Dear members, We are conducting a study on spawning habitat for anadromous Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus mordax), especially with the the impact of periphyton on egg survival. We observed that some of our most productive spawn- ing tributaries along the St-Lawrence River Estuary are now deserted by spawners. We suspect that periphyton could affect spawning success by impeding egg attachment on the river bed or rapidly recovering them before larvae can hatch. We did not find any relevant bibliography dealing with egg-periphyton interaction. Has anybody ever worked on that topic or knows of existing reports/papers on egg survival with periphyton (not only for Smelt). Any help will be appreciated. Best regards.
Guy Verreault, Fish. bio. [log in to unmask] Ministère de l'Environnement et de la Faune Service de l'Aménagement et de l'Exploitation de la Faune 506, rue Lafontaine Rivière-du-Loup, Qc, CANADA, G5R 3C4 tel: 418-862-8649 fax: 418-862-8176 e-mail: [log in to unmask]
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