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Research Need: Diet overlap between lesser scaup and native South Dakota fishes: To what extent do they exist?

The continental lesser scaup (Atythya affinis) population has been decreasing at a rate of about 3% per year. Lesser scaup use eastern South Dakota as a stopover during spring migration where increased water levels in the last 10 years have resulted in increased fish productivity in

wetlands. Little is known about diet overlap between fishes and migrating lesser scaup. During the 2004 spring migration, lesser scaup and fishes were sampled from Highway 81/Twin Lakes (Kingsbury County, South Dakota). Diet items of lesser scaup and fishes were identified, counted and measured for dry weight to determine diet overlap using Horn’s index. Diet analysis showed that Hyalella spp. (21%, see figure), planorbid snails (18%) and fish (14%) were the dominant prey of scaup. For black bullhead the predominant prey types were: fish (29%), Hyalella spp. (24%), and crayfish (21%). Fathead minnows, a species that is thought to be a potential competitor with waterfowl, showed the least diet overlap with lesser scaup. Fathead minnow diets where composed mainly of Daphnia spp. (93%). Black bullhead have the greatest diet overlap with lesser scaup during the spring migration period (Table 1). Expanded fish habitat due to increased water levels, combined with the observation that black bullhead are often the most abundant fish species in eastern South Dakota, may have important implications for prey availability for migrating lesser scaup.

Species	bullhead	pike	perch	walleye	fathead
Index Diet Overlap	0.5	0.4	0.3	0.3	0.008

This Research Highlight is about the 39 Coop Units in the National Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program in the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS). Our 2004 Annual Report is online (https://www.coopunits.org/). The report includes many details about the Coop Unit Program and selected results of Unit science on contemporary topics (exotic species, ecological modeling, endangered species, fish and wildlife management, contaminants, and disease). Last month the South Dakota Unit staff attended a meeting of all Coop Units that is held every three years (see attached one page summary). The Unit Program is a “historic program” (70 years), a line item in the federal budget (PL 86-686), and an important part of the USGS because of our links to university and state agencies, as we heard from USGS Director Chip Groat and other national leaders in the fish and wildlife field. Much of the meeting was about Federal Science and new requirements and obligations for Federal Scientists to conduct “sound science.” After a two day science discussion, we learned the administrative “facts of life” from folks at our “headshed” in Reston, Virginia. We even got grades for performance. The South Dakota Unit came out “okay” (see attached for our “grades”). You can keep up with the South Dakota Unit’s activities at the South Dakota State University (SDSU) Department of Wildlife and Fishery Sciences website (http://wfs.sdstate.edu/).

Research Need: Four of the gravest threats.

Research Highlight: The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) teamed up (Future Challenges Project) to diagnose the gravest threats to America’s wildlife and ecosystems. The agencies chose four issues: climate variability (sometimes called climate change), invasive species (stop, reduce, predict impacts), water resources (will there be enough clean?), and biotechnology (genetically modified organisms [GMOs]). The Coop Unit has made research contributions to each area.

Future Challenges	South Dakota Unit Research Contributions
Invasive species	Exotic plant species comprised 12-15% of the flora of sandhills vegetation (Higgins). Bio-control of Canada thistle (Higgins). Exotic fish species make up 15% of the mainstem Missouri River fish assemblage, less in tributaries (but Asian carp are in the lower James and Big Sioux rivers) (Berry). Mosquitoes and West Nile Virus (Chipps/Dr. Darrell E. Napton, Geography, SDSU).
Climate variability	Wetland response to climate variability; developed models to predict how prairie potholes will respond to various climate variability scenarios (Dr. W. Carter Johnson, Horticulture, SDSU). River temperature studies (White River) of warning for East-West prairie streams (Berry).
Water quantity and quality	Water quality in Bureau of Reclamation reservoirs (Chipps). Wetland inventory and atlas for South Dakota (Higgins). Dugouts for livestock watering; mitigation wetlands for municipal supply (Berry).
Bio-technology	Data on how GMOs changed cropping practices (Higgins). Alfalfa genetic selection; sweet clover for wildlife nesting and livestock crops (Higgins). Switch grass as a biofuel (Higgins).

Workshop on Bird Capture, Banding, Marking Techniques, and Strayed/Nuisance Mammal Capture/Removal to be held August 17-19, 2005, Brookings Inn, Brookings, South Dakota.

