Age and Growth of Middle Mississippi River Smallmouth Buffalo

Love, Seth A.; Tripp, Sara J.; Phelps, Quinton E.

doi:10.1674/0003-0031-182.1.118

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Many fishes managed as rough fish are long‐lived, often >20 or 30 years (Rypel et al 2006; Perry and Casselman 2012; Love et al 2019; Smith et al 2020). A recent study found Bigmouth Buffalo Ictiobus cyprinellus can attain at least 112 years of age, making this the oldest known freshwater teleost (Lackmann et al 2019).…”

Section: Conservation Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is a derogatory term that lumps together diverse fishes and life‐history strategies perceived as having low‐to‐zero value. Sadly, fishers and resource management agencies continue to perpetuate its use (Rose and Moen 1953; Bulow et al 1988; Love et al 2019). Related pejoratives include “trash fish,” “dirt fish,” “other fish,” “coarse fish,” and “underused fish.” However, rough fish remains the most ubiquitous term used today (Figure 1; Table 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Goodbye to “Rough Fish”: Paradigm Shift in the Conservation of Native Fishes

et al. 2021

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Perspectives of white males have overwhelmingly dominated fisheries science and management in the USA. This dynamic is exemplified by bias against "rough fish"-a pejorative ascribing low-to-zero value for countless native fishes. One product of this bias is that biologists have ironically worked against conservation of diverse fishes for over a century, and these problems persist today. Nearly all U.S. states retain bag limits and other policies that are regressive and encourage overfishing and decline of native species. Multiple lines of evidence point towards the need for a paradigm shift. These include: (1) native species deliver critical ecosystem services; (2) little demonstration that native fish removals deliver intended benefits; (3) many native fishes are long-lived and vulnerable to overfishing and decline; and (4) fisher values and demographics shifting towards native fish conservation. Overall, existing native fish policies are unacceptable and run counter to the public trust doctrine where government agencies manage natural resources for public use. We encourage agencies to revisit their policies regarding native fishes and provide suggestions for developing more holistic, protective, and inclusive conservation policy.

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Section: Conservation Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Goodbye to “Rough Fish”: Paradigm Shift in the Conservation of Native Fishes

et al. 2021

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“…These columns within the gibbus maculae are likely the “striations” reported by Love et al. (2019) that sometimes interfered with their age estimates. As interest in management of catostomid species such as Smallmouth Buffalo increases, better understanding of the morphology and composition of the lapilli of these species would be beneficial, and tools like X‐ray CT can enable those studies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…We did not attempt to conduct a full evaluation of Smallmouth Buffalo lapilli, but our images clearly show the morphology of the gibbus maculae as composed of columns of calcium carbonate interlaced with low-density material (probably protein). These columns within the gibbus maculae are likely the "striations" reported by Love et al (2019) that sometimes interfered with their age estimates. As interest in management of catostomid species such as Smallmouth Buffalo increases, better understanding of the morphology and composition of the lapilli of these species would be beneficial, and tools like X-ray CT can enable those studies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Validation and Comparison of Age Estimates for Smallmouth Buffalo in Oklahoma Based on Otoliths, Pectoral Fin Rays, and Opercula

