen's "We are the champions.  The process of research certainly feels like a "Hero's journey" to the authors.  There are no easy publications.  Each is a long struggle that ends in organizing a manuscript into the standard IMRAD template. This template has been used forever, but it  devalues the real process and excitement of discovery.   

In 2016, the Fluvial Fishes Lab completed papers and projects and we worked more on delivering and tailoring the message to other members of the public, hoping to make the science matter. All lab members are enthusiastic about explaining their work to members of the public.  Two noteworthy books I read this past year were Randy Olson's Houston, We Have a Narrative (Univ. Chicago Press, 2015) and Nancy Baron’s Escape from the Ivory Tower: A Guide to Making Your Science Matter  (Island Press, 2010).  Each provides many practical suggestions for making connections with the public.

In 2016,  Gary Grossman,   Jason Neuswanger, and I published  “Innovative Approaches to Fisheries Education and Outreach in Fisheries.” It was an interesting collaboration, as we reflected on changes in college teaching over the past decades.   In 1995, I published an article in Fisheries entitled “Pogo Was Right, Let’s Change the Way We Teach Fisheries.”  Twenty years later we wrote,  "Despite the prescience of Orth’s (1995) article, many of the same problems remain in Fisheries education today."  This has to be the first time my name and “prescience” has been used in the same sentence.    If interested, you can read about the use of the use of music, ukulele, karaoke, ePortfolio, troutnut, and other contemporary approaches in education.  We remain hopeful that further pedagogical innovation will result in fisheries having a “signature pedagogy.”

In a paper on species distribution models (SDMs) of New River fishes, Jian Huang, Emmanual Frimpong and I examined the temporal transferability of these SDMs in terms of discrimination power and calibration with the temporarily independent datasets.   We used lasso-regularized logistic regression (LLR), boosted regression trees (BRT), MaxEnt, and ensemble models (ENS) to evaluate the habitat suitability of 16 fish species.  Climate change is the most influential disturbance on fishes and these types of models will be more commonly employed to project future changes in species distributions.  However, biases, under-fitting, and overfitting were common issues to address in temporal transferability.  

Our analysis of catfish feeding before, during, and after the spring migration of Alosine fishes is in press in Marine and Coastal Fisheries.  The study depended on methods for identifying partially digested unidentifiable fish (PDUF) with DNA barcodes.    The paper was the first to examine which species of Alosa occurred in guts of Flathead Catfish and Flathead Catfish. In this time frame, the Blue Catfish had broad, omnivorous diets, while Flathead Catfish fed solely on other fish. However, there were important spatial and temporal differences in diets.  Alosa species were consumed at higher frequency in the non-tidal, freshwater areas  than in oligohaline and mesohaline sites. Flathead Catfish are likely to have a greater per-fish impact on depleted Alosa species than the Blue Catfish. Further, dams and complex river structures appear to increase the vulnerability of alosines to predation by large catfishes.  We are now completely done with sampling catfish stomachs and busy with the analysis of data.    

Blue Catfish Ictalurus furcatus source

An opportunistic encounter with Clinch Dace during a spawning event eventually was accepted as a Note on spawning behavior  by Hunter Hatcher et al. (in press, The American Midland Naturalist) after many hours watching videos and interpreting behaviors, waiting for a brief release of gametes. 

Rock Bass recruitment in the New River has never been examined previously.  Pearce Cooper examined historic data sets and aged Rock Bass in the New River to examine major drivers of recruitment variation.   At two locations downstream from Claytor Lake Dam, high streamflow events after spawning reduced recruitment of Rock Bass at age-1.  The paper is available here. 

The relationship between average and maximum discharge (cm/s) in the previous year and the catch per unit effort (CPUE, # fish/h) of age-1 Rock Bass at the upstream and downstream sites during the months the relationship was found to be significant.

Michael Moore defended his Masters Thesis on the yeller finned minners in spring and began a PhD program at University of Missouri.  He'll move up from studying small, fragmented populations of a small minnow to studying small, fragmented populations of large sturgeon.  The final report to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries,  “Distribution and Population Characterizationof Clinch Dace (Chrosomus sp. cf. saylori) in the Upper Clinch River System, Virginia” provides a plan for conserving remaining populations.
 
Objectives of this project were to (1) examine the historical changes in these watersheds to quantify features of historical Clinch dace streams; (2) confirm presence and relatedness of within-stream subpopulations separated by putative barriers; (3) identify and verify presence/absence of Clinch dace in the 125 km not previously sampled; (4) survey for spread in distribution of other Chrosomus in putative range of Clinch dace; (5) develop outreach plan landowners to protect extant populations. Clinch Dace occur at low densities in approximately 31.5 km of headwater streams. The mean estimate of global population size was 6,706 individuals. Most populations are likely influenced by low genetic diversity. Therefore, we examined 15 candidate conservation areas; ten of these areas have abandoned mine sites with $12.5M in unfunded restoration costs. The best candidate areas for conservation of Clinch Dace are: Pine Creek, Big Lick Creek, Mudlick Creek, and Hurricane Fork.

