dc.contributor.author	Audet, Katrina
dc.contributor.examiningcommittee	Gillis, Darren (Biological Sciences)
dc.contributor.examiningcommittee	Semeniuk, Christina (University of Windsor)
dc.contributor.supervisor	Docker, Margaret
dc.contributor.supervisor	Hasler, Caleb
dc.date.accessioned	2024-08-28T20:18:30Z
dc.date.available	2024-08-28T20:18:30Z
dc.date.issued	2024-08-25
dc.date.submitted	2024-08-25T22:44:05Z	en_US
dc.degree.discipline	Biological Sciences
dc.degree.level	Master of Science (M.Sc.)
dc.description.abstract	Traditionally, Lake Winnipeg fish stocks have been monitored using gillnetting techniques by the Province of Manitoba to collect critical information on fish population estimates, age, and sex ratios. However, gillnetting can be lethal and is often biased towards larger, pelagic, more active, mature, and abundant species. A monitoring technique that does not require the physical capture of fishes is environmental DNA (eDNA). Although eDNA is unable to provide information on the age and sex ratios of Lake Winnipeg’s fish stocks, some studies have shown success in detecting species underestimated in gillnets such as smaller-bodied, less active, immature, less abundant, and benthic species, as well as estimating the relative abundance of species. Therefore, the main goal of my Chapter 2 was to investigate the biases of gillnetting and compare them to eDNA, and how they may be affected by environmental factors for seven species in Lake Winnipeg: walleye (Sander vitreus), sauger (Sander canadensis), yellow perch (Perca flavescens), trout-perch (Percopsis omiscomaycus), spottail shiner (Hudsonius hudsonius), Coregonus spp. (lake cisco (Coregonus artedi), lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis), shortjaw cisco (Coregonus zenithicus), bloater (Coregonus hoyi), and rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax). My study found that eDNA was able to provide a broader scope of the fish community than gillnetting, especially for rainbow smelt that were detected using eDNA, but none were caught in gillnets. Year was an important factor that affected eDNA presence or absence, but not gillnetting. Environmental factors did not appear to have a greater impact on either eDNA or gillnet presence or absence. In Chapter 3, my research question was to investigate if there was a relationship between gillnetting and eDNA relative abundance estimates. A positive relationship was observed for some models of yellow perch, Coregonus spp., and trout-perch; however, additional research will be required as some models only had a positive relationship for sites across Lake Winnipeg as a whole, but not observed within local groups of sites, or vice-versa.
dc.description.note	October 2024
dc.description.sponsorship	Manitoba Habitat Heritage Corporation (MHHC) – Manitoba Fish and Wildlife Enhancement Fund (FWEF) University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Graduate Studies University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Science – Science Enhancement of Graduate Stipends (SEGS) and Field Work Support Program (FWSP) Lake Winnipeg Research Consortium (LWRC) Genomic Network for Fish Identification, Stress and Health (GEN-FISH; funded through Genome Canada and the Ontario Genomics Institute) Fisheries Management and Conservation Careers in Science and Technology (FishCAST; funded through the NSERC Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE) program)
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/1993/38445
dc.language.iso	eng
dc.rights	open access	en_US
dc.subject	environmental DNA
dc.subject	eDNA
dc.subject	gillnet
dc.subject	population
dc.subject	assessment
dc.subject	detection
dc.subject	monitoring
dc.subject	relative abundance
dc.subject	estimate
dc.subject	community
dc.subject	aquatic
dc.subject	fish
dc.subject	walleye
dc.subject	sauger
dc.subject	yellow perch
dc.subject	trout-perch
dc.subject	spottail shiner
dc.subject	rainbow smelt
dc.subject	Coregonus
dc.subject	cisco
dc.subject	whitefish
dc.subject	Lake Winnipeg
dc.title	Monitoring fish stocks of Lake Winnipeg using environmental DNA techniques and gillnet index surveys
dc.type	master thesis	en_US
local.subject.manitoba	yes
oaire.awardTitle	Canada Graduate Scholarships Master’s (NSERC-CGS M)
oaire.awardURI	https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/students-etudiants/pg-cs/cgsm-bescm_eng.asp
project.funder.identifier	https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000038
project.funder.name	Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

Monitoring fish stocks of Lake Winnipeg using environmental DNA techniques and gillnet index surveys

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