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Michael J. Mac

Publications and source records attributed to Michael J. Mac.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2009

Ecological Requirements for Pallid Sturgeon Reproduction and Recruitment in the Lower Missouri River: A Research Synthesis 2005-08

This report provides a synthesis of results obtained between 2005 and 2008 from the Comprehensive Sturgeon Research Program, an interagency collaboration between the U.S. Geological Survey, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Missouri River Recovery - Integrated Science Program. The goal of the Comprehensive Sturgeon Research Program is to improve fundamental understanding of reproductive ecology of the pallid sturgeon with the intent that improved understanding will inform river and species management decisions. Specific objectives include: *Determining movement, habitat-use, and reproductive behavior of pallid sturgeon; *Understanding reproductive physiology of pallid sturgeon and relations to environmental conditions; *Determining origin, transport, and fate of drifting pallid sturgeon larvae, and evaluating bottlenecks for recruitment of early life stages; *Quantifying availability and dynamics of aquatic habitats needed by pallid sturgeon for all life stages; and *Managing databases, integrating understanding, and publishing relevant information into the public domain. Management actions to increase reproductive success and survival of pallid sturgeon in the Lower Missouri River have been focused on flow regime, channel morphology, and propagation. Integration of 2005-08 Comprehensive Sturgeon Research Program research provides insight into linkages among flow regime, re-engineered channel morphology, and pallid sturgeon reproduction and survival. The research approach of the Comprehensive Sturgeon Research Program integrates opportunistic field studies, field-based experiments, and controlled laboratory studies. The field study plan is designed to explore the role of flow regime and associated environmental cues using two complementary approaches. An upstream-downstream approach compares sturgeon reproductive behavior between an upstream section of the Lower Missouri River with highly altered flow regime to a downstream section that maintains much of its pre-regulation flow variability. The upstream section also has the potential for an experimental approach to compare reproductive behavior in years with pulsed flow modifications ('spring rises') to years without. The reproductive cycle of the female sturgeon requires several years to progress through gonadal development, oocyte maturation, and spawning. Converging lines of evidence support the hypothesis that maturation and readiness to spawn in female sturgeon is cued many months before spawning. Information on reproductive readiness of shovelnose sturgeon indicates that sturgeon at different locations along the Lower Missouri River between St. Louis and Gavins Point Dam are all responding to the same early cue. Although not a perfect surrogate, the more abundant shovelnose sturgeon is morphologically, physiologically, and genetically similar to pallid sturgeon, and thereby provides a useful comparative model for the rarer species. Day length is the likely candidate to define a temporal spawning window. Within the spawning window, one or more additional, short-term, and specific cues may serve to signal ovulation and release of gametes. Of three potential spawning cues - water temperature, water discharge, and day of year - water temperature is the most likely proximate cue because of the fundamental physiological role temperature plays in sturgeon embryo development and survival, and the sensitivity of many fish hormones to temperature change. It also is possible that neither temperature nor discharge is cueing spawning; instead, reproductive behavior may result from the biological clock advancing an individual fish's readiness to spawn day after day through the spawning period until the right moment, independent of local environmental conditions. Separation of the individual effects of discharge events, water temperature, and other possible factors, such as proximity to male

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2007

A conceptual life-history model for pallid and shovelnose sturgeon

Intensive management of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers has resulted in dramatic physical changes to these rivers. These changes have been implicated as causative agents in the decline of pallid sturgeon. The pallid sturgeon, federally listed as endangered, is endemic to the turbid waters of the Missouri River and the Lower Mississippi River. The sympatric shovelnose sturgeon historically was more common and widespread than the pallid sturgeon. Habitat alteration, river regulation, pollution, and over-harvest have resulted in the now predictable patterns of decline and localized extirpation of sturgeon across species and geographic areas. Symptomatic of this generalized pattern of decline is poor reproductive success, and low or no recruitment of wild juveniles to the adult population. The purpose of this report is to introduce a conceptual life-history model of the factors that affect reproduction, growth, and survival of shovelnose and pallid sturgeons. The conceptual model provided here was developed to organize the understanding about the complex life history of Scaphirhynchus sturgeons. It was designed to be used for communication, planning, and to provide the structure for a population-forecasting model. These models are intended to be dynamic and responsive to new information and changes in river management, thereby providing scientists, stakeholders, and managers with ways to improve understanding of the effects of management actions on the ecological requirements of Scaphirhynchus sturgeons. As new scientific knowledge becomes available, it could be included in the model in many ways at various integration levels.

