Experimental data for Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) embryo hatch survival, development, and growth in four different substrate types

Bloater (Coregonus hoyi) are an extirpated deepwater fish species in Lake America (Lake Ontario). A Bloater reintroduction initiative began in 2012; however annual stocking efforts were unable to yield a self-sustaining population in Lake America. Unsuitable spawning habitat was hypothesized as a potential impediment to natural reproduction, due to observations of Dreissenid mussel biofouling and silt build-up on rock reefs that were historically used as Bloater spawning habitat. We tested if the accumulation of invasive Dreissenid mussel and silt on rock reefs deters Bloater embryo development. Bloater embryos were incubated in tanks containing rock, Dreissenid mussel hash, silt or control (no substrate) to compare hatch survival, development and growth. This dataset contains the hatch success rate, larval sensory development (neuromast cell counts), and larval size at hatch of Bloater embryos incubated on different substrate types.