Assessment of Lake Sturgeon Reproductive Capacity and Associated Habitat Requirements in the North Saskatchewan and Saskatchewan River Systems

该提案是与赫斯基能源有限公司合作提出的，涉及到影响北萨斯喀彻温河上极度濒危的湖鲟鱼种群的风险因素的管理。最初的目标是在2016年春季石油泄漏后更好地为产卵和饲养栖息地的修复工作提供信息。参与资助的研究（2018年）报告说，北萨斯喀彻温河下游有丰富的产卵栖息地，但没有发现产卵活动或产卵产品。异常温暖的春季可能导致了恶劣的产卵条件；水温超过鲟鱼卵泡发育和卵孵化的阈值。极端水温是一个持续的问题，可能伴随未来的气候变化情景。为了更好地评估产卵和可用栖息地之间的联系，研究将侧重于种群内的繁殖能力。湖鲟鱼产卵间歇性，由于一个延长的多年的发展周期，不同的雄性和雌性。通常，需要侵入性手术来区分性别和生殖阶段。超声检查提出了一种新的、非侵入性的方法：采用无线手持超声兽医扫描仪来确定鲟鱼湖的性别和生殖能力。它将允许量化对萨斯喀彻温河系统中产卵栖息地的可变需求。本研究具有重要的保护价值。它可以使渔业管理人员跟踪男女产卵者之间的投资比例和同步程度，允许对产卵强度进行未来预测，并协助提供溪流流量需求。对于赫斯基和在类似生态系统中工作的行业来说，繁殖能力将预示着河流活动的风险，并有助于量化环境扰动的实际影响。对于萨斯喀彻温理工学院来说，这项以保护为基础的研究使人们意识到北萨斯喀彻温河上鲟鱼湖的濒危状况，紧邻我们的阿尔伯特亲王社区，并允许学生和教师研究人员发展应用，技术，分析和公共宣传技能。

This proposal, a collaboration with Husky Energy Ltd., concerns the management of risk factors affecting critically endangered Lake Sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) populations in the North Saskatchewan River. The initial objective was to better inform spawning and rearing habitat remediation efforts following an oil spill in spring 2016. Engage-funded research (2018) reported abundant spawning habitat in lower sections of the North Saskatchewan River, but did not detect spawning activity or spawn products. An unusually warm spring likely contributed to poor spawning conditions; water temperatures exceeded thresholds for Lake Sturgeon follicular development and egg incubation. Extreme water temperatures are an ongoing concern likely to accompany future climate change scenarios. To better evaluate links between spawning and available habitat, the research will focus on reproductive capacity within the population. Lake Sturgeon spawn intermittently due to an extended multi-year developmental cycle that differs for males and females. Typically, invasive procedures are required to distinguish between sexes and reproductive stages. Ultrasonography invites a new, non-invasive approach: adapting wireless handheld ultrasound vet scanners for the purpose of determining sex and reproductive capacity of Lake Sturgeon in the field. It would permit quantifying variable demand for spawning habitat in the Saskatchewan River system. This research has significant conservation value. It can allow fisheries managers to track proportionate investment and degree of synchrony among male and female spawners, permit future forecasts of spawning intensity, and assist in the delivery of instream flow needs. For Husky, and industries working in similar ecosystems, reproductive capacity would portend the risk of instream activities and help quantify the realized impacts of environmental perturbation. For Saskatchewan Polytechnic, this conservation-based research brings awareness to the endangered status of the Lake Sturgeon in the North Saskatchewan River, immediately adjacent to our home community of Prince Albert, and permits students & faculty researchers to develop applied, technological, analytical, and public outreach skills.