2021 Volume 5, Issue 23
NWT Cumulative Genetic Assessment of Inconnu Impact Monitoring in Great Slave Lake, NWT Program (NWT CIMP)
A source of environmental Inconnu (coney or sheefish) populations are declining or no longer spawn monitoring and research in some rivers flowing into Great Slave Lake. By analyzing genetic samples in the NWT. The program from finclips, it was confirmed that Inconnu caught in the Great Slave Lake coordinates, conducts and commercial fishery were from distinct populations from the Buffalo, Slave or funds the collection, analysis Marian rivers. This information supports the risk assessment and development and reporting of information Why is this research important? related to environmental of fisheries management plans to ensure the sustainability of Inconnu stocks. conditions in the NWT.
It is thought that different Inconnu populations may spawn in different rivers NWT Environmental flowing into Great Slave Lake. Using genetic samples, we can identify how related Research Bulletin the Inconnu populations (NERB) are, determine what rivers are used, and A series of brief plain understand the language summaries of harvest of the different various environmental populations in the research findings in the commercial fishery. The Northwest Territories. results will contribute If you’re conducting to sustainable environmental research in the NWT, consider sharing management decisions your information with for the fishery in Great northern residents in a Slave Lake, such as bulletin. These research upcoming plans by summaries are also of use Department of Fisheries to northern resource and Oceans Canada to decision-makers. conduct a review of the Inconnu genetic information and stock composition.
Figure 1: Sampling locations. Each colour represents a genetically different population of Inconnu sampled. Representative samples were not obtained from Yellowknife Bay or the Yates and Taltson Rivers. Genetic Assessment of Inconnu in Great Slave Lake, NWT 2021 Volume 5, Issue 23
What did we do? What’s next? •
Information about Inconnu spawning locations, behavior, and movement Research will continue to better in the Buffalo River were gathered by conducting interviews with elders understand the genetic diversity of and land-users from the K’atl’odeeche First Nation. Samples were taken • Inconnu within the Buffalo River from locations in Yellowknife Bay and Buffalo, Yates, Slave, Taltson and system and Great Slave Lake. Marian rivers, in consultation with the local communities, fishermen and Sampling will be expanded to other information gathered from traditional studies. Genetic samples, including river systems flowing into Great archived samples from the lower Mackenzie River, were collected and Slave Lake to identify additional analyzed to see how genetically different Inconnu populations are within populations and how they may GreatWhat Slave did weLake. find? contribute to the Great Slave Lake • commercial fishery. Genetic populations • Inconnu sampled in the Marian, Slave and Mackenzie rivers were Genetic populations are genetically distinct. populations of specific organisms that share an amount of unique • The greatest genetic difference between populations was observed between Marian Lake and Slave River samples. genes. For example, Inconnu There may be two or more Inconnu populations that use the mouth of from the Marian or Slave rivers are examples of unique genetic the Buffalo River. What does this mean? populations. •
• There are different Inconnu populations in Great Slave Lake that use different rivers for spawning. • Using genetic samples we can understand which populations contribute to the Great Slave Lake commercial fishery, and in what proportion. There is ongoing research to identify the proportion of Inconnu from each river that is caught in the Great Slave Lake commercial fishery. The Recommended Reading identification of the genetic populations is the first step to informing fisheries management decisions. Day, A.C., VanGerwen-ToyneStenodus leucichthys M., Tallman, R.F., 2013. Figure 2: Peter Sabourin (K’atl’odeeche First A risk-based decision-making framework for Buffalo Nation) and Lauren Wiens (Fisheries and River Inconnu ( ) that incorporates Oceans Canada) sampling Inconnu at the the Precautionary Approach. DFO Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Res. Doc. 2012/070. iv + 13 p. mouth of Buffalo River (Photo credit: Darren Bugghins; K’atl’odeeche First Nation). VanGerwen-Toyne, M., Day, C., Taptuna, F.,Stenodus Leonard, D., Frame,leucichthys S., Tallman, R., 2013. Information in support of assessment of Buffalo River Inconnu, ( ), Great Slave Lake, Northwest Territories, 1945-2009. DFO Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Res. Doc. Inconnu2012/069. (Stenodus vii +81p. leucichthys Wiens, L. 2018. Population genetic assessment of ) in the Northwest Territories. MSc Thesis, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB. 119p. https://mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca/ Contactsxmlui/handle/1993/33680 Lauren Wiens [email protected] NWT Cumulative Impact Monitoring Program (CIMP196) [email protected]
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