June 2016 Announcements
Disseminating MAISRC research findings
MAISRC researcher Nate Banet recently presented at the Washington – British Columbia American Fisheries Society's annual meeting. His talk, "Migration and Homing of an Invasive, Freshwater Fish: Identifying Integrated Pest Management Strategies for Common Carp in Interconnected Systems" included the latest updates on his thesis research. Banet's research is showing that understanding annual migration patterns of common carp can assist in guiding control strategies not only in Minnesota but also in other regions like the Northwest.
This June, MAISRC postdoctoral research associate Adam Kokotovich presented an update on his team's Asian Carp risk assessment to the St. Croix River Association's aquatic invasive species group. The risk assessment identified a list of potential adverse effects that could result from the establishment of Asian carp in Minnesota as well as the primary tensions and conflicts in Asian carp management. You can read a working paper, Exploring tensions and conflicts in invasive species management: The case of Asian carp, here.
MAISRC researchers Nick Phelps, Luis Escobar, and Megan Tomamichel presented in June at the American Fisheries Society's Fish Health annual meeting. Phelps presented on novel invasive viruses in baitfish, Escobar on the potential distribution of Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia virus, and Tomamichel on Heterosporis.
New paper published on masculinizing fish
MAISRC researchers Dr. Ratna Ghosal and Dr. Peter Sorensen recently published a new paper on masculinizing goldish, a relative of carp. Many fish are capable of exhibiting either male or female behavior if exposed to appropriate hormones at the right time. Ghosal and Sorensen researched whether goldfish can be masculinized with 100% effectiveness for use as a Judas fish and found that they cannot. They are now exploring feminizing as an alternative method.
You can read the paper, Male-typical courtship, spawning behavior, and olfactory sensitivity are induced to different extents by androgens in the goldfish suggesting they are controlled by different neuroendocrine mechanisms, online here.
MAISRC welcomes new researchers
MAISRC is pleased to welcome several new researchers to our team:
Donn Branstrator, associate professor with the University of Minnesota – Duluth, and Euan Reavie, senior research associate with the University of Minnesota – Duluth, working together to characterize the long-term ecosystem impacts of spiny waterflea
Jim Luoma, a research fisheries biologist with the USGS, evaluating zebra mussel control options
Jean Finger is a Postdoctoral Research Associate working with the Sorensen team on testing the effects of sound barriers on native fish and common carp, and will be validating the Sorensen team's lock and dam fish passage model using real data.
Hannah Dunn is a junior scientist working with Dr. Michael Sadowsky on characterizing the microbial communities associated with aquatic invasive species using metagenomic approaches.
Andrew Riesgraf is a researcher working with the Sorensen team researching fish movement around lock and dam 2 in Hastings, in order to learn more about properly deploying control technologies.
TJ Ostendorf is a researcher in the Newman lab assessing the relationship between milfoil weevils and sunfish populations in order to increase the herbivore's potential to control Eurasian watermilfoil.
Connor Erickson is a graduate student in the Sorensen lab, researching pheromones, spawning attraction, and aggregation in carps in order to increase the efficacy of the Judas fish technique.
