Biota Survey for Devils Lake, ND Conducted July 25-30, 2005

• Main Author: Arroy, Bryan
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln 2005
• Subjects: Canada; New Zealand; Williamson; Devils Lake; Randall; Nelson River
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usfwspubs/446; https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/context/usfwspubs/article/1446/viewcontent/Biota_survey_Devils_Lake_2005.pdf

This biota survey was undertaken to help address recognized data gaps about aquatic biota of concern in Devils Lake, North Dakota. This effort stems from a collaborative process that involved interested jurisdictions that could be affected by the operation of the State of North Dakota's Devils Lake outlet. These jurisdictions include the State of North Dakota, the State of Minnesota, the Province of Manitoba, and the federal governments of Canada and the United States. The purpose of this biota survey is to provide additional information regarding the presence of targeted aquatic biota of concern in Devils Lake. To assure scientific integrity, the results must be viewed and evaluated in relation to the following caveats: The participants recognize that no sampling method is guaranteed to provide evidence of every single species present in a prescribed area. However, additional information is always useful, and the current survey provides an updated picture of Devils Lake's biota relative to previous studies. Data collection efforts were focused primarily on detecting the presence or absence of a targeted list of biota of concern that all jurisdictions recognized to be of most concern and do not represent a comprehensive survey of biota in Devils Lake. This effort did not survey and did not alleviate existing data gaps in the knowledge of the Sheyenne River, Red River and its tributaries, Lake Winnipeg or other parts of the Nelson River system, nor does it represent a risk assessment. The present fish parasite and pathogens survey was based on samples at one point in time. The occurrence and prevalence of certain fish pathogens may be variably affected by life history characteristics and environmental factors at other times of the year, especially those that cause or increase stress in fish. Due to the fact that the present survey represents results from a single time period, the survey results should inform, but not be the sole determinant of, the process to design and construct a more advance filtration system ...