Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Seasonal Temperature Preference Of Adult Mountain Whitefish, Prosopium Williamsoni, Jean M. Ihnat

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Temperatures selected seasonally by adult mountain whitefish were measured in the laboratory in a horizontal gradient. Final preferendum estimates, based on acute (3-hour) preference tests conducted with fish acclimated to 5, 10, and 15 C each season, were 17.7 C (pre-spawning), 11.9 C (post-spawning), 9.9 C (winter), and 16.3 C (spring). Seasonal influence on temperature selection was evident on the basis of differences in final preferenda, covariance analysis of responses of laboratory-acclimated fish, and temperature selection by fish held at ambient river temperatures. Post-spawning and winter groups selected lower temperatures than did pre-spawning and spring groups. Pre-spawning fish selected temperatures …