4 research outputs found
Assessment of Road Culverts as Passage Barriers to Wild and Stocked Trout in Pennsylvania Headwaters
One of the primary threats to brook trout in Pennsylvania is population fragmentation due to habitat alteration. Road culverts in particular can isolate populations by reducing access to upstream spawning habitat. To categorize the degree to which culverts prevent fish movement, watershed managers use physical measurements to classify the passability of the each culvert. The North Atlantic Aquatic Connectivity Collaborative (NAACC) conservatively categorizes culverts as âno AOP (Aquatic Organism Passage)â or âred culvertsâ when they are considered a barrier to aquatic organisms. The Little Bear Creek watershed, a wild trout stream in the Loyalsock watershed, contains three culverts categorized as âreduced AOPâ or âgray culvertsâ that require further investigation to determine actual organism passage. It is unknown whether these gray culverts are indeed barriers to migratory fish, especially native trout. To measure how passable these culverts are, we tagged 546 wild trout in 2015 and 2016 with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags, distributed up and downstream of each culvert site and a control site without a culvert. Results show that trout are differences in movements between culvert types, implicating a barrier issue in Little Bearâs tributaries. The only metal corrugated culvert in the watershed, which lies on the upper most extent of Sand Spring Run, has proven to be the most passable of the culverts with an average of 0.85 movements per day. A small box culvert on the lower extent of Sand Spring Run had an average of 0.1 movements per day. The largest culvert, a more recently built box culvert close to the mouth of Red Run, had an average of 0.01 movements per day. None of the movements in Red Run were upstream movements. The barrier-free site on Painter Run resulted in an average of 0.27 movements per day. We will further test for correlations of trout movements with daily stream conditions such as temperature and water level. By âground-truthingâ culvert assessment methods, we anticipate our study will ultimately help watershed managers better prioritize culverts for removal or replacement
Assessment of Road Culverts as Passage Barriers to Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and Brown Trout (Salmo trutta) in Pennsylvania Headwaters
Road culverts can pose as barriers to migratory fish and other aquatic organisms, which can lead to small isolated populations. To categorize the degree to which culverts prevent fish movement, watershed managers use physical measurements to classify culverts as âgreenâ if they are passable, âredâ if they are impassable, or âgrayâ if passability cannot be determined. The Little Bear Creek watershed, a small subwatershed within Loyalsock Creek, contains several road culverts that fell within the âgrayâ category. It is unknown to us whether or not the culverts falling within this category are indeed barriers to migratory fish, especially trout. To measure how passable these culverts are, we tagged 486 brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and brown trout (Salmo trutta) with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags throughout the Little Bear watershed, particularly upstream and downstream of the three âgrayâ culverts. Antenna arrays were constructed on the upstream side and downstream side of each culvert, as well as a control site lacking anthropogenic barriers to trout movement. In addition to tracking whether or not the culverts are passable, the arrays will reveal the exact time of movements through culverts. This will allow us to test for correlations with stream flow, water temperature, and other stream conditions that may influence trout movements. By âground-truthingâ culvert assessment methods, we anticipate our study will ultimately help watershed managers better prioritize culverts for removal or replacement
Assessment of Brook Trout Passage Through Ambiguous Culvert Barriers in Pennsylvania Headwater Streams
Habitat fragmentation driven by human activity is a common threat to aquatic organisms. Road culverts in particular can isolate ïŹsh populations and reduce genetic diversity by preventing access to upstream spawning habitat. The prioritization process for removing culverts and restoring connectivity includes an assessment of passibility. Culverts often receive scores that categorize them as partial barriers, known as âReduced AOPâ culverts, however detailed assessment of passibility on gray culverts is lacking. To ïŹll this research gap, we used stationary PIT-tag readers to investigate brook trout passage through two No AOP culverts, one Reduced AOP culvert, and a reference stream lacking a culvert for 16 months in Little Bear Creek of Lycoming Co., PA. Results indicate signiïŹcant differences in upstream movement rates among culvert sites. The rate of upstream passage was ïŹve times greater through the metal corrugated culvert than the reference stream. In contrast, relatively little upstream movement occurred through the two box culverts (up to 13 times less passage than the reference), indicating drastic passage differences in culverts receiving similar passibility scores. Our study implies that more nuanced culvert classiïŹcations may be needed to accurately reïŹect ïŹsh passage
Complete Genome Sequences of 18 Paenibacillus larvae Phages from the Western United States
We present here the complete genomes of 18 phages that infect Paenibacillus larvae, the causative agent of American foulbrood in honeybees. The phages were isolated between 2014 and 2016 as part of an undergraduate phage discovery course at Brigham Young University. The phages were isolated primarily from bee debris and lysogens