Monthly Archives: April 2011

As long-term telemetry efforts continue in the Lower Missouri River, observations of repeated patterns of migration, site fidelity, and tributary use are more common.  The relative value of tributaries to the recovery of the species is as yet unknown.  Telemetered … Continue reading →

Severe weather rocked the United States the last two weeks creating tornadoes in the Southeast, thunderstorms in the Midwest, and snow in Nebraska.  This didn’t stop the field work.  In fact, the fishing seemed to improve as severe weather moved … Continue reading →

With the water warming and the pallid sturgeon about to begin spawning migrations, scientists at the USGS Columbia Environmental Research Center are finishing preparations for deploying the underwater microscope (aka “sand-cam”).  As we mentioned a couple weeks ago, the “sand-cam” … Continue reading →

A reproductive female pallid sturgeon was reeled in on a trotline near Columbia, MO on Friday, April 15. She was implanted with a telemetry transmitter and given the “name” PLS11-008.  She weighed 2.30 kg (5 lbs) and had a firm belly … Continue reading →

Female pallid sturgeon PLS07-001 was initially implanted with telemetry devices in the spring of 2007 near river mile 670, about 35 miles upstream from Omaha, NE.  Five years of her travels are shown on the graph below.  In the spring … Continue reading →

Red Buds blooming … check. Cottonwood leaves out … check. Water temperatures rising … YIKES! Past research has shown that reproductive pallid sturgeon migrate upstream when water temperatures are around 15°C (59°F) and they spawn when water temperatures are around … Continue reading →

A blood sample is collected from every fish that is implanted with a telemetry transmitter. Blood hormone analysis determines estrogen and testosterone levels indicating if the fish is male or female, and if it is reproductive.  Analyses of hundreds of such blood samples has … Continue reading →

The arrival of spring brings longer days and warmer weather, right?  Just when we were beginning to think so, another cold front came through and made us wonder.  These weather events affect water temperatures, too.  The USGS gage on the … Continue reading →

Sampling for pallid sturgeon is in full swing!  As of April 1, Comprehensive Sturgeon Research Program crews have implanted telemetry transmitters into four non-reproductive females and one reproductive male within the lower study section and one non-reproductive male in the … Continue reading →