Steve Chipps, Ph.D.
Steve serves as the Unit Leader of the South Dakota Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit. His research interests include feeding ecology and energetics of fishes, and he and his students are currently working on trout management in the Black Hills, and pallid sturgeon ecology in the Missouri River.
Biography
For more information about Steve, including a full publications list, visit his profile page on the South Dakota Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit web site.
Steve also can be reached at his South Dakota State University email address: steven.chipps@sdstate.edu
Education
- Ph D University of Idaho 1997
- MS West Virginia University 1992
- BS Davis & Elkins College 1989
Research Interests
Steve's research focuses primarily on the feeding ecology and bioenergetics of fishes. He and his students use quantitative tools such as energy budgets, diet analysis, stable isotopes, and foraging models to help address fisheries management questions.
Teaching Interests
Steve teaches graduate-level courses in Aquatic Trophic Ecology and Ecology of Aquatic Invertebrates at South Dakota State University.
Science and Products
Invertebrates in managed waterfowl marshes
Invertebrates are an important food for breeding, migrating, and wintering waterfowl. Sparse study has been devoted to understanding the influence of waterfowl and wetland management on production of invertebrates for waterfowl foods; however, manipulation of hydrology and soils may change or enhance production. Fish can compete with waterfowl for...
Stafford, Joshua D.; Janke, Adam K.; Webb, Elisabeth B.; Chipps, Steven R. Effect of morphological fin curl on the swimming performance and station-holding ability of juvenile shovelnose sturgeon
We assessed the effect of fin-curl on the swimming and station-holding ability of juvenile shovelnose sturgeon Scaphirhynchus platorynchus (mean fork length = 17 cm; mean weight = 16 g; n = 21) using a critical swimming speed test performed in a small swim chamber (90 L) at 20°C. We quantified fin-curl severity using the pectoral fin index....
Deslauriers, David; Johnston, Ryan; Chipps, Steven R. Influence of Didymosphenia geminata blooms on prey composition and associated diet and growth of Brown Trout
We compared diet, stomach fullness, condition, and growth of Brown Trout Salmo trutta among streams with or without blooms of the benthic diatom Didymosphenia geminata in the Black Hills, South Dakota. In Rapid Creek, where D. geminata blooms covered ∼30% of the stream bottom, Brown Trout consumed fewer ephemeropterans (6–8% by weight) than...
James, Daniel A.; Chipps, Steven R. Lethal thermal maxima for age-0 pallid and shovelnose sturgeon: Implications for shallow water habitat restoration
We evaluated temperature tolerance in age-0 pallid and shovelnose sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus and Scaphirhynchus platorynchus), two species that occur sympatrically in the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. Fish (0.04–18 g) were acclimated to water temperatures of 13, 18 or 24 °C to quantify temperatures associated with lethal thermal maxima (LTM...
Deslauriers, David; Heironimus, Laura B.; Chipps, Steven R. Potential direct and indirect effects of climate change on a shallow natural lake fish assemblage
Much uncertainty exists around how fish communities in shallow lakes will respond to climate change. In this study, we modelled the effects of increased water temperatures on consumption and growth rates of two piscivores (northern pike [Esox lucius] and largemouth bass [Micropterus salmoides]) and examined relative effects of consumption by these...
Breeggemann, Jason J.; Kaemingk, Mark A.; DeBates, T.J.; Paukert, Craig P.; Krause, J.; Letvin, Alexander P.; Stevens, Tanner M.; Willis, David W.; Chipps, Steven R. Use of phosphorus to reduce blooms of the benthic diatom Didymosphenia geminata in an oligotrophic stream
Blooms of the benthic alga, Didymosphenia geminata [Lyngbye (Schmidt)], were first documented in Rapid Creek, South Dakota, in 2002 and have since been associated with changes to aquatic resources. Low concentration of P has been associated with D. geminata stalk development (i.e., blooms), so we considered elevating P as a possible method to...
James, Daniel A.; Bothwell, Max L.; Chipps, Steven R.; Carreiro, John Influence of Smallmouth Bass predation on recruitment of age-0 Yellow Perch in South Dakota glacial lakes
We estimated the influence of predation by Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu on recruitment of age-0 Yellow Perch Perca flavescens in two northeastern South Dakota glacial lakes. We estimated a likely range in consumption of age-0 Yellow Perch using Smallmouth Bass diet information from two time periods when age-0 Yellow Perch constituted high...
Dembkowski, Daniel J.; Willis, D.W.; Blackwell, B. G.; Chipps, Steven R.; Bacula, T. D.; Wuellner, M.R. Feeding ecology and energetics: Chapter 8
No abstract available.
Barton, Bruce A.; Chipps, Steven R.; Graeb, Brian D. S. Vulnerability of age-0 pallid sturgeon Scaphirhynchus albus to predation; effects of predator type, turbidity, body size, and prey density
Predation can play an important role in the recruitment dynamics of fishes with intensity regulated by behavioral (i.e., prey selectivity) and/or environmental conditions that may be especially important for rare or endangered fishes. We conducted laboratory experiments to quantify prey selection and capture efficiency by three predators employing...
French, William E.; Graeb, Brian D. S.; Chipps, Steven R.; Klumb, Robert A. Using cumulative diet data and stable isotope analysis to determine trophic position of walleye Sander vitreus in a large, complex system
Diet studies have traditionally been used to determine prey use and food web dynamics, while stable isotope analysis provides for a time-integrated approach to evaluate food web dynamics and characterize energy flow in aquatic systems. Direct comparison of the two techniques is rare and difficult to conduct in large, species rich systems. We...
Fincel, Mark J.; James, Daniel A.; Chipps, Steven R.; Davis, Blake A. The influence of light, stream gradient, and iron on Didymosphenia geminata bloom development in the Black Hills, South Dakota
The aquatic nuisance species Didymosphenia geminata was first documented in Rapid Creek of South Dakota’s Black Hills during 2002. Since then, blooms have occurred primarily in a 39-km section of Rapid Creek while blooms were rarely observed in other Black Hills streams. In this study, we evaluated factors related to the presence and development...
James, Daniel A.; Mosel, Kyle; Chipps, Steven R. Influence of variable rainbow smelt and gizzard shad abundance on walleye diets and growth
Prey availability influences growth and condition of walleye (Sander vitreus) in large systems. In Lake Oahe, South Dakota, rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) and gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum) are primary prey of walleye, but their abundance varies substantially year to year. To evaluate the influence of gizzard shad and rainbow smelt on walleye...
Fincel, Mark J.; Dembkowski, Daniel J.; Chipps, Steven R.