Research Highlight: Wetlands in the Great Plains play a major role in regional hydrology (aquifer recharge, flood control), land use (agroecosystems), economics (tourism), and maintenance of biodiversity. The wetlands are strongly affected by climatic variability. Most of the warming in the prairie pothole region is attributed to greater increases in minimum temperatures. The project objectives were to determine how wetlands would change if climate changes. Wetland models were developed to make predictions for wetlands in grasslands, croplands, and haylands at climate scenarios of 2C and 4C increases in temperature and 10% and 20% increases and decreases in precipitation. Key conclusions were:

Research Accomplishment: The Third Proceedings held last April was attended by 75 biologists from 18 states and 3 Canadian provinces. There were presentations on species recovery, current population trends, conservation efforts, wintering issues, habitat management, and future concerns. Plovers were reported nesting on inland and coastal sandbars, managed nesting sites, created river sandbars (e.g., Kansas, Platte, Missouri), reservoir beaches (e.g., Lake McConaughy), and also on unusual sites such as oil well pads, disposal piles of fly ash, sewage sludge, and dredge material, sand and gravel pits, lignite mine tailings, and warehouse roofs (shown in picture). Coop Unit Research Associate B. VanderLee tested the hypothesis that success in nesting, brood rearing, and foraging was positively related to Missouri River sandbar habitat complexity, defined as shoreline increase per unit area and shallow water depth diversity. VanderLee concluded that the birds show little selection for habitat based on complexity, choosing instead the largest islands available. Many other interesting findings are presented in the 35 technical presentations. With the printing of this Third Symposium, Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Kenneth F. Higgins has completed a trilogy of plover/tern symposia (1993, 1999, 2004). The set is available from the Coop Unit.

Research Accomplishment: The final report on aquatic gap analysis for the Upper Missouri River Basin fishes was completed this month. Gap analysis (see definition below) for mammals and birds and fish in South Dakota was completed in 2002. (Available as CDs from Dr. Jenks, South Dakota State University (SDSU). See also wfs.sdstate.edu/sdgap/sdgap.htm.) Two major objectives of the Upper Missouri River Basin project were to define the ranges for all fish species by 11-digit hydrological unit (HUC) and determine protection offered each species, with a focus on rare fishes. The database included 7,893 fish collection sites that were linked with enduring features of the landscape (e.g., geomorphology and hydrology). Most (97%) of the rare fishes had at least some portion of their range in public lands. Sixty-nine percent of the rare fish were in river reaches where there was permanent management plans to maintain a natural state. Some 248 watersheds (11 digit HUCs) covering about 17% of the Upper Missouri River Basin were recommended for conservation. The report was submitted to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gap Analysis Office for review and is not available for release at this time. Mr. Steve Wall and Vicki Smith were the main researchers and principal writers of the report. Dr. Jenks and Unit Leader Dr. Charles R. Berry, Jr., were also involved. Two students under Berry’s supervision tested fish distribution models that predicted fish distribution. Generally models performed better than chance and performed as well as other broad-scale modeling efforts. Our fish distribution models are one of the first attempts to model distributions on such a large geographic scale and are useful as a coarse filter to identify potential fish distributions and provide managers with some indication of conservation potential at a broad scale.

Definition: Gap analysis is a decision support tool developed by the USGS to determine the gaps between two important habitats – 1) habitat used by a species and 2) habitat under long-term conservation. When the two habitats do not overlap, there is a “gap” in protection. The short term goal of the nationwide USGS project is to find gaps; the long term goal is to keep “common species common” and conserve rare species. The long-term goal is in the hands of many private groups and agencies as they decide where to place habitat improvements, easements, and land acquisition.

What a variety of capture methods were presented at the recent Workshop! The 85 attendees had hands-on experience with shooting dart guns, cannon nets, and hand-held net guns, using mist nets for song birds and bats, and trapping with baited, walk in traps. The Workshop opened with the attention grabbing accounts of capture efforts that went wrong. Attendees heard advice on who to contact and managing the media. Capture techniques were presented for beavers, moose, large cats, ungulates, shorebirds, ospreys and eagles, grouse, ducks, curlews, starlings and sparrows, and cranes. Dr. Jon Jenks and students demonstrated immobilization of white-tailed deer at the South Dakota State University (SDSU) deer pens. Satellite telemetry and radio telemetry were topics of most speakers after the animals were captured. The Workshop was arranged by Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Kenneth F. Higgins and SDSU colleagues Spencer Vaa, Dr. Jon Jenks, and Dr. K.C. Jensen. The 65-page Proceedings is available from the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences ($5, SDSU, Box 2140B, Brookings, SD).

Notice: The annual meeting of the South Dakota Coop Unit’s Coordinating Committee is scheduled for October 12, 2005, on the SDSU campus. Representatives from Federal and State agencies that support Unit research also attend. Contact Unit Leader Dr. Charles R. Berry Jr. (charles.berry@sdstate.edu) for details.

Notice: A workshop entitled “Methods for Investigation of Fish and Mussel Kills” will be held in Brookings, South Dakota on November 2, 2005, and is being instructed by Rob Southwick and Wayne Davis (Kentucky Division of Wildlife); contact Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Steven R. Chipps (steven.chipps@sdstate.edu) for details.