Circular↗
USGS2002

Accumulation by fish of contaminants released from dredged sediments

Inasmuch as the process of dredging and disposing of dredged materials causes a resuspension of these materials and an increase in bioavailability of associated contaminants, we conducted a series of experiments to examine the potential accumulation by fish of contaminants from suspended sediments. In the first experiment we compared accumulation of contaminants by yellow perch of hatchery and lake origin and found that after 10 days of exposure to nonaerated sediments, fish of hatchery origin accumulated PCBs and Fe, while fish of lake origin accumulated As, Cr, Fe, and Na. Two additional exposures were conducted to evaluate the effects of aerating the sediments prior to measuring bioavailability of associated contaminants. Fish of hatchery origin exposed to nonaerated sediments for 10 days accumulated PCBs and Hg, while fish of hatchery origin exposed to aerated sediments for 10 days accumulated PCBs, DDE, Zn, Fe, Cs, and Se. These results demonstrated not only the potential for uptake of contaminants by fish as a result of dredging but also the potential utility of fish bioassays in evaluating proposed dredging operations.

Environmental Science & Technology↗
USGS1994

Ecological comparisons of Lake Erie tributaries with elevated incidence of fish tumors

Ecological comparisons were made between two Lake Erie tributaries (Black and Cuyahoga rivers) with contaminated sediments and elevated rates of tumors in fish populations and a third, relatively unpolluted, reference tributary, the Huron River. Fish populations, benthic invertebrates, and sediments were evaluated in all three Ohio rivers. Community structure analyses indicated similar total densities but lower species diversity for fish and benthic invertebrates in the contaminated rivers when compared with the reference river. Growth rates in fish from the contaminated areas were either similar to or higher than those offish from the reference site. Brown bullhead ( Ameiurus nebulosus ) from the two contaminated tributaries exhibited 51% (Black River) and 45% (Cuyahoga River) incidence of liver lesions (neoplastic and preneoplastic) as compared with a 4% incidence of liver lesions in brown bullhead from the reference river (Huron River). Incidence of external abnormalities on brown bullhead was 54% (Black River) and 73% (Cuyahoga River) as compared with a 14% incidence on fish from the Huron River. On a regional basis, incidence of external abnormalities on particular benthic fish species may be an effective method to quickly indicate areas for more intensive contaminant studies.

Journal of Great Lakes Research↗
USGS1992

Sediment bioaccumulation testing with fish

In this chapter, we discuss methods for conducting bioaccumulation bioassays with fish; the advantages and disadvantages of using fish rather than invertebrates; and problems associated with bioaccumulation testing, with a special emphasis on statistical treatment.

Book chapter↗
USGS1991

Environmental contaminants and the reproductive success of lake trout in the Great Lakes: An epidemiological approach

Epidemiological criteria were used to examine the influence of environmental contamination on reproductive success of lake trout ( Salvelinus namaycush ,) in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Most of the information was obtained from lake trout eggs collected in southeastern Lake Michigan and reared in the laboratory. Two separate end points that measure reproductive success—egg hatchability and fry survival‐were used in the evaluation. Strong evidence for maternally derived polychlorinated biphenyls causing reduced egg hatchability were observed for the time order, strength of association, and coherence criteria. Equally strong evidence for organic environmental contaminants, also of maternal origin, causing a swim‐up fry mortality syndrome were presented for the strength of association, specificity, replication, and coherence criteria. The epidemiological approach for demonstrating cause‐and‐effect relations was useful because of the difficulty in demonstrating definite proof of causality between specific environmental contaminants and reproductive dysfunction in feral fish.

Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health↗
USGS1991

Tumor frequencies in walleye ( Stizostedion vitreum ) and brown bullhead ( Ictalurus nebulosus ) and sediment contaminants in tributaries of the Laurentian Great Lakes

To better characterize neoplasm epizootics in the Great Lakes basin and their association with families of contaminants, we sampled five locations: the Fox and Menominee rivers, Lake Michigan; Munuscong Lake, St. Mary's River; and the Black and Cuyahoga rivers, Lake Erie. Frequencies of external and liver tumors were determined for brown bullhead ( Ictalurus nebulosus ) from all locations except the Black River and for walleye ( Stizostedion vitreum ) from the Lake Michigan and St. Mary's River sites. Sediment samples were analyzed for metals, polychlorinated aromatics, and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). Liver neoplasms occurred in brown bullhead from the Cuyahoga River and Munuscong Lake; brown bullhead captured from Munuscong Lake were older than those collected from the other locations. Brown bullhead from these same two rivers had elevated hepatosomatic indexes. No liver neoplasms were found in brown bullhead from the Fox and Menominee rivers, although polychlorinated aromatics were highest in both Fox River sediment and Fox and Menominee brown bullhead, and arsenic was highest in Menominee River sediment and fish. Liver neoplasms in brown bullhead from the Cuyahoga River fit the prevailing hypothesis that elevated PAH in sediment can induce cancer in wild fish. The cause of the liver neoplasms in Munuscong Lake brown bullhead is undetermined.

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences↗
USGS1990

A bioaccumulation bioassay for freshwater sediments

A laboratory bioassay is described for determining the bioavailability of contaminants from freshwater sediments. The bioassay consists of 10-d exposures to whole sediments under flow-through conditions. After testing five species, the fathead minnow ( Pimephales promelas ) and the earthworm ( Lubricus terrestris ) were recommended for use in the test. When the availability of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), Hg and Zn from Great Lakes sediments was examined in laboratory exposures, only the PCBs were accumulated. A field validation study demonstrated that the magnitude of accumulation in laboratory exposures was similar to that in organisms caged in the field. A protocol is recommended for using the test as a standardized bioaccumulation bioassay.

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry↗
USGS1988

Chemical characterization and mutagenic properties of polycyclic aromatic compounds in sediment from tributaries of the Great Lakes

Sediments from four inshore industrial sites and a reference site in the Great Lakes were extracted with solvents and characterized chemically for polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs). An aqueous phase and a crude organic extract were obtained. The crude organic extract was further resolved into fractions A-2 (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and A-3 (nitrogen-containing polycyclic aromatic compounds), which were analyzed for PACs by gas chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The extracts and fractions were tested for mutagenicity in three assays: Ames, rat hepatocyte unscheduled DNA synthesis, and Chinese hamster ovary hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase (CHO/HGPRT). Sediments from the industrial sites contained 27 to 363 μg/g total PACs; the reference site, less than 1 μg/g. Qualitative differences in the residue profiles among the sites were attributable to the probable sources of the PACs (petroleum versus combustion). Only one industrial site yielded measurable (0.1 μg/g or more) concentrations of individual nitrogen-containing PACs. In the Ames assay, only the highest doses of the A-2 fractions from two sites approached positive results. Conversely, the crude organic extract and A-2 and A-3 fractions from all sites induced unscheduled DNA synthesis. Crude organic extracts and the A-2 and A-3 fractions from all industrial sites gave well-defined dose-response relations in the CHO/HGPRT assay. We established the presence of chemical mutagens in sediment that could be correlated with neoplasms in fish from many of the sites; however, the mutagenicity of the sediment extracts was not completely related to the degree of contamination by PACs. We also discuss the utility of mutagenicity assays in the evaluation of complex chemical mixtures and recommend the use of a CHO/HGPRT-type assay in which cells are not required to proliferate in the presence of potential interfering chemicals.

