Climate Change

Miscellaneous/General Info

General documents, fact sheets, links to photos and the main Pacific Lamprey Conservation Initiative website. Items that do not fit in other folder categories.

Detection and identification of lampreys in streams using environmental DNA

Control of sea lampreys in the Great Lakes requires accurate assessment of the distribution of this species in natal tributaries and the ability to distinguish sea lampreys from the four lamprey species that are native to the Great Lakes; two of these native species are of conservation concern. Environmental DNA (eDNA) has been used to assess the diversity and abundance of aquatic species by detecting the DNA of an organism in the water instead of locating the organism itself. We developed PCR-based assays to distinguish among the four ‘species’ of Great Lakes lampreys (sea, American brook, chestnut, and silver/northern brook lampreys), and employed these in the development of efficient and cost-effective environmental...

Olfactory Sensitivity of Pacific Lampreys to Lamprey Bile Acids

Pacific lampreys Lampetra tridentata are in decline throughout much of their historical range in the Columbia River basin. In support of restoration efforts, we tested whether larval and adult lamprey bile acids serve as migratory and spawning pheromones in adult Pacific lampreys, as they do in sea lampreys Petromyzon marinus. The olfactory sensitivity of adult Pacific lampreys to lamprey bile acids was measured by electro-olfactogram recording from the time of their capture in the spring until their spawning in June of the following year. As controls, we tested L-arginine and a non–lamprey bile acid, taurolithocholic acid 3- sulfate (TLS). Migrating adult Pacific lampreys were highly sensitive to petromyzonol sulfate...

Using eDNA Sampling to Detect Pacific Lamprey in a Large River: 2016 Wenatchee River Pilot Study

Although Pacific Lampreys were historically abundant in the Pacific Northwest, runs have declined dramatically as a result of barriers to upstream passage, juvenile entrainment, habitat loss, and compromised water quality. Defining the current distribution of Pacific Lamprey is a major component of the Pacific Lamprey Conservation Initiative and is central to lamprey recovery efforts. Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling may be a time-saving and cost-effective method to broadly assess habitat for Pacific Lamprey presence. However, aquatic macrofaunal eDNA methods are relatively new, with many studies occurring in small streams, and focusing on free-swimming fishes. This pilot study expanded the application of eDNA...

The sea lamprey germline genome provides insights into programmed genome rearrangement and vertebrate evolution

The sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) serves as a comparative model for reconstructing vertebrate evolution. To enable more informed analyses, we developed a new assembly of the lamprey germline genome that integrates several complementary data sets. Analysis of this highly contiguous (chromosome-scale) assembly shows that both chromosomal and whole-genome duplications have played significant roles in the evolution of ancestral vertebrate and lamprey genomes, including chromosomes that carry the six lamprey HOX clusters. The assembly also contains several hundred genes that are reproducibly eliminated from somatic cells during early development in lamprey. Comparative analyses show that gnathostome (mouse) homologs...

Investigating Freshwater and Ocean Effects on Pacific Lamprey and Pacific Eulachon of the Columbia River Basin: Projections within the Context of Climate Change

In this report we utilized statistical models and G.I.S-based approaches to analyze available life cycle, abundance and distribution data from the last 80 years on Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) and Pacific eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus), and determine how climate change may potentially impact these species in the Columbia River basin. Both species have experienced substantial declines in this basin, and are in urgent need of protection and restoration. While data on these species have incomplete spatial and temporal coverage in this region, some inferences can be derived on possible adverse effects of climate change and subsequent impacts on persistence and resilience of populations. The quantified...

Estimating occupancy and abundance of stream amphibians using environmental DNA from filtered water samples

Environmental DNA (eDNA) methods for detecting aquatic species are advancing rapidly, but with little evaluation of field protocols or precision of resulting estimates. We compared sampling results from traditional field methods with eDNA methods for two amphibians in 13 streams in central Idaho, USA. We also evaluated three water collection protocols and the influence of sampling location, time of day, and distance from animals on eDNA concentration in the water. We found no difference in detection or amount of eDNA among water collection protocols. eDNA methods had slightly higher detection rates than traditional field methods, particularly when species occurred at low densities. eDNA concentration was positively...