This is me after Bells Palsy paralyzed my facial nerves. Muscles on the right side of my face would not move.

In June I experienced sudden paralysis of the facial muscles on my right side. Paralysis of the facial nerve was caused by virus and inflammation and treated with antiviral and anti inflammatory medications.  The original prognosis that voluntary movement would gradually return in 3 to 6 months proved correct.  The facial nerve, or cranial nerve VII, is the nerve of facial expression. It is composed of approximately 10,000 neurons, 7,000 of which are myelinated and innervate the nerves of facial expression. That explains the slow regeneration time.

In September, I created and delivered my first Pecha Kucha presentation for Blacksburg Sustainability Week.  This concise format requires 20 slides of 20 seconds each, and makes it impossible to be spontaneous.   View it here.

Two new studies were funded in 2016.  One is a biological survey of the New River in the vicinity of the Fries Hydroelectic project; this is a collaboration with Verl Emrick and Caitlyn Carey, of the Conservation Management Institute. 

Google Earth photo of New River above Fries Dam. Note the mid-channel island built from the trapped river sediments.

The other new study, with Eric Hallerman, will examine genetic divergence in small populations of the Clinch Dace. This study will be led by Rebecca Bourquin, who left a position at Maryland Biological Stream Survey to begin her graduate studies last fall. 
 
The Virginia Tech Ichthyology blog had 54 posts for 2016.   The most viewed blogpost of the year was "Dammed If You Do:  Adopting Social Media in Teaching."   At the American Fisheries Society Annual Meeting in Kansas City, I was awarded the Excellence in Fisheries Education Award and named American Fisheries Society Fellow. 
 

Awarded the Excellence in Fisheries Education Award.  With Ron Essig and Jesse Trushenksi at the American Fisheries Society Meeting

Hunter Hatcher graduated in spring and sampled the New River near Fries Dam before beginning his Masters studies at Mississippi State University. 

Hunter Hatcher gets photographed at the Mudbass Classic 2016.

Hae Kim broke his own archery record with a record carp that was 45 lbs. and 7 oz.  It was taken in  Claytor Lake.

Hae Kim with his record carp.   Source.

Research on the non-native catfish is chronicled regularly in a blog, managed by PhD student, Joseph Schmitt.  You can read about our work at http://www.chesapeakecatfish.com/.
 

Recognition at 2016 Service Dinner

 
 

Fluvial Fishes Laboratory Review of 2015, by Don Orth

Follow the wisdom of Calvin.

As New Year’s Eve approaches, I know it’s that time to consider New Year resolutions, but resolution making is no fun.   As soon as I write a resolution, I set myself up for failure!

Instead of making resolutions, here I review highlights of the research activities of the Fluvial Fishes Laboratory for 2015. 

It is a diverse collection of papers, including  a synthesis on the Smallmouth Bass, DNA barcoding of PDUF, first record of the pughead anomaly,  human dimension of trotlining, and the Clinch Dace in the coalfields of Virginia.

For the symposium on Black Bass Diversity, Brewer and Orth (2015) wrote a summary of the Smallmouth Bass.  The Smallmouth Bass has been widely introduced in North America and is the preferred target of millions of recreational anglers.  With future projections of climate change, the range of Smallmouth Bass will show expansions and contractions.   Competitive angling, catch and release, and emerging contaminants are prevailing challenges throughout much of its range.  A person could make a career of studying the Smallmouth Bass  -- I did!

Smallmouth Bass from New River.  Photo by Paul Bugas.

You can purchase the symposium from the American Fisheries Society  click here.  

In 2013, we started a pilot study to determine if we could identify what we had been labeling as partially digested unidentified fish (PDUF) in the diets of catfish.  Zach Moran did the first test series as an undergraduate research project and we have been using the protocol from Moran et al. (2015)  every since.    The DNA barcoding approach has allowed us to identify 27 species from PDUF, including small plain-looking minnows (Hybognathus regius) and migratory species of management concern  (Alosa sapidissima, Alosa pseudoharengus, and Alosa aestivalis).

Zach Moran, currently MS student at Arkansas Tech University.

Traditional morphological approaches to identification could never provide species level identifications once the key characteristics were digested.  The success of this investigation hinged on the prior efforts of Rob Aguilar of the Smithsonian Institution to collect and archive DNA sequences for fauna of the Chesapeake Bay.  

Since 2012, Jason Emmel and Joey Schmitt have been sampling Blue Catfish from James, Pamunkey, Mattaponi, and Rappahannock Rivers of Virginia in order to describe the spatiotemporal variation in diets.  

