The Huron River Fish
Community
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The Pleistocene Epoch
• Most recent ice age
to date
• Forced native
species south in
refugia
• Completely reshaped
the topography of
Michigan
• Opened up new
niches for colonizers
to occupy
The Huron River Watershed
• Comprises an area of
approximately 1000
mi.2
– Main branch: 136 miles
– Main branch +
tributaries: 367 miles
– Headwaters at Big Lake
near Huron Swamp in
Oakland county
– Flows out into
northwest corner of
Lake Eerie
Early Human Colonization
• European settlers arrived
in the 1600’s.
• Utilized for trade and
transportation
• Development of the
surrounding area
increased over time
– Draining swamps
– Channelization
– Lake-level control
structures
– Hydroelectric Dams
Physiology of temperate, freshwater,
lotic fishes
• Thermoregulation
• Osmoregulation
• Morphology
Thermoregulation
• Ectothermal (“ecto” =
external; “thermal” = heat)
– Refers to the source of
heat
• not variability in body
temperature (i.e.
homeotherm/poikilotherm),
which are outdated terms
– Most fishes are
ectotherms
Source: http://esi.stanford.edu/temperature/temperature3.htm
• Exceptions: Tunas (large
bodied fishes)
Thermoregulation
• Fish Responses to Temperature :
– Behavioral
• Dormancy
• Swimming rates
• Feeding behaviors
– Physiological
• Metabolism
• Enzymatic structure/activity
• Gene expression
– Morphological
• Size changes
Osmoregualtion
• Freshwater is more dilute than body fluids
• FW fishes maintain water balance by
excreting dilute urine.
Morphology
• Increased
swimming velocity
to overcome strong
currents
– Streamline body,
symmetrical caudal
fin, derived
locomotion
Source: Long Term Ecological Research Network,
http://www.lternet.edu/research/keyfindings/river-continuum
• Most adaptations
to lotic
environments are
behavioral
Life History
• Freshwater is most diverse group of fishes
due to diversity of habitats
• High seasonality means that fish must cope
with differing environments throughout the
year
• Different environments will favor different
suites of traits
Types of Strategies
• Opportunistic: small body size, early
maturation, low juvenile survivorship
• Habitat: areas with high disturbance rates
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Types of Strategies
• Equilibrium: small to medium body size,
moderate age at maturation, low fecundity
per reproductive cycle, high juvenile
survivorship (usually due to parental care)
• Habitat: low environmental disturbance rates
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Types of Strategies
• Periodic: large body size, late maturation,
high fecundity, low juvenile survivorship
• Habitat: highly seasonal but otherwise stable
• Example:
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Community Structure
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Northern brook lamprey Ichthyomyzon fossor
(rare)
Silver lamprey Ichthyomyzon unicuspis (rare)
American brook lamprey Lampetra appendix
Sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus
Spotted gar Lepisosteus oculatus (rare)
Longnose gar Lepisosteus osseus
Bowfin Amia calva
Mooneye Hiodon tergisus (endangered)
Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus
Gizzard shad Dorosoma cepedianum
Central stoneroller Campostoma anomalum
Goldfish Carassius auratus
Redside dace Clinostomus elongatus (threatened)
Spotfin shiner Cyprinella spilotera
Common carp Cyprinus carpio
Striped shiner Luxilus chrysocephalus
Common shiner Luxilus cornatus
Redfin shiner Lythrurus umbratilis (rare)
Silver chub Macrhybopsis storeriana (rare)
Hornyhead chub Nocomis bigutatus
River chub Nocomis micropogon
Golden shiner Notemigonus crysoleucas
Pugnose shiner Notropis anogenus (rare)
Emerald shiner Notropis atherinoides
Silverjaw minnow Notropis buccatus (rare)
Bigmouth shiner Notropis dorsalis (rare)
Blacknose shiner Notropis heterolepis
Blackchin shiner Notropis heterodon
Spottail shiner Notropis hudsonius
Silver shiner Notropis photogenis (threatened)
Rosyface shiner Notropis rubellus
Sand shiner Notropis stramineus
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Mimic shiner Notropis volucellus
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Pugnose minnow Opsopoeodus emiliae (rare)
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Northern redbelly dace Phoxinus eos (rare)
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Southern redbelly dace Phoxinus erythrogaster •
(threatened)
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Bluntnose minnow Phimephales notatus
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Fathead minnow Pimephales promelas
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Blacknose dace Rhinichthys atratulus
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Creek chub Semotilus atromaculatus
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White sucker Catostomus commersoni
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Lake chubsucker Erimyzon sucetta
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Northern hogsucker Hypentelium nigricans
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Spotted sucker Minytrema melanops
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Black redhorse Moxostoma duquesnei (declining) •
Golden redhorse Moxostoma erythrurum
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Shorthead redhorse Moxostoma macrolepidotum •
Greater redhorse Moxostoma valenciennesi (rare) •
Black bullhead Ameiurus melas
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Yellow bullhead Ameiurus natalis