Comparative Cost and Effort of Fish Distribution Detection via Environmental DNA Analysis and Electrofishing

Fisheries conservation requires accurate knowledge of species identities and distributions. Fisheries are typically assessed via capture-based sampling, but managers frequently are unable to conduct extensive surveys due to budgetary constraints. Sampling of environmental DNA (eDNA) released by fish is a potentially cost-effective approach that could improve species detection per unit effort. However, eDNA methods have not been widely adopted, in part because the cost and effort of eDNA versus traditional sampling are often unclear to managers. We compared the monetary costs and sampling effort required to assess the distribution of Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis in a Wisconsin watershed using both electrofishing...

Habitat Restoration

eDNA_field_protocol_Levi

An Assessment of Environmental DNA as a Tool to Detect Fish Species in Headwater Streams

Proper management of species relies on accurate assessment of their distributional range. When species are rare, monitoring techniques can fail to detect them. This is particularly true in aquatic environments where the underwater environment hides organisms from view. Recent work using DNA suspended in the water column, otherwise known as environmental DNA (eDNA), has indicated that such techniques have greater sensitivity than traditional techniques in lentic systems. In this thesis, I explore the potential use of eDNA as a monitoring tool in headwater stream systems, where currents are more likely to rapidly carry suspended DNA away from the source. In Chapter 1, I provide a brief overview of the use of eDNA...

Status Report of the Pacific Lamprey (Lampetra tridentata) in the Columbia River Basin, Status Report 1995

Applications and limitations of measuring environmental DNA as indicators of the presence of aquatic animals

Summary 1. In Rees et al. (2014b), we reviewed the current status of environmental DNA (eDNA) to monitor aquatic populations. Our aim was to focus on discussion of methodologies used, application of eDNA analysis as a survey tool in ecology, and to include some innovative ideas for using eDNA in conservation and management. 2. Roussel et al. (2015) claim that analysis of Rees et al. (2014b) and other publications highlights the downsides of the method, and they suggest that some conclusions should be toned down. Many of their arguments were covered in our original paper (Rees et al., 2014b); however, they make the point that modelling approaches should be encouraged, and we fully agree with this suggestion. 3. Roussel...

Validity of Lampetra pacifica (Petromyzontiformes: Petromyzontidae), a brook lamprey described from the lower Columbia River Basin

The Pacific Brook Lamprey, Lampetra pacifica Vladykov, 1973 was described from the lower Columbia River Basin near Portland, Oregon. Subsequently, L. pacifica has generally been treated as a junior synonym of the Western Brook Lamprey, L. richardsoni Vladykov and Follett, 1965, a species described from the Fraser River Drainage east of Vancouver, British Columbia. We reexamine the available morphological data used by previous authors (trunk myomere counts), report on recent collections from the Columbia Basin, and reinterpret the trunk myomere data in the context of recent genetic sampling from the same populations. Populations of L. pacifica are distinguished from those of L. richardsoni by trunk myomere counts...

Pacific Lamprey Photo Collection on flickr

Proceedings for the 1st Current Status of Lamprey Research in the Pacific Northwest Workshop

Translocation White Paper

outlines the benefits and risks of translocating lamprey and a summary of existing guidelines for Pacific Lamprey translocation (CRBLTWG 2011). Pages 64-68 in the Tribal Pacific Lamprey Restoration Plan for the Columbia Basin (pdf link provided)

Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus L.) spawning migration in the Vouga river basin (Portugal): poaching impact, preferential resting sites and spawning grounds

Abstract Historical spawning grounds for sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus L.) in most Portuguese river basins are becoming inaccessible due to the construction of impassable dams and/or weirs. Studies like the one described in this paper are particularly important in areas like the Vouga river basin, where there is a considerable fishing effort from both professional fishermen and poachers. In fact, for management and conservation purposes, it is important to clarify several aspects of the sea lamprey spawning run in this particular watershed. Therefore, a total of 30 radio tagged, migrating sea lampreys were released in the River Vouga and some of its main tributaries during 2004 and 2005. Results from the tracking...

AFLP Assessment of Genetic Diversity of Pacific Lamprey

Abstract This study is the first to document genetic differences among Pacific lamprey across much of their range. We examined collections of migrating adult Pacific lamprey from Naka River, Japan; Moose River, Alaska; and six locations in the Pacific Northwest: the Toutle River, Willamette River, Deschutes River, John Day River, Rogue River, and Klamath River based on variation at 180 polymorphic loci of the 556 AFLP loci generated by seven primer combinations. Despite the large geographical distances separating the samples, the different collections were characterized by a high proportion of shared bands, which indicated significant levels of historical gene flow across the range of the species. Analysis of molecular...