Big Manitoba fish make a run for the border, biologists find 
By Bartley Kives CA Source: CBC News 9/29/2019
Bartley Kives
For decades, Winnipeggers have headed south to Grand Forks or Fargo, N.D., in search of a deal.

Turns out, some of our biggest fish have been doing the same thing.

Biologists working on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border have found two species of fish found in the Red River — channel catfish and the carp-like bigmouth buffalo — can travel hundreds of kilometres, sometimes swimming all the way from Winnipeg to Fargo and back, possibly in pursuit of food or the perfect place to spawn.

The long-distance travels of channel cats and bigmouth buffalo are among the findings of research aimed at illuminating what happens beneath the surface of the famously muddy water in the Red River drainage basin.
 

Since 2010, University of Nebraska-Lincoln biologist Mark Pegg and other U.S. researchers have been implanting T-shaped tags in Red River drainage-basin catfish in the hopes anglers and commercial fishers will call a 1-800 number when they discover one of the identification markers. So far, they've tagged 15,849 fish and received about 1,100 reports about their movements.

Then in 2016, Winnipeg research biologist Douglas Watkinson and his colleagues and Fisheries and Oceans Canada started implanting transmitters in seven species of fish and installed a grid of 205 receivers on the bottom of Lake Winnipeg, the Red River and some of its tributaries.

To date, Watkinson's team has tagged 786 walleye, freshwater drum, common carp, burbot, lake sturgeon, channel cats and bigmouth buffalo — and has detected their movements about 12 million times.

The scientists, who plan to present their findings Monday evening at a seminar in Winnipeg (Victoria Inn, 6:30 p.m., free admission), say they were surprised how far channel catfish and bigmouth buffalo travel along the Red River, especially considering the obstacles the fish face at the St. Andrews Lock and Dam in Lockport, Man., and a weir at Drayton, N.D.

"Buffalo are ripping back and forth all the way to Fargo," said Watkinson, co-author of the seminal Freshwater Fishes of Manitoba.

"We're not sure why, right — if it's related to feeding, maybe some exploring and just looking for potential spawning in the future? We're not even sure if they spawn every year, at this point."

 
Lake Winnipeg Buffalo, Bigmouth Continue...

News Id SourceStampcountry
1The Klamath River salmon die-off was tragicoregoncapitalchronicle2024-03-11US
2Catches of King of Fish at lowest ever EVER as Scottish salmon rates plummet by a quarter in a yearDaily Mail2024-03-15UK
3One of the rarest fish on the planet is dying in the Keyswusf2024-03-10US
4Simply Catastrophic: California Salmon Season to Be Restricted or Shut Downlostcoastoutpost2024-03-11US
5Сазаны в ледовых лункахohotniki2024-03-19RU
6Maine Fishermen Caught More Fish in 2023Associated Press2024-03-25US
7Lobsters to monitor impact of offshore mussel farmingthefishsite2024-03-21US
8MDH says to avoid eating fish from parts of the Mississippi Riverechopress2024-03-22US
9Still no smoking gun as bizarre fish behavior spreads in Florida Keyslocal102024-03-13US
10Californias salmon strategy includes tribal quest led by the Winnemem WintuCBC News2024-03-14US
11DNREC Announces Take a Kid Fishing! Spring Eventseinnews2024-03-23US
12Редчайшую рыбу-свинью выловили в Чёрном море впервые за 60 летТайны Океанов2024-03-20RU
13Scientists continue to search for whats poisoning Lower Keys fishwfit2024-03-03US
14Mekong River fish face extinction as threats mountgulfnews2024-03-03CG
15Carp Diem: targeting the perfect invasive species one fishing competition at a timetheguardian2024-03-06AU
16Teen catches aggressive creature in WA pondthenewstribune2024-03-07US
17Young Donegal fisherwoman pleads for future of family businessdonegaldaily2024-03-07IR
18Australias Great Barrier Reef, home to 1,500 species of fish, is dyingIndia Today Environment Desk2024-03-08IN
19Migratory Amazonian catfish placed on the international protection listmongabay2024-03-08US
20Tragic loss for local community as iconic koi fish pond meets mysterious end9now.nine2024-03-09AU
21Scientists use underwater speakers to encourage coral growth on degraded reefshawaiipublicradio2024-03-14US
22Ice fishing comes to a screeching halt in many areasechopress2024-03-16US
2326 people arrested for illegal elver fishing in N.S. this monthctvnews2024-03-18CA
24Alaska’s Yukon River residents say a new pact with Canada leaves them behindnewsfromthestates2024-03-18US
25Parks Canada announces watercraft and angling restrictions for Watertonlethbridgenewsnow2024-03-19CA

188 189 190 0 of [191 - pages.]