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Brown bullhead Ameiurus nebulosus
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Channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus
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Stonecat Noturus flavus
Tadpole madtom Noturus gyrinus
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Brindled madtom Noturus miurus (declining)
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Northern madtom Noturus stigmosus
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(endangered)
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Grass pickerel Esox americanus vermiculatus
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Northern pike Esox lucius
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Central mudminnow Umbra limi
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Cisco (lake herring) Coregonus artedi
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Coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch
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Rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss
Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha
Brown trout Salmo trutta
Trout-perch Percopsis omiscomaycus
Banded killifish Fundulus diaphanus
Blackstripe topminnow Fundulus notatus
Brook silversides Labidesthes sicculus
Brook stickleback Culaea inconstans
Mottled sculpin Cottus bairdi
White perch Morone americana
White bass Morone chrysops
Rock bass Ambloplites rupestris
Green sunfish Lepomis cyanellus
Pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus
Warmouth Lepomis gulosus
Bluegill Lepomis macrochirus
Longear sunfish Lepomis megalotis
Redear sunfish Lepomis microlophus
Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieui
Largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides
White crappie Pomoxis annularis
Black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus
Eastern sand darter Ammocrypta pellucida
(threatened)
Greenside darter Etheostoma blennioides
Rainbow darter Etheostoma caeruleum
Iowa darter Etheostoma exile
Fantail darter Etheostoma flabellare
Least darter Etheostoma microperca
Johnny darter Etheostoma nigrum
Yellow perch Perca flavescens
Northern logperch Percina caprodes
Blackside darter Percina maculata
(Hay-Chiemewlski et al. 1995)
Community Structure
• 99 different species of fish
• 5 threatened
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Silver shiner
Redside dace
Southern redbelly dace
Eastern sand darter
Sauger
• 1 endangered
• Northern madtom
H
Introduced Exotics
• Sea lamprey
• Alewife
• Goldfish
• Common carp
• Bigmouth shiner
• Rainbow trout
• Coho salmon
• Chinook salmon
• Brown trout
• White perch
• Redear sunfish
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Riffles and Gravel Substrate
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Common shiner
Hornyhead and creek chub
Northern hogsucker
Brindled madtom
Rock bass
Mottled sculpin
Rainbow and greenside darter
Blacknose dace
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Pools and Abundant Vegetation
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Central mudminnow
Grass pickerel
Pugnose minnow
Lake chubsucker
Yellow bullhead
Brook stickleback
Least darter
Blackstripe topminnow
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Impoundments
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Northern pike
Small- and largemouth bass
Black and white crappies
Walleye
Channel catfish
Muskellunge
Bluegill
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Potamodromous
• Below Flat Rock Dam from Lake Erie
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Walleye
Chinook salmon
Coho salmon
Steelhead/rainbow trout
White bass
Sauger
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Anthropogenic Effects of the Huron
River
• Dams
• Invasive Species
• Implications
Dams
• 98 dams in the Huron watershed, most for
water level regulation
• Dam removal: Photo retrieved from: Huron River Watershed Council
improved
fisheries,
increased
aquatic species,
improved water
quality (Riggs
2003)
Invasive Species
• Zebra & Quagga Mussels
– Harmful species to ecosystem (Mackie 1991)
– Stable conditions, little threat (Birkett 2011)
• Asian Carp
• Rainbow Smelt
– Decline of walleye populations (Mercado-Silva
2005)
• Alewife
Implications
• Huron stocked with channel catfish,
smallmouth bass, and walleye (Riggs 2003)
• Conservation efforts in Huron watershed:
dam removal, prevention and control of
invasives, maintenance of surrounding
ecosystems
Literature Cited
Birkett K.M. 2011. An Analysis of Spatial and Temporal Changes in Fish and Benthic Macroinvertebrate
Communities Associated with Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) Abundance in the Huron River,
Southeastern Michigan. University of Michigan, School of Natural Resources & Environment.
Hay-Chmielewski, E. M., Paul W. Seelbach, Gary E. Whelan, and Douglas B. Jester Jr. 1995. Huron
River Assessment. Michigan Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Division, Fisheries Special
Report No. 16.
Mackie 1991. Biology of the exotic zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, to native bivalves and its
potential impact in Lake St. Clair. Hydrobiologia 219:241-268
Mercado-Silva, Norman. Invasive species in aquatic systems: Population, community, food web and
landscape perspectives. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 2005.
Riggs, Elizabeth H.W. 2003. Ann Arbor, MI. Huron River Watershed Council. Case studies in river
restoration through dam removal.