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry↗
USGS1985

Effects of ration size on preferred temperature of lake charr Salvelinus namaycush

I tested the effects of different ration sizes on preferred temperatures of yearling lake charr, Salvelinus namaycush , by feeding them for about 2 weeks on one of four rations and then allowing them to thermoregulate in a temporal thermal gradient for 2 to 3 days. Selected temperatures and ration were directly and linearly correlated: the larger the ration, the higher the temperature selected. Mean preferred temperatures at different rations (shown in parentheses as percent of body weight per day) were as follows: 9.2°C (0.3); 10.6°C (0.8); 11.7°C (2.0); and 12.6°C (5.5). While the shift to lower temperature, under restricted ration, would maximize food conversion efficiency, previous growth studies indicate that even lower selected temperature would have been more beneficial.

Environmental Biology of Fishes↗
USGS1985

Survival of lake trout eggs and fry reared in water from the upper Great Lakes

As part of continuing studies of the reproductive failure of lake trout ( Salvelinus namaycush ) in Lake Michigan, we measured the survival of lake trout eggs and fry of different origins and reared in different environments. Eggs and milt were stripped from spawning lake trout collected in the fall of 1980 from southeastern Lake Michigan, northwestern Lake Huron, south central Lake Superior, and from hatchery brood stock. Eggs from all sources were incubated, and the newly hatched fry were reared for 139 days in lake water from each of the three upper Great Lakes and in well water. Survival of eggs to hatching at all sites was lowest for those from Lake Michigan (70% of fertilized eggs) and highest for eggs from Lake Superior (96%). Comparisons of incubation water from the different lakes indicated that hatching success of eggs from all sources was highest in Lake Huron water, and lowest in Lake Michigan water. The most notable finding was the nearly total mortality of fry from eggs of southeastern Lake Michigan lake trout. At all sites, the mean survival of Lake Michigan fry through 139 days after hatching was only 4% compared to near 50% for fry from the other three sources. In a comparison of the rearing sites, little influence of water quality on fry survival was found. Thus, the poor survival was associated with the source of eggs and sperm, not the water in which the fry were reared.

Journal of Great Lakes Research↗
USGS1984

Flow-through bioassay for measuring bioaccumulation of toxic substances from sediment

Over 10 million cubic meters of sediment are dredged annually from Great Lakes waterways. Because much of this material is taken from harbors, connecting channels, and other nearshore areas that often are contaminated with toxic substances, the sediments proposed for dredging need to be evaluated for the presence of bioavailable contaminants and the potential for toxicity to the biota. Sound decisions on the appropriate disposal of the dredged material can be made only after such an evaluation. Presently, no standardized procedure exists for evaluating dredged material in freshwater systems although current criteria for discharge of dredged material into marine water have been developed (USEPA/CE 1977). In the ocean discharge guideline, it is recommended that bioassays be conducted on liquid, solid, and suspended particulate phases of dredged material. because it appears that the solid phase has the greatest potential for environmental damage and because measurement of bioaccumulation must be made to evaluate sediments for disposal (USEPA/CE 1977, Seeyle and Mac 1983), we developed a bioassay for testing the solid phase of dredged material that measures the survival of organisms and, perhaps more important, the bioaccumulation of toxic substances by aquatic organisms from naturally contaminated sediments (Peddicord et al. 1980; Rubinstein et al. 1980, 1983; Seeyle st al. 1982), several have used testing methods that result in unacceptable mortality to control organisms (Bahnick et al. 1981, Prater et al. 1983). Our bioassay is intended to estimate the potential for bioaccumlation of contaminants from sediments that are not acutely toxic to test organisms, but are suspected of containing persistent contaminants. By using test organisms that are not highly susceptible to toxic compounds, the bioaccumulation test allows estimation of the potential food-chain accumulation of contaminants that may occur in local biota from surficial sediments. In practice, bioaccumulation observed in this bioassay by organisms exposed to test sediments (sediments to be dredged) would be compared to bioaccumulation observed from sediments collected from a reference site (e.g. a disposal site or open lake), and also from control sediments (relatively clean sediment). Decisions could then be based on a comparison of results between tests and reference sediments to determine if disposal would cause dehydration to the habitat, and between reference and control sediment to determine if even the reference material is seriously contaminated. Although the test is not intended to be a toxicity test per se, use of test, reference, and control sediments enables interpretation of any mortality of organisms that may occur during the bioassays. High mortality in bioassays with test or reference sediment would indicate acute toxicity of sediments in the project area. However if high mortality occurs in all three sediments, it can be assumed that the organisms were not in a healthy state at the time of testing. We describe the results of 10-day sediment bioassays in which both mortality and bioaccumulation were measured in four aquatic organisms. We exposed two infaunal organisms and two species of fish to test and control sediments in the laboratory.

