Pygmy Whitefish, Prosopium coulteri , in Three Lakes of the Copper River System in Alaska

• Published in: Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada
• Main Authors: Bird, Franklin H., Roberson, Kenneth
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1979
• Subjects: Yukon; Prosopium coulteri; Pygmy whitefish; Yukon river; Alaska
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f79-065; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/f79-065

Pygmy whitefish (Prosopium coulteri) were recorded for the first time from the Copper River drainage in Alaska (from Tazlina, Klutina, and Tonsina lakes). Morphology of the specimens indicate affinity to the Lake Superior and Waterton Lake populations, falling outside the ranges previously established for "low-rakered" and "high-rakered" forms found in Alaska. Based on geographical proximity, however, probable origin for these fish is from an upper Yukon River unglaciated refugium. Key words: pygmy whitefish, Copper River, Alaska, morphology, Yukon River, unglaciated refugium