EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE ON STREAM FISH ENERGETICS AND TOLERANCE TO

INCREASING URBANIZATION Marylou Moore

Thesis Masters of Science in Integrative Biology (MSIB)

Department of Biology and Physics

Committee Chair: Dr. Scott Reese

Committee Members: Dr. Bill Ensign, Dr. Lisa Ganser, and Dr. Thomas McElroy

Urbanization: A Brief Overview

US Census Bureau identifies1

Urban Areas (UAs) ˃50,000 people

Urban Clusters (UCs) ˃ 2,500 but ˂50,000 people

Population density ≥ 1,000 people / sq mile

Increasing human population living in urban areas In US, 81% or people live in UAs or UCs 2/3 people worldwide by 20502

Impervious Surface Cover (ISC)

Consistent and prevalent product of urbanization3

Buildings, roads, and parking lots account for 80% ISC4

Surfaces can be up to 50 °C warmer than air5

As little as 0.1 in rainfall shown to generate significant volumes of runoff6

% ISC has become an accurate predictor of urban impacts on streams7

10-20% ISC frequently associated with stream degradation

The Urban Stream Syndrome

Summarizes stream degradation in urban streams8

A flashier hydrograph Altered channel stability and morphology Increased heat retention and temperature surges Reduced biotic richness

The Urban Stream Syndrome: Flow Alterations

The Urban Stream Syndrome: Riparian / Channel Alteration

From Paul & Meyer, 20013

Urban Stream Syndrome: Thermal Impacts

Urbanization alters river and stream temperatures9

Chemical and biological characteristics affected by stream temperature dissolved O2 with temperature

Stream temperatures due to Loss of riparian shading Heated runoff from warm impervious surfaces Widened stream channels – shallower water depths

The Urban Stream Syndrome Thermal Impacts

From Nelson & Palmer, 200710

Tricolor Shiner

Freckled Madtom

Etowah Darter

Bronze Darter

Tricolor Shiner Speckled Madtom

Etowah Darter Bronze Darter

The Urban Stream Syndrome: Reduced Biotic Richness

From Wenger, et al, 200811

Problem Statement

Urbanization causes changes in ecosystem structure and function

Fish assemblages respond to a gradient of urbanization

Intraspecific mechanisms unknown

Influence of Temperature on Fish Energetics

Abiotic master factor for fishes12

Obligate poikilotherms Metabolic rate Quantitative measure of how fast energy & O2 are

being converted/used Metabolic scope Energetic potential to fuel all activities as temperature 13

Varies across species and populations

Research Objectives

Evaluate metabolic capacity Fish drawn from urban and non-urban streams Measure SMR and MMR at 20 and 25 °C Calculate Q10

Hypotheses/predictions Fish collected from urban site expected to:

demonstrate greater thermal tolerance through lower Q10

exhibit a greater metabolic scope

Etowah River System, Georgia

Begins in the Blue Ridge mountains of Northern GA Hotspot of stream diversity and endemism Considered “high priority” for preservation &

restoration14

Etowah Study Sites

Noonday creek Urban site ~ 10 km NW of

Atlanta, GA 26.3% ISC

Raccoon Creek Non-urban site ~ 30 km W of

Noonday 0.69% ISC

Study Sites: Land Use

Etowah Study Sites Noonday Creek Raccoon Creek

Study Sites

17

19

21

23

25

27

29

Tem

pera

ture

(°C

)

Date

Raccoon Creek Noonday Creek

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

May June July August

Aver

age

Mon

thly

Tem

pera

ture

(°C

)

Raccoon Creek Noonday Creek

Redbreast Sunfish

Lepomis auritus Member of the Centrarchid family Widely distributed and tolerant15

Significant game fish May tolerate temperatures

up to 35 °C16

No known metabolic data reported for the species

Redbreast Sunfish Range

Native Introduced

Specimen Collection & Holding

Collected via a backpack electroshocker

Each fish injected with a subcutaneous latex identifier

Photoperiod controlled 12L: 12D

Fed frozen bloodworms daily

Temperature acclimation temperature by 1 °C per day held at that temp (± 1 °C) an additional 2 weeks

Measurements of Metabolic Rate

Indirect calorimetry

Standard metabolic rate (SMR)

Maximum or active metabolic rate (MMR) Metabolic scope (MS) MMR – SMR

Temperature coefficient (Q10)