Two significant publications on rivers have recently been published and both include chapters co-authored by Coop Unit Leader Dr. Charles R. Berry Jr. and a group of fishery biologists from throughout the Missouri River Basin. Students from the South Dakota Unit and from a consortium of Coop Units (Montana, Idaho, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri) collected information on fish and fish habitat in 15 segments of the 2,400-mile long Missouri River in the late 1990s. The study was known as the Benthic Fishes Study and final reports are available on the Corps of Engineers website http://www.nwo.usace.army.mil//html/pd-e/benthic_fish/benthic_fish.htm. Lead by Dr. Dave Galat (Missouri Coop Unit), the group of researchers has now published about 20 papers in refereed scientific journals and synthesis information about Missouri River fishes in two book chapters. Most recent is the book from the American Fisheries Society titled Historical Changes in Large River Fish Assemblages of the Americas. The key component of the Missouri River fish chapter (titled “Spatiotemporal Patterns and Changes in Missouri River Fishes”) is a large table listing fishes of the Missouri River and categorizing each species by location (ecoregion, drainage unit, physiographic province), and categorizing each species by habitat use guild, habitat distribution, global conservation status, and population status. There are also chapters on The Red River of the North and the Platte River, which have headwaters in South Dakota. In the second book titled Rivers of North America (Elsevier Publishers) the authors do not limit discussion to fish or the main stem in Chapter 10 titled “Missouri River Basin.” Here is also information on the Yellowstone, White, Platte, Gasconade rivers and one-page fact sheets on other rivers in the basin (e.g., Big Sioux and Cheyenne rivers in South Dakota). For each basin, information is presented on physiography and climate, river geomorphology, water chemistry, biodiversity, ecology, and human impacts.

The Unit’s Coordinating Committee met on October 12 for the annual research coordination and review of the Unit program. Following is the summary of the Unit’s Annual Report (contact Unit Leader Dr. Charles R. Berry Jr. for copies of the Annual Report).

The Unit staff supervised 22 projects on northern prairie habitats and biota and completed eight projects in FY 2005. The Unit produced 12 peer-reviewed publications, two popular publications, one newsletter, three proceedings, 30 scientific presentations, and eight technical reports. Fifteen graduate students (11 M.S. and four Ph.D.) were supervised by Unit personnel; five students graduated. Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Kenneth F. Higgins was recognized by the Department of Interior (DOI) for 40 years of service as a federal wildlife biologist. He completed a six year term on the National Board of Directors of Pheasants Forever. Dr. Berry was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS). Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Steven R. Chipps is Chairman of the Continuing Education Committee of the Dakota Chapter and North Central Division of the American Fisheries Society (AFS), Editor of the Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science (SDAS), and Secretary-Treasurer of the Education Section of the AFS. Unit staff participated in workshops or symposia on fire and wildlife management, plovers and terns, aquatic pesticide application, and nuisance bird and mammal capture. The Unit staff teaches six graduate courses in the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences and presents guest lectures. The Unit staff provided data, expert opinion, and technical assistance to a variety of groups on 45 occasions.

Fish/Mussel Kill Workshop Held: The workshop, entitled “Investigation of Fish and Mussel Kills,” was attended by over 30 state and federal employees, as well as 10 students from SDSU. Experts covered SOPs for investigating fish kills and assessing monetary claims. Each participant received a notebook, a CD of workshop materials, and a copy of the procedures that are used in Kentucky. Workshop attendees learned how to investigate kills in small streams, large rivers, and lakes, and practiced calculations to determine the number of dead fish and the economic value of dead fish. Evidence gathering, chain of custody, criminal and civil liabilities, and natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) were also covered. Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Steven R Chipps organized a workshop for the Dakota Chapter of the American Fisheries Society. The workshop was held at the Brookings Inn on November 2. Instructors were Wayne Davis, Kentucky Division of Wildlife, and Rob Southwick, Southwick Associates.

Notice: Assistant Unit Leader for Wildlife, Dr. Kenneth F. Higgins retired on January 3. Drs. Steven Chipps and Chuck Berry plan for business as usual with their own programs; Dr. Higgins will be finishing up several projects through 2006 as an SDSU Professor Emeritus. Ken’s position will probably be vacant for several years as the Coop Unit Program nationwide is squeezed by budget cuts. There are about 20 vacancies in the nationwide program, which amounts to about 16% of the research scientists at the 39 Coop Units. The nationwide Unit Program similarly suffered in the 1980s under similar federal political and budgetary conditions, but returned to full staffing in the 1990s. The South Dakota Unit was without an Assistant Leader for 2.5 years (July 1997-November 1999) after Dr. Walter Duffy departed and before Dr. Chipps arrived.

Research Findings: The impact of three weevil species on the potential for Canada thistle to spread by seed appeared to be negligible, according to results of a recently published study by Assistant Unit Leader Dr. Kenneth F. Higgins and colleagues. The thistle team surveyed thistle-feeding insects at Lacreek National Wildlife Refuge. Insects were a stem weevil (Hadroplontus litura), seed head weevil (Rhinocyllus conicus), and seed head fly (Terellia ruficauda). Insects attacked 8-15% of the seed heads. Insects caused no reduction in seed head yield and perhaps some reduction in germination rates of seeds, but results were highly variable. Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) is an exotic weed that is a serious pest. More acres are infected in South Dakota than in any other state. The plant spreads first by long-distant seed dispersal, and then spreads locally by colonial growth from roots. See publication list for details.