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Maturation characteristics and life-history strategies of the Pacific lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus

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Title Maturation characteristics and life-history strategies of the Pacific lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus
Names Clemens, Benjamin J. (creator)
van de Wetering, Stan (creator)
Sower, Stacia A. (creator)
Schreck, Carl B. (creator)
Date Issued 2013-11 (iso8601)
Note To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by NRC Research Press and can be found at: http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/journal/cjz.
Abstract Lampreys (Petromyzontiformes) have persisted over millennia and now suffer a recent decline in abundance. Complex
life histories may have factored in their persistence; anthropogenic perturbations in their demise. The complexity of life
histories of lampreys is not understood, particularly for the anadromous Pacific lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus Gairdner, 1836.
Our goals were to describe the maturation timing and associated characteristics of adult Pacific lamprey, and to test the null
hypothesis that different life histories do not exist. Females exhibited early vitellogenesis – early maturation stages; males
exhibited spermatogonia – spermatozoa. Cluster analyses revealed an “immature” group and a “maturing–mature” group for
each sex. We found statistically significant differences between these groups in the relationships between (i) body mass and total
length in males; (ii) Fulton’s condition factor and liver lipids in males; (iii) the gonadosomatic index (GSI) and liver lipids in
females; (iv) GSI and total length in females; (v) mean oocyte diameter and liver lipids; and (vi) mean oocyte diameter and GSI. We
found no significant difference between the groups in the relationship of muscle lipids and body mass. Our analyses support
rejection of the hypothesis of a single life history. We found evidence for an “ocean-maturing” life history that would likely
spawn within several weeks of entering fresh water, in addition to the formerly recognized life history of spending 1 year in fresh
water prior to spawning—the “stream-maturing” life history. Late maturity, semelparity, and high fecundity suggest that Pacific
lamprey capitalize on infrequent opportunities for reproduction in highly variable environments.
Genre Article
Topic Primitive
Identifier Clemens, B. J., van de Wetering, S., Sower, S. A., & Schreck, C. B. (2013). Maturation characteristics and life-history strategies of the Pacific lamprey, Entosphenus tridentatus. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 91(11), 775-788. doi:10.1139/cjz-2013-0114

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