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Winter migratory pattern for anadromous white-spotted char (Salvelinus leucomaenis) in southwestern Hokkaido, Japan

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Abstract

Anadromous chars are iteroparous and have complex migratory patterns, with multiple annual descents and ascents between seawater and freshwater. Winter habitat use, whether in the sea or rivers, varies among regions and individuals, and it is necessary to understand these patterns to examine the environmental responses of anadromous chars. We investigated the winter migratory patterns of sea-wintering anadromous white-spotted char in southwestern Hokkaido, Japan, using three different methods: (1) bio-logging for continuous fish behavior record, (2) fish-count observations in the field, and (3) a questionnaire survey for recreational anglers catch. Experimental fish were tagged with micro bio-logger and released in the sea. They showed seasonal behavioral changes, and multiple habitat shifts were estimated: ascending in February, descending in April, ascending in June, and descending in October. Fish counts in the sea and rivers showed that fish were frequently observed in the sea, and occasionally in the river on the same day. The questionnaire survey results indicated that anglers universally caught individuals during all the winter months. Continuous long-term behavioral observations across seasons suggest a new migratory pattern of white-spotted char ascending upstream in February, and combining these results suggests alternative migratory patterns between the sea and the river in winter.

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Data availability

If requested, recorded data from tagged anadromous white-spotted char can be provided by the corresponding author.

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Acknowledgements

We thank S. Tanaka and K. Akizuki for the recapturing reports, H. Kudo, K. Obara, Dr. T. Yoshiyama, and all the marvelous fishermen of Shimamaki for their advice, fish collection, and help with the questionnaire survey. We thank Y. Oku of Shimamaki Village Office, Y. Dosaka, chairman of the Executive Committee of the Amemasu Derby in Shimamaki, and everyone who participated in the management of the venerable competition. We deeply thank T. Horanai for providing river water temperature data. We sincerely thank Drs. K. Morita, K. Honda, T. Sato, T. Abe, H. Shirakawa, M. Tomiyasu, Mika Kuroda, M. Nakaoka, Y. Mitani, J. Yamamoto, and all members of the Laboratory of Marine Ecosystem Change Analysis, who gave us the opportunity to conduct these surveys and provided invaluable and critical comments during this study. The authors are grateful to two anonymous reviewers and editors. We would like to thank Editage (www.editage.com) for English language editing.

Funding

This work was partially funded by Hokkaido University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, 20-5 Benten-cho, Hakodate, Hokkaido, 040−0051, Japan

    Mitsuki Kuroda

  2. Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, 20-5 Benten-cho, Hakodate, Hokkaido, 040−0051, Japan

    Kazushi Miyashita

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  1. Mitsuki Kuroda
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Contributions

MK conceptualized the study and curated and analyzed the data.

MK and KM wrote manuscript.

All authors contributed critically to the drafts and gave final approval for publication.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mitsuki Kuroda.

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Ethics approval and consent to participate

The care and use of fish in this study complied with Japanese animal welfare laws and regulations on animal experiments, as stated by Hokkaido University. To conduct a questionnaire survey of recreational anglers, we received their consent to use their responses for scientific research.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Kuroda, M., Miyashita, K. Winter migratory pattern for anadromous white-spotted char (Salvelinus leucomaenis) in southwestern Hokkaido, Japan. Environ Biol Fish 105, 1845–1855 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-022-01224-w

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