Statistical Analyses

Analyses performed in SPSS

All data normalized through log-transformation

Multivariate Analyses of Covariance (MANCOVA) were run with: Dependent variables: SMR & MMR Independent variables: collection site & temp Covariate: body mass

y = 0.8307x - 0.5657 R² = 0.9313

y = 0.8586x - 0.4288 R² = 0.9343

-0.4

0.0

0.4

0.8

1.2

0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

SMR

MMR

y = 0.6825x - 0.5621 R² = 0.8499

y = 0.7871x - 0.4357 R² = 0.9117

-0.4

0.0

0.4

0.8

1.2

0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

SMR

MMR

20 °C 25 °C

Results: Noonday Creek

y = 0.7974x - 0.4674 R² = 0.9082

y = 0.7563x - 0.3222 R² = 0.8916

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

0.2 0.6 1.0 1.4

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

SMR

MMR

y = 0.7524x - 0.5459 R² = 0.8259

y = 0.7157x - 0.3422 R² = 0.7739

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

0.2 0.6 1.0 1.4

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

SMR

MMR

Results: Raccoon Creek 20 °C 25 °C

y = 0.6825x - 0.5621 R² = 0.8499

y = 0.7871x - 0.4357 R² = 0.9117

-0.4

0.0

0.4

0.8

1.2

0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

Noonday

Raccoon

y = 0.8307x - 0.5657 R² = 0.9313

y = 0.7974x - 0.4674 R² = 0.9082

-0.4

0.0

0.4

0.8

1.2

0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

Noonday

Raccoon

*p = 0.022

Results: SMR 25 °C 20 °C

*p = 0.018

y = 0.8586x - 0.4288 R² = 0.9343

y = 0.7563x – 0.3222

R² = 0.8916

-0.4

-0.2

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

0.2 0.6 1.0 1.4

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

Noonday

Raccoon

y = 0.7871x - 0.4357 R² = 0.9117

y = 0.7157x - 0.3422 R² = 0.7739

-0.4

0.0

0.4

0.8

1.2

0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0

Oxy

gen

Cons

umpt

ion

Rate

(m

g O

2 h

-1)

Body Mass (g)

Noonday

Raccoon

Results: MMR

20 °C 25 °C

Results: Metabolic Scope

*p = 0.043

Summary of Research Findings

Intraspecific metabolic differences detected Noonday – lower SMR at 20 and 25 °C

Difference in MMR in fish collected from urban stream between temperatures

Q10 values similar for Noonday and Raccoon, with Noonday showing slightly lower values

Collection Site Standard Maximum Noonday 2.05 1.47 Raccoon 2.10 1.58

Q10 Values

Discussion

Other studies have found metabolic differences in both intra- and interspecific populations17-18

Local adaptation possible in L. auritus from Noonday

High thermal variation may select for individuals that are able to maintain metabolic activity despite largescale variation

L. auritus may have greater ability to adjust thermal tolerance than other species in urban streams

Relatively small sample sizes Inconsistent range of body sizes between groups

Discussion

Collection Site Temp (°C) n Body Mass Range (g)

Noonday Creek 20 17 1.76 - 74.2 Raccoon Creek 20 18 2.73 - 26.98 Noonday Creek 25 17 1.89 - 72.5 Raccoon Creek 25 16 2.44 - 15.1

Future Directions

Critical thermal max measurements Temperature preference studies Metabolic measurements of less tolerant species

that still exists across the urban gradient Scope expected to be higher in abundant species

Integration of physiology and ecological genomics mRNA levels show rapid response to temperature

change19-21

Evaluate transcription-level expression of genes involved in plasticity

Management Implications

Freshwater fishes experiencing rapid rates of extinction 39% imperiled to some degree in US22

Species-level responses to urbanization will be

essential to develop conservation strategies

Integration of physiological indices into management implications

Acknowledgements

KSU College of Science & Mathematics, Department of Biology & Physics

My advisor Dr. Scott Reese

My committee members Dr. Bill Ensign, Dr. Lisa Ganser, and Dr. Thomas McElroy

Dr. Dirnberger

Undergraduate assistants Joseph, Nancy, and Phillip

Fellow graduate students

Nanette Reese

Dr. Davis, Dr. Golubski, Dr. Hudson, Dr. Jackson, Dr. McGarey, Dr. McNeal, Dr. Mutchler, Dr. Nowak, and Dr. Taglialatela

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