Jason Emmel (left) and Joey Schmitt (right) have sampled over 10,000 catfishes since 2012.

Among many unanticipated findings, we began to encounter pugheaded or bulldog specimens of Blue Catfish.    Pugheadedness  (which my autocorrect wants to call pigheadedness) is a deformation of the maxilla, premaxilla, or infraorbital bones that creates a pugheaded snout and a significant underbite.  All pugheaded specimens were captured within the tidal fresh zone (0–0.5 ppt) of the Rappahannock River; no pugheaded specimens were captured in oligohaline or mesohaline waters.  Prolonged summer hypoxia may be producing these deformities in the Rapphannock River, though more research is necessary to confirm this hypothesis.

Pugheaded specimen of the Blue Catfish

Trotlining for catfish is an old tradition, and was difficult to study because trotline fishers proved very difficult to track down.  Dickinson et al. (2015) indicate that trotline fishers fish often and harvest and eat large numbers of catfish (Channel Catfish and Flathead Catfish) from the New River.  This activity that was often driven by sustenance needs earlier in their lifetimes.  Trotlining is a declining activity at a time when other pursuits, such as kayak fishing, are increasing on the New River.  This hidden fishery and the participants are among the few river users aware of the occurrence of large catfish in the New River (photo).   

Ben Dickinson with Flathead Catfish captured with trotline on New River.

In “Isolating causal pathways between flow and fish in the regulated river hierarchy,” McManamay et al. (2015) examined how river regulation affects stream fishes through reach scale changes, not always through hydrology.    The type of dam and operation has a direct influence on sediment and temperature and was most important determinant of fish assemblage characteristics. This paper was only possible by leveraging collaborative sampling efforts conducted by the Tennessee Valley Authority. 

 

Ryan McManamay with buffalofish.

In a symposium paper, “Legacy of dams on the New River,” we described the localized effects of the dams of the New River drainage.  One of these dams, Fries Dam, is the oldest dam on the New River and is currently undergoing the FERC relicensing process.  

Map of New River near Fries.

Historic postcard photo of Fries and New River.

You may review photos describing the Fries Hydroelectric project by clicking here.   

Fries Hydroelectric project can produce 5,213 kW of energy with hydraulic capacity of 2,100 cfs.   Structures include a 41 foot high x 610 foot long rock masonry dam.  Water is diverted into a canal to the powerhouse; after flows exceed the 2,100 cfs capacity, flows are spilled over the 500 foot spillway crest.  Storage capacity is very limited due to sediment deposits above the dam.   I wrote a long, detailed letter to the FERC regarding the environmental consequences of continued operation of the Fries Hydroelectric project.

 

Google Earth photo of New River above Fries Dam. Note the mid-channel island built from the trapped river sediments.  Not present in the historic postcard photo.

In a conference paper, Michael Moore and I examined the factors constraining the persistence of the Clinch Dace (Chrosomus sp. cf.saylori) in southwest Virginia.  

Clinch Dace Chrosomus sp. cf. saylori.  Photo by Isaac Szabo

 This yet-to-be-named yellow-finned minnow maintains small, fragmented populations in this rugged landscape of the coalfields of Virginia.  In November of 2015, we flew over many of these sites with Southwings and gained a better understanding of the nature of the modifications of this landscape.   Runoff over the unweathered exposed rock elevates the ionic content of the stream water, usually far beyond the tolerance of macroinvertebrates and fish.   Here are a few photos from this flight.

So I resolve in 2016 to keep doing what I did last year.  Do research and move things along.  It seems to be working just fine. 

References

Brewer, S. K., and D. J. Orth.  2015.   Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu, Lacepède, 1802.  Pages 9-26 in Tringali et al. Black Bass Diversity: Multidisciplinary Science for Conservation. Proceedings of the Symposium Black Bass Diversity: Multidisciplinary Science for Conservation, American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Maryland.

Dickinson, B.D., D.J. Orth, and S.L. McMullin.  2015.  Characterizing the human dimensions of a hidden fishery: riverine trotline fishers.  Fisheries 40(8):386-394.

McManamay, R.A., B.K. Peoples, D.J. Orth, C.A. Dolloff, and D.C. Matthews.  2015.  

Isolating causal pathways between flow and fish in the regulated river hierarchy.  Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 72(11):1731-1748.   DOI: 10.1139/cjfas-2015-0227

Moran, Z., D.J. Orth, J.D. Schmitt, E.M. Hallerman, and R. Aguilar.  2015.  Effectiveness of DNA barcoding for identifying piscine prey items in stomach contents of piscivorous catfishes.  Environmental Biology of Fishes  99:171-176.   DOI 10.1007/s10641-015-0448-7

Schmitt, J.D., and D. J. Orth.  2015. First record of pughead deformity in Blue Catfish.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 144:1111-1116.