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Fully Equipped to Succeed: Migratory Contingents Seen as an Intrinsic Potential for Striped Bass to Exploit a Heterogeneous Environment Early in Life

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Abstract

Migratory contingents, groups of individuals belonging to the same population that adopt different migratory patterns, have been identified in numerous Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis) populations along North American East Coast. We tested the hypothesis that migratory contingents may develop early in life to maximize the exploitation of the variety of habitats faced by a recently introduced fish population. Using the discriminatory power provided by otolith chemistry, we studied early-life history stages of Striped Bass in a recently reintroduced population in the St. Lawrence Estuary. Migratory patterns were inferred using multivariate analysis of four otolith trace elements (Sr, Ba, Mn, and Mg) on juveniles (0+ and 1+). Three migratory contingents were identified during early-life history stages: freshwater residents, oligohaline migrants, and mesohaline migrants. This study demonstrates the rapid establishment, in less than 10 years since initial stocking, of three migratory contingents initiated early in life among the St. Lawrence Striped Bass population. We postulate that diversification provided by the establishment of distinct migratory contingents among early-life history stages promotes the rapid colonization of new environments through the exploration and exploitation of an increased number of nursery habitats.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Anne-Marie Pelletier, Kim Belzile, Patrick Gagnon, and Annie Marquis from Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs for sampling of Striped Bass in the St. Lawrence River. We also thank Dany Savard, Angélique Lazartigues, Sadia Mehdi, and Anne-Lise Fortin from the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi for the lab work. Comments and suggestions from Julian J. Dodson and Laure Devine for language revision of a manuscript’s earlier version are also acknowledged.

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  1. Chaire de Recherche sur les Espèces Aquatiques Exploitées, Laboratoire des Sciences Aquatiques, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, 555 de l’Université, Chicoutimi, QC, G7H 2B1, Canada

    Olivier Morissette, Frédéric Lecomte & Pascal Sirois

  2. Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs – Direction de la Faune Aquatique, 880 Chemin Ste-Foy, Québec, QC, G1S 4X4, Canada

    Frédéric Lecomte & Michel Legault

  3. Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs – Direction Régionale du Bas Saint-Laurent, 186 rue Fraser, Rivière-du-Loup, QC, G5R 1C8, Canada

    Guy Verreault

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  1. Olivier Morissette
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  2. Frédéric Lecomte
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  3. Guy Verreault
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  4. Michel Legault
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Correspondence to Olivier Morissette.

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Communicated by Lawrence P. Rozas

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Morissette, O., Lecomte, F., Verreault, G. et al. Fully Equipped to Succeed: Migratory Contingents Seen as an Intrinsic Potential for Striped Bass to Exploit a Heterogeneous Environment Early in Life. Estuaries and Coasts 39, 571–582 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-015-0015-7

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