Author: pfaff.20

PhD Student Cory Becher & DOW Colleagues with article in NAJFM

PhD candidate Cory Becher along with Stu Ludsin and Ohio Division of Wildlife (DOW) colleagues recently published a paper in the North American Journal of Fisheries Management entitled, Alternative Prey Reduces Largemouth Bass Predation Mortality on Newly Stocked Channel Catfish Fingerlings.

The ability to stock fingerlings instead of yearlings, however, could benefit fisheries management agencies by lowering the costs associated with hatchery production. Not having to overwinter Channel Catfish in hatchery ponds would not only save personnel time and lower feed expenses, it would open more space in the hatchery for production of other fishes.

Becher, C., S.M. Tyszko, R.D. Zweifel, J.D. Conroy, J.J. Pritt, and S.A. Ludsin. 2021. Alternative prey reduces largemouth bass predation mortality on newly stocked channel catfish fingerlings. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 41(5): 1322-1333. doi.org/10.1002/nafm.10647

New Article in Global Change Biology

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Former AEL postdocs James Sinclair and Mike Fraker along with  Stu as well as AEL faculty Jim Hood and other collaborators have a new article out in Global Change Biology entitled, Functional traits reveal the dominant drivers of long-term community change across a North American Great Lake.

In ecosystems perturbed by multiple simultaneous stressors, discerning which individual or set of stressors is driving community structure is oftentimes difficult. Our results illustrate how supplementing species-based approaches with trait-based ones can help to resolve this issue.

Sinclair, J.S., M.E. Fraker, J.M. Hood, K.T. Frank, M.R. DuFour, A.M. Gorman, and S.A. Ludsin. 2021. Functional traits reveal the dominant drivers of long-term community change across a North American Great Lake. Global Change Biology 27(23): 6232-6251. doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15902

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Undergrad Fisheries Workshop Announced for Summer 2022

NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program is sponsoring an eight-day Great Lakes Fisheries Science Training (FST) workshop in

population and ecosystem dynamics, to be held during summer 2022. This workshop will introduce participants to the study of fisheries science and will explore careers in fisheries ecology, management, and conservation.

At the workshop, we will present a diverse group of participants with the foundational elements of fisheries ecology, management, and modeling in a manner that is engaging and accessible, regardless of the students’ ecological and quantitative background. We will explore how aquatic ecology and quantitative methods can be integrated and used to solve fisheries management problems. Finally, we will provide a robust view of careers in fisheries science and guidance on how to advance and become more confident and qualified when applying for both graduate and employment opportunities.

Application information and more details about the workshop can be found at the the Great Lakes FST page.

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JGLR pub on relationship between Walleye and ZP in Lake Erie

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Stu’s recent student Cassie May along with current AELers Rich Budnik, Jim Hood, and Libby Marschall recently had a publication accepted in the Journal of Great Lakes Research. This paper explores walleye recruitment through th

e lens of temperature and zooplankton biomass during the walleye larval period.

Evidence that copepod biomass during the larval period regulates recruitment of Lake Erie walleye

Cassandra J. May, Richard R. Budnik, Stuart A. Ludsin, Daniel R. O’Donnell, James M. Hood, Edward F. Roseman, Elizabeth A. Marschall

doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2021.09.009

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New Pubs!

A great batch of publications from Dr. Ludsin, and AEL colleagues Libby Marschall,  Zoe Almeida, Manju Manubolu, Rich Budnik, Mike Fraker, Becca Dillon, Joe Conroy, and Kevin Pangle.

Which factors determine the long-term effect of poor early-life nutrition? A meta-analytic review.

Almeida, L.Z., S.M. Hovick, S.A. Ludsin, and E.A. Marschall. 2021. Which factors determine the long-term effect of poor early-life nutrition? A meta-analytic review. Ecosphere 12(8): e03694. doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3694

Nanotechnology-Based Detection and Remediation of Mycotoxins for Food and Agriculture Applications.

Manubolu, M., L. Goodla, S.A. Ludsin, T. Jayakumar, M. Fraker, and K. Pathakoti. 2021. Nanotechnology-Based Detection and Remediation of Mycotoxins for Food and Agriculture Applications. Nanosensors for Environment, Food and Agriculture Vol. 1, 183-211. link

Gizzard shad target strength-to-body size equations at multiple hydroacoustic frequencies.

Johnson, G.R., R.A. Dillon, R.D. Zweifel, S.A. Ludsin, and J.D. Conroy. 2021. Gizzard shad target strength-to-body size equations at multiple hydroacoustic frequencies. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 150(2): 242-257. doi.org/10.1002/tafs.10287

Stress hormone-mediated antipredator morphology improves escape performance in amphibian tadpoles.

