Geology topics

M.W. Rogers

Publications and source records attributed to M.W. Rogers.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2012

Exploring mechanisms underlying sex-specific differences in mortality of Lake Michigan bloaters

Sex-specific differences in mortality rates have been observed among freshwater and marine fish taxa, and underlying mechanisms can include sex-specific differences in (1) age at maturity, (2) growth rate, or (3) activity or behavior during the spawning period. We used a long-term (1973–2009) Lake Michigan data set to evaluate whether there were sex-specific differences in catch per unit effort, mortality, age at maturity, and length at age in bloaters Coregonus hoyi . Because bloater population biomass varied 200-fold during the years analyzed, we divided the data into three periods: (1) 1973–1982 (low biomass), (2) 1983–1997 (high biomass), and (3) 1998–2009 (low biomass). Mortality was higher for males than for females in periods 2 and 3; the average instantaneous total mortality rate ( Z ) over these two periods was 0.71 for males and 0.57 for females. Length at age was slightly greater (2–6%) for females than for males in different age-classes (3–6 years) during each period. Age at maturity was earlier for males than for females in periods 1 and 2, but the mean difference was only 0.2–0.4 years. To test the hypothesis that somatic lipids declined more in males than in females during spawning (perhaps due to increased activity or reduced feeding), we estimated sex-specific percent somatic lipids for fish sampled in 2005–2006 and 2007–2008. During 2005–2006, somatic lipids declined from prespawning to postspawning for males but were unchanged for females. During 2007–2008, however, somatic lipids were unchanged for males, whereas they increased for females. We found that sex-specific differences in Z occurred in the Lake Michigan bloater population, but our hypotheses that sex-specific differences in maturity and growth could explain this pattern were generally unsupported. Our hypothesis that somatic lipids in males declined during spawning at a faster rate than in females will require additional research to clarify its importance.

Transactions of the American Fisheries Society↗

USGS2005

Relationships between recapture rates from different gears for estimating walleye abundance in northern Wisconsin lakes

Maximizing sampling efficiency and reducing sampling costs are desirable goals for fisheries management agencies. Expensive and labor-intensive methods (such as mark-recapture) are commonly used to estimate the population abundance of walleye Sander vitreus, but more efficient methods may be available. We compared recapture rates from surveys and harvests to evaluate the efficiency of currently used recapture gears and the potential for using gears that require less effort. To evaluate the usefulness of walleye harvest as mark-recapture samples, we used errors-in-variables models to determine whether recapture rates differed between fyke-netting and spearing, electrofishing and spearing, and electrofishing and angling. We found no significant differences between fyke-netting and adult walleye electrofishing recapture rates or between spearing and adult walleye electrofishing recapture rates. In contrast, we found that recapture rates from angling and electrofishing differed significantly in lakes with and without minimum length limits. We concluded that the lack of significant differences between the slopes of some harvest and survey recapture rates may allow the use of harvest recapture rates to estimate walleye abundance, but the biases associated with each gear should be considered. We also concluded that more attention should be given to understanding the biases of recapture gears. ?? Copyright by the American Fisheries Society 2005.

North American Journal of Fisheries Management↗

USGS2003

Catchability of Walleyes to Fyke Netting and Electrofishing in Northern Wisconsin Lakes

We quantified relationships between both fyke-net catch rates (catch/net-night) and electrofishing catch rates (catch/mi) and population densities (number/acre) of walleye Sander vitreus (formerly Stizostedion vitreum) for adult population estimates and total population estimates to determine whether catchability was density dependent. Fyke-net catch rates were modeled as a nonlinear function of adult walleye density and of four size-classes of the adult population, and electrofishing catch rates were modeled as a nonlinear function of adult and total walleye density and four size-classes of the adult and total populations. The results showed nonlinear relationships between catch rate and density for the adult and total populations. We accounted for measurement errors in catch rates and densities by estimating bias-corrected slopes by means of Monte Carlo simulations and estimated measurement-error ratios by means of an errors-in-variables model. We found that the bias-corrected slopes were higher than ordinary-least-squares regression estimates and that measurement errors were greater in catch rates than in density estimates. Lastly, we sought to explain the residual variability in the relationships between (1) fyke-net catch rates and adult walleye densities and (2) electrofishing catch rates and adult and total walleye densities. We found that the fyke-net catch rate was positively related to adult walleye density and percent littoral zone (percentage of lake surface area ???20 ft deep) and negatively related to conductivity. We found that the electrofishing catch rate of adult walleyes was positively related to adult walleye density and conductivity and that the electrofishing catch rate of the total walleye population was positively related to total walleye density. We concluded that the nonlinear relationship between catch rates and walleye abundance limits the use of catch rates to index walleye abundance in northern Wisconsin lakes.

North American Journal of Fisheries Management↗