Monday, July 24, 2006

NEWS RELEASE/COMMUNIQUÉ

LARGEMOUTH BASS IN N.B. RIVER OF GRAVE CONCERN

St. Andrews…The Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF) captured a largemouth bass in the Magaguadavic River at St. George, N.B on July 11. ASF’s Vice President of Research and Environment Dr. Fred Whoriskey said, “It is the first time the species of fish has been found in Canada’s Maritime Provinces, and heightens concerns about invasive species affecting fish native to our rivers.”

‘The threat to biodiversity from the introduction of exotic species is a major problem throughout Canada,’ continued Dr. Whoriskey. “Introduction of exotics is widely regarded as the second most significant cause of biological extinctions of native species, after habitat destruction.”

Mike Best of ASF’s research team captured the exotic as he monitored the fish ladder on the Magaguadavic River for adult salmon returns, and he initially identified it. The ASF laboratory confirmed the identity of the six year-old female fish that measured 39.3 cm in length and weighed 819 g. It was transferred to New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources biologists, who will document the capture in a provincial technical report. The preserved specimen will be added to the collections of the New Brunswick Museum.

Atlantic salmon populations in rivers of the Bay of Fundy, including the Magaguadavic River, are severely depressed, and the addition of this new predator could be a further challenge to their recovery.

ASF researchers are planning additional work to determine whether the largemouth bass has established self-reproducing populations in the Magaguadavic and other nearby rivers.

Dr. Whoriskey continued, “It costs taxpayers and industry millions of dollars to mitigate the effects of introduced species. We all must do everything we possibly can to avoid the release of these exotics to the wild.”

The natural range of the largemouth bass originally included the fresh waters of the lower Great Lakes, the central part of the Mississippi River system south to the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in Florida, and north along the Atlantic coast to Virginia. However, the species is a popular sport fish and has been widely introduced beyond this initial distribution, including to the State of Maine which borders New Brunswick. (Source: Freshwater Fishes of Canada”, by W. B. Scott and E. J. Crossman)

The smallmouth bass, another exotic species, already occurs in the Magaguadavic River and elsewhere in the Maritime Provinces, due to both intentional and illegal introductions. This species’ range is expanding, and, in lakes where it has established itself, it rapidly becomes the most numerous predator and reduces the abundance and diversity of local species. “Should the largemouth bass spread,” concluded Dr. Whoriskey, “it will further increase the threat to the survival of our native species.”

The largemouth bass can live for up to 15 years, and grow to lengths of 53 cm. It occupies areas of slow flowing warm water at depths of less than 6 m. Largemouth bass that have grown to 8 cm in total length feed primarily on fishes. The habitats of the smallmouth and largemouth bass rarely overlap in places where the species co-occur, with the largemouth bass preferring muddy vegetated areas and the smallmouth bass rocky areas.

The Atlantic Salmon Federation’s research program on the Magaguadavic River is supported by New Brunswick’s Wildlife Trust Fund, and the New Brunswick Environmental Trust Fund.

The Atlantic Salmon Federation is an international, non-profit organization that promotes the conservation and wise management of wild Atlantic salmon and their environment. ASF has a network of seven regional councils (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Maine and Western New England) which have a membership of more than 140 river associations and 40,000 volunteers. The regional councils cover the freshwater range of the Atlantic salmon in Canada and the United States.

Contacts: ASF Communications: Sue Scott (506)529-1027; Muriel Ferguson (506)529-1033 Switchboard: (506)529-4581

For further information please visit the ASF Website at:

www.asf.ca/

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