Fraker, M.E., S.A. Ludsin, B. Luttbeg, and R.J. Denver. 2021. Stress hormone-mediated antipredator morphology improves escape performance in amphibian tadpoles. Scientific Reports 11(1), Article number 4427. doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-84052-9

Bottom hypoxia alters the spatial distribution of pelagic intermediate consumers and their prey.

Dillon, R.A., J.D. Conroy, K.J. Lang, K.L. Pangle, and S.A. Ludsin. 2021. Bottom hypoxia alters the spatial distribution of pelagic intermediate consumers and their prey. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 78(5): 522-538. doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2020-0001

Projecting future habitat quality of three midwestern reservoir fishes under warming conditions.

Budnik, R.R., J.D. Conroy, R.D. Zweifel, S.A. Ludsin, and E.A. Marschall. 2021. Projecting future habitat quality of three midwestern reservoir fishes under warming conditions. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 30(1):31-47. doi.org/10.1111/eff.12561

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Congratulations Andrew!

Ludsin PhD student Andrew Bade successfully defended his dissertation entitled “The Behavioral Ecology of Walleye (Sander vitreus): Phenotypic and Environmental Variation Influence Reproductive Behaviors and Exploitation.”

As part of his defense he gave a seminar entitled, “How to Catch Lots of Big Walleye (and Other Stuff About Walleye Too)” over zoom.

See more information about his project here: Lake Erie Walleye Spawning Ecology

Andrew has spent the last two years of his PhD establishing his career in his home state at the Connecticut Bureau of Natural Resources working to better meet the needs of anglers. We wish him all the best in his career and are proud of his accomplishments at the AEL!

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New Pubs

AEL faculty Drs. Stu Ludsin and Libby Marschall have two new publications on percids out this spring.

“Mixed-stock analysis using Rapture genotyping to evaluate stock-specific exploitation of a walleye population despite weak genetic structure,” was published with AEL alumnus Alex Chen; it will appear in the May edition of Evolutionary Applications. This study “provides important stock contribution estimates for Lake Erie fishery management and demonstrates the utility of genomic data to facilitate mixed-stock analysis in exploited fish populations have weak population structure or limited existing genetic resources.”

Euclide, P.T., T. MacDougall, J.M. Robinson, M.D. Faust, C.C. Wilson, K.Y. Chen, E.A. Marschall, W. Larson, and S. Ludsin. 2021. Mixed-stock analysis using Rapture genotyping to evaluate stock-specific exploitation of a walleye population despite weak genetic structure. Evolutionary Applications. 14(5): 1403-1420. doi.org/10.1111/eva.13209

“Ecosystem change as a driver of fish recruitment dynamics: A case study of two Lake Erie yellow perch populations,” was published with AEL alums Ben Marcek and Troy Farmer; it will appear in the June edition of Freshwater Biology. This study “demonstrates that ecosystem change can cause the relationships between environmental conditions and population processes…of aquatic organisms to vary through time and space.”

Marcek, B.J., T.M. Farmer, E.A. Marschall, G. Petris, and S. Ludsin. 2021. Ecosystem change as a driver of fish recruitment dynamics: A case study of two Lake Erie yellow perch populations. Freshwater Biology. 66(6): 1149-1168.  doi.org/10.1111/fwb.13707

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Farewell Dave!

Dave Dippold completed his time as a postdoc this month and has moved on to a position with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. We wish him all the best!

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Great Lakes Fisheries Database Workshop

AEL postdoc Rich Budnik, along with Dr. Stu Ludsin, and Dr. Kenneth Frank of Queen’s University and Fisheries and Oceans Canada, hosted a two-day virtual workshop Monday, May 3 and Friday, May 7 to share information about and gain feedback on their Great Lakes Fishery Commission funded database project. AEL grad student Lyndsie Collis, research assistants Steven Gratz and Jenny Pfaff, and postdoc James Sinclair all helped with the workshop and project as well.

The Great Lakes Fish Recruitment and Ecosystem Database is unique in that it is being developed at a broader spatial and temporal scale and is geared towards helping researchers evaluate the direct and indirect effects of environmental change on Great Lakes fish communities and the fisheries they support. The goal of the workshop was to achieve agency and researcher buy-in for the database effort, and was an overall success! Great discussions helped to guide the best practices of database development moving forward, and participants now have a better grasp of the goals of the database.

 

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Outreach Event for Bexley 5th Graders

We are always grateful to be able to share our knowledge with the community, and so we were thrilled when Bexley 5th grade teachers reached out to us to help their students better understand foodwebs. Dr. Ludsin along with AEL undergrad Luke Bobay and grad student Rachael Finigan presented to Bexley Elementary 5th grade classrooms over Zoom on April 21. The presentations were all well received, a great experience for the students and presenters alike!

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