Long

Snow²,

Shoup

et al. 2023

N American J Fish Manag

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With an increased interest in nongame fishes such as buffalofishes (Catostomidae, Ictiobus), there is a need for better foundational data on their life history. Bigmouth Buffalo I. cyprinellus, for example, have been found to live for more than a century. Age estimates for other sucker species have similarly suggested long life spans, but validation studies as reference points are often lacking. We conducted a 3-year study on Smallmouth Buffalo I. bubalus in Oklahoma to validate annual increments on three hard part structures (otoliths [lapilli], pectoral fin rays, and opercula) typically used for age estimation. We marked wild fish with oxytetracycline (OTC) injection and stocked those fish into a hatchery pond to create a population of fish with known times since marking. Furthermore, reproduction in the pond allowed us to validate annulus formation in young fish. We analyzed 117 fish and found that otoliths were more reliable, precise, and accurate than the other two structures for detecting OTC marks and counting annuli. Age estimates, from 1 to 61 years, were greatest when otoliths were used, with 99% of estimates corresponding to known time since marking or known age. Otoliths appear to be the only reliable structure for accurately estimating the age of Smallmouth Buffalo within 1 year of actual age, and their use indicates that this species can live for more than six decades in Oklahoma.Buffalofishes (Catostomidae, Ictiobus) are becoming increasingly recognized for their intrinsic roles in the ecosystem (Rypel et al. 2021;Scarnecchia et al. 2021), such as altering water quality (Goetz et al. 2014) and serving as hosts for freshwater mussels (Freshwater Mussel Host Database 2017). Despite this, buffalofishes have historically been viewed as nuisance species that compete for resources with popular sport fish, and their numbers have

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“…Once dried, otoliths were processed. Otolith selection and processing methods varied by species: gars (sagittal; Buckmeier et al 2018), buffalofishes (lapilli; Love et al 2019; Snow et al 2020), River Carpsucker (lapilli; Bartnicki and Snow 2021), Freshwater Drum (sagittal; Davis‐Foust et al 2009), and Common Carp and Grass Carp (lapilli; Stich et al 2013). The sole Flathead Catfish taken was unable to be aged.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bowfishing shoot and release: High short‐term mortality of nongame fishes and its management implications

Montague¹,

Schooley²,

Scarnecchia

et al. 2023

N American J Fish Manag

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ObjectiveAlthough bowfishing is legal in all 50 states in the USA, the practice of releasing shot fish is only legal in 8 states. An argument favoring this practice has been that survival of fish after shoot‐and‐release fishing is high. Bowfishing mortality trials were conducted in 2021–2022 in Lake Texoma, Oklahoma, to quantify shoot‐and‐release mortality and characterize the mortality via the location of the wound associated with the release of fish shot by bowfishing.MethodsA total of 240 nongame fish were shot by experienced bowfishers with conventional bowfishing equipment and held in convalescent pools, with control fish captured by electrofishing to document short‐term mortality up to 5 days.ResultOverall mortality of bowfished fish was 87% versus 0% for control fish. Fish shot in critical areas (head, internal organs, or spine; 78% of total) suffered 96% mortality, whereas fish shot in noncritical areas (dorsal musculature, tail, or fins) experienced 52% mortality. In addition, 13.7% of fish shot were not successfully retrieved. Shot fish were generally older (mean = 19.4 years, range = 3–54) and contained more females (62%) than control fish (mean = 12.5 years, range = 2–39; 37% female), providing evidence that bowfishing can remove individuals of great recruitment value. The shoot‐and‐release mortality rates in this study, for fish shot in both critical and noncritical areas, exceeded mortality from a wide range of angler catch and release in other studies.ConclusionThe high mortality rate associated with shoot and release observed in this study and as practiced by recreational bowfisheries renders shoot and release inconsistent with scientifically regulated and sustainable bowfisheries for native nongame species. These results provide evidence that the bow and arrow, when aimed at animals, is a weapon that is intended to kill. Bowfishing should realistically be managed as a 100% consumptive (i.e., kill) pursuit in which shoot and release is prohibited and nonretrieval of shot fish is accounted for.

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Age and Growth of Middle Mississippi River Smallmouth Buffalo

Cited by 7 publications

References 7 publications

Goodbye to “Rough Fish”: Paradigm Shift in the Conservation of Native Fishes

Goodbye to “Rough Fish”: Paradigm Shift in the Conservation of Native Fishes

Validation and Comparison of Age Estimates for Smallmouth Buffalo in Oklahoma Based on Otoliths, Pectoral Fin Rays, and Opercula

Bowfishing shoot and release: High short‐term mortality of nongame fishes and its management implications

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