James H. Selgeby
Timothy J. Desorcie
John R. P. French III
Thomas A. Edsall
1993
<p><span>The ruffe (</span><i>Gymnocephalus cernuus</i><span>) was accidentally introduced into the Great Lakes basin from Eurasia and has established a breeding population in the St. Louis River, a major tributary to western Lake Superior. We captured young-of-the-year ruffe in the St. Louis River; acclimated groups of 90-91 fish to test temperatures of 7, 10, 15, 20, and 25°C; and fed them ad libitum for 42 days at those temperatures. Ruffe grew at all five temperatures, but the optimum temperature for growth was about 21°C. Because the optimum temperature for growth of walleye (</span><i>Stizostedion vitreum</i><span>), sauger (</span><i>Stizoste-dion canadense</i><span>), and yellow perch (</span><i>Perca flavescens</i><span>) is about 22°C, ruffe will probably attempt to share their thermal habitat. A recent survey of the St. Louis River revealed that yellow perch and small forage fish declined sharply as ruffe abundance increased. A similar decline in yellow perch abundance in Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Erie would seriously affect the fisheries in these lakes.</span></p>
application/pdf
10.1016/S0380-1330(93)71247-2
en
Elsevier
Growth-temperature relation for young-of-the-year ruffe
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