The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior
Bottom trawling by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service motor vessel Cisco in Lake Superior in 1952–1953 revealed a large population of a tiny whitefish, Coregonus (Prosopium) coulteri, which has been reported previously only from northwestern North America. The hiatus in range, from Lake Superior to...
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1955
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ftumdeepblue:oai:deepblue.lib.umich.edu:2027.42/141996 2023-08-20T04:09:23+02:00 The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior Eschmeyer, Paul H. Bailey, Reeve M. 1955-01 application/pdf http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/141996 https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8659(1954)84[161:TPWCCI]2.0.CO;2 unknown Taylor & Francis Group Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Eschmeyer, Paul H.; Bailey, Reeve M. (1955). "The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior." Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 84(1): 161-199. 0002-8487 1548-8659 http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/141996 doi:10.1577/1548-8659(1954)84[161:TPWCCI]2.0.CO;2 Transactions of the American Fisheries Society IndexNoFollow Natural Resources and Environment Science Article 1955 ftumdeepblue https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8659(1954)84[161:TPWCCI]2.0.CO;2 2023-07-31T20:54:06Z Bottom trawling by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service motor vessel Cisco in Lake Superior in 1952–1953 revealed a large population of a tiny whitefish, Coregonus (Prosopium) coulteri, which has been reported previously only from northwestern North America. The hiatus in range, from Lake Superior to the Columbia River basin, is the greatest known for a North American freshwater fish. Although minor structural differences characterize the disjunct populations of the pygmy whitefish, these are not deemed worthy of nomenclatorial recognition. Comparisons with related species indicate that the pygmy whitefish is distinctive in the small size, large scales, few vertebrae, few pyloric caeca, and in other characters.The pygmy whitefish is widely distributed in Lake Superior, especially in semi‐protected bays, such as Keweenaw Bay which yielded about 68 percent of the 1,623 specimens caught. The bathymetric range was 10 to 49 fathoms, with maximum abundance at the 25‐ to 39‐fathom interval. Average length of fish increased progressively with water depth, chiefly because the number of yearlings declined from 100 percent at 10–14 fathoms to none at 45–49 fathoms.The average total length of pygmy whitefish caught by trawling was 3.4 inches (range 1.2 to 5.7). Extraordinarily slow growth was revealed by the examination of scales. Two fish from Keweenaw Bay, both nearing the end of their eighth growing season, were only 5.4 inches long. Compared to Keweenaw Bay, growth rate was about the same near Laughing Fish Point, faster in the Apostle Islands (and in Bull and McDonald Lakes, Montana), and slower in Siskiwit Bay, Isle Royale. Females grew more rapidly than males after the second year and had a longer life span.All male pygmy whitefish were mature at the age of 2 years and a total length of 3.6 or more inches. Most females were mature at 3 years and 4.2 inches; all older females were mature. Mean egg production was 362 (range, 93 to 597) per fish and 26 per gram of total weight for fish from 3.4 to 5.9 inches long. ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Prosopium coulteri Pygmy whitefish University of Michigan: Deep Blue Fish Point ENVELOPE(-56.465,-56.465,49.900,49.900) |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Michigan: Deep Blue |
op_collection_id |
ftumdeepblue |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Natural Resources and Environment Science |
spellingShingle |
Natural Resources and Environment Science Eschmeyer, Paul H. Bailey, Reeve M. The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior |
topic_facet |
Natural Resources and Environment Science |
description |
Bottom trawling by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service motor vessel Cisco in Lake Superior in 1952–1953 revealed a large population of a tiny whitefish, Coregonus (Prosopium) coulteri, which has been reported previously only from northwestern North America. The hiatus in range, from Lake Superior to the Columbia River basin, is the greatest known for a North American freshwater fish. Although minor structural differences characterize the disjunct populations of the pygmy whitefish, these are not deemed worthy of nomenclatorial recognition. Comparisons with related species indicate that the pygmy whitefish is distinctive in the small size, large scales, few vertebrae, few pyloric caeca, and in other characters.The pygmy whitefish is widely distributed in Lake Superior, especially in semi‐protected bays, such as Keweenaw Bay which yielded about 68 percent of the 1,623 specimens caught. The bathymetric range was 10 to 49 fathoms, with maximum abundance at the 25‐ to 39‐fathom interval. Average length of fish increased progressively with water depth, chiefly because the number of yearlings declined from 100 percent at 10–14 fathoms to none at 45–49 fathoms.The average total length of pygmy whitefish caught by trawling was 3.4 inches (range 1.2 to 5.7). Extraordinarily slow growth was revealed by the examination of scales. Two fish from Keweenaw Bay, both nearing the end of their eighth growing season, were only 5.4 inches long. Compared to Keweenaw Bay, growth rate was about the same near Laughing Fish Point, faster in the Apostle Islands (and in Bull and McDonald Lakes, Montana), and slower in Siskiwit Bay, Isle Royale. Females grew more rapidly than males after the second year and had a longer life span.All male pygmy whitefish were mature at the age of 2 years and a total length of 3.6 or more inches. Most females were mature at 3 years and 4.2 inches; all older females were mature. Mean egg production was 362 (range, 93 to 597) per fish and 26 per gram of total weight for fish from 3.4 to 5.9 inches long. ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Eschmeyer, Paul H. Bailey, Reeve M. |
author_facet |
Eschmeyer, Paul H. Bailey, Reeve M. |
author_sort |
Eschmeyer, Paul H. |
title |
The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior |
title_short |
The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior |
title_full |
The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior |
title_fullStr |
The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior |
title_sort |
pygmy whitefish, coregonus coulteri, in lake superior |
publisher |
Taylor & Francis Group |
publishDate |
1955 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/141996 https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8659(1954)84[161:TPWCCI]2.0.CO;2 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-56.465,-56.465,49.900,49.900) |
geographic |
Fish Point |
geographic_facet |
Fish Point |
genre |
Prosopium coulteri Pygmy whitefish |
genre_facet |
Prosopium coulteri Pygmy whitefish |
op_relation |
Eschmeyer, Paul H.; Bailey, Reeve M. (1955). "The Pygmy Whitefish, Coregonus Coulteri, in Lake Superior." Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 84(1): 161-199. 0002-8487 1548-8659 http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/141996 doi:10.1577/1548-8659(1954)84[161:TPWCCI]2.0.CO;2 Transactions of the American Fisheries Society |
op_rights |
IndexNoFollow |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8659(1954)84[161:TPWCCI]2.0.CO;2 |
_version_ |
1774722305397620736 |