Theses and Dissertations
Issuing Body
Mississippi State University
Advisor
Schramm, Harold L., Jr.
Committee Member
Belant, Jerrold L.
Committee Member
Allen, Peter J.
Date of Degree
8-14-2015
Document Type
Graduate Thesis - Open Access
Major
Wildlife and Fisheries Science
Degree Name
Master of Science (M.S.)
College
College of Forest Resources
Department
Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture
Abstract
The pallid sturgeon Scaphirhynchus albus is an endangered sturgeon distributed throughout the Mississippi River drainage. Habitat selection and movement have been identified as critical conservation information. Seventy-one pallid sturgeon were tagged with acoustic transmitters in the lower Mississippi River (LMR), and 53 sturgeon were tagged in the Atchafalaya River System (ARS). Twenty-two pallid sturgeon in the LMR and 30 in the ARS were monitored using stationary acoustic receivers to assess short-term movement. Pallid sturgeon in the LMR showed positive selection for island tip, outside-bend natural bank, wing dike, sandbar, outside-bend revetted bank, and secondary channel habitats. Pallid sturgeon in the ARS exhibited positive selection for both inside and outside-bend revetted banks, inside-bend natural banks, and water control structures. Fish selected against the main channel in both systems. Short-term movement in the LMR and ARS was minimal and not related to any of the tested environmental factors.
URI
https://hdl.handle.net/11668/21128
Recommended Citation
Herrala, Jason Richard, "Habitat Selection and Short-Term Movements of Pallid Sturgeon in the Lower Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers" (2015). Theses and Dissertations. 2462.
https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/td/2462