Report↗
USGS1982

Comparative hatching success of lake trout eggs in Lake Michigan water and well water

A study was undertaken to examine the influence of water from southern Lake Michigan on the survival of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) eggs by comparing the hatching success of eggs from the same source incubated in water from Lake Michigan, or from the laboratory well. It is concluded that the observed differences in hatching are probably attributable to chemical constituents of water from the lake (eg, chlorinated hydrocarbons, metals and other industrial and agricultural chemicals).

Progressive Fish-Culturist↗
USGS1981

Growth and mortality of fry of Lake Michigan lake trout during chronic exposure to PCB's and DDE

Fry hatched from eggs of Lake Michigan lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) were exposed (beginning about 1 week after hatching) to contaminant concentrations of PCB's and DDE similar to those in water and plankton in southeastern Lake Michigan (1X level), and to concentrations about 5 (5X) and 25 (25X) times greater. Body concentrations of contaminants in fry (I?g/g) decreased at 1X levels of PCB's and at 1X and 5X levels of DDE, but generally increased at all other contaminant exposure levels. Uptake of PCB's and DDE was evident from increases in body burden (I?g/fish) of the contaminants at all exposure levels and the controls. Growth was not significantly affected by any of the contaminant exposures. Mortalities of fry exposed to the lower concentrations (1X and 5X) were significantly less than those of control fry before day 56; however, between days 57 and 136, mortality rates increased dramatically and were significantly higher in all nine exposed groups than in the control group. For the last 40-day period (days 137-176), mortality was low and leveled off, but continued to be significantly higher in all exposed fry (except those in 1X and 5X PCB's) than in control fry. By the end of the 176-day study, the total cumulative mortality ranged from 30.5 to 46.5% in the exposed groups and was 21.7% in the control group.

Technical Paper↗
USGS1981

Vulnerability of young lake trout to predation after chronic exposure to PCB's and DDE

The vulnerability of fry of Lake Michigan lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) to predation by rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri) was tested after the fry had been exposed to PCB's, DDE, and a combination of these contaminants in both water and food at concentrations corresponding to ambient levels (1X) in water and plankton in Lake Michigan and at levels 5 and 25 times higher. Vulnerability of the fry, measured as the ratio of escapes to predator attacks, was not significantly increased by either 90 or 165 days of exposure to the contaminants at any of the concentrations tested, and no behavioral differences were observed between control and exposed fry in their reaction to predators. Exposure to PCB's and DDE at environmental and higher concentrations thus did not affect the vulnerability of lake trout fry to predation. This observation suggests that the failure of lake trout reproduction in Lake Michigan was not caused by contaminant-induced reductions in the ability of the fry to escape predators.

Book chapter↗