Status of Sport Fishes in Round Lake, Alberta, 2004
Author(s)
Greg Fortier, Tyler Johns, and John Tchir
Summary
Increased access in the Red Earth area in the Northwest region of Alberta, resulting from the development of new roads, has raised concerns about impacts of potential increases in angling pressure on sport fish populations of lakes in the region, including Round Lake. The present study was conducted on Round Lake to generate quantitative data on abundance, population structure, and growth of four major sport fish species, walleye (Sander vitreus), northern pike (Esox lucius), lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis), and yellow perch (Perca flavescens), that can be used to assess impacts of the increased fishing pressure.
A total of 578 sport fish were captured during the survey of which walleye were the most abundant, accounting for 27.2% of the catch and yellow perch the least abundant, accounting for 10.6% of the catch; lake whitefish and northern pike constituted 23.2 and 26.6% of the total catch, respectively.
Mean (±95% CI) catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) for walleye was 6.73 ± 2.90 fish/100m2/24h (n = 13). Of the 154 walleye sampled, 59.7% were females and 40.3% were males, resulting in a female to male sex ratio of 1.48:1. Length of females ranged from 173 to 669 mm FL with a mean (±SD) of 434.2 ± 95.83 mm (n = 92) while that of males ranged from 178 to 608 mm with a mean of 432.4 ± 81.78 mm (n = 62). Males ranged in age from 2 to 22 y with a mean (±SD) of 11.7 ± 4.09 y (n = 62) while age of females ranged from 2 to 17 y with a mean of 9.8 ± 3.47 y (n = 92). Overall mean age of the catch was 10.5 ± 3.92 y (n = 156).
Mean CPUE for northern pike was 6.51 ± 2.48 fish/100m2/24h (n = 13). Of the 152 northern pike sampled, 64.5% were females and 35.5% were males, resulting in a female to male sex ratio of 1.81:1. Length of females ranged from 204 to 895 mm FL with a mean of 573.7 ± 112.38 mm (n = 98) while that of males ranged from 375 to 735 mm with a mean of 523.8 ± 76.41 (n = 54) mm. Males ranged in age from 3 to 16 y with a mean of 8.26 ± 3.06 y (n = 53) while age of females ranged from 2 to 21 y with a mean of 8.7 ± 3.25 y (n = 92). Overall mean age of the catch was 8.5 ± 3.17 y (n = 147).
Mean CPUE for lake whitefish was 5.62 ± 2.06 fish/100m2/24h (n = 13). Of the 132 lake whitefish sampled, 62.9% were females and 37.1% were males resulting in a female to male sex ratio of 1.69:1. Length of females ranged from 204 to 566 mm FL with a mean of 442.5 ± 88.09 mm (n = 83) while that of males ranged from 273 to 555 mm with a mean of 427.4 ± 77.80 mm (n = 49). Males ranged in age from 4 to 14 y with a mean of 7.9 ± 2.99 y (n = 47) while age of females ranged from 3 to 15 y with a mean of 8.6 ± 3.20 y (n = 81). Overall mean age of the catch was 8.3 ± 3.14 y (n = 130).
Mean CPUE for yellow perch was 2.55 ± 1.42 fish/100m2/24h (n = 13). Of the 52 yellow perch sampled, 80.8% were females and 19.2% were males resulting in a female to male sex ratio of 4.20:1. Length of females ranged from 123 to 249 mm FL with a mean of 158.3 ± 25.6 mm (n = 41) while that of males ranged from 118 to 167 mm with a mean of 144.3 ± 14.78 mm (n = 9). Males ranged in age from 3 to 5 y with a mean of 4.2 ± 0.63 y (n = 10) while age of females ranged from 4 to 11 y with a mean of 4.8 ± 1.56 y (n = 40). Overall mean age of the catch was 4.7 ± 1.38 y (n = 57).
The results of the present study provide important baseline information that can be used by resource managers to quantify the effects of anticipated increases in angling pressure on sport fish population in Round Lake.