Kyle J. Hartman

Evidence of Stock-recruit Relationships for Appalachian Brook Trout

Stock-recruit (SR) relationships have been reported for numerous stocks of trout and Pacific salmon, but despite the intuitive appeal, evidence of such relationships is lacking for brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). The relationship between number of adults spawning in a stream and the subsequent number of young produced can be used by management to predict year class strength. Disruptions of SR relationships (for species that exhibit strong relationships) can be indicative of environmental perturbations or habitat impairment. As part of a long-term study we have estimated brook trout...

Brook Trout Response to Canopy and Large Woody Debris Manipulations in Appalachian Streams

Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) are the only salmonid native to the Appalachians and are thought to have experienced substantial declines over the past century. They continue to be an important recreational resource and are an excellent biotic synthesizer of aquatic integrity for forested watersheds. Management of forested watersheds to maintain and even enhance water quality and this specific species are critical to sustainable forest management in this region. We are conducting a set of manipulative experiments in streamside management zones within forested watersheds in order to...

Fall and Winter Brook Trout Prey Selection and Daily Ration

Most studies examining salmonid diets and their relationship to invertebrate drift are confined to periods from spring through early fall. Invertebrate drift generally decreases from spring through summer and fall seasons and is greatest during diel periods of low light. Salmonid feeding efficiency is reduced under low light conditions and several studies have found them to feed primarily through the daylight hours. Drift feeding salmonids are also size selective. The purpose of this study was to determine if patterns of invertebrate drift and brook trout feeding seen during warmer times...

Experimental Determination of Benthic Macroinvertebrate Metric Sensitivity to Fine Sediment in Appalachian Streams

Many fisheries management agencies incorporate benthic macroinvertebrate metrics in stream assessment, yet concern exists over regional variability in metric sensitivity and the reproducibility of results over time. Two field experiments were conducted in Mullenax Run, Pocahontas County, West Virginia during summers 1999 and 2000 to investigate the sensitivity of benthic macroinvertebrate metrics to fine sediment and annual variation. Substrate composition of fine sediment (< 2mm) was manipulated from 0%-40% in 10% increments in 0.3-m2 circular trays arrayed in 2 sections of the study...

A Rapid Method for Determining Metabolism of Fish

The utility of bioenergetics models for answering fisheries and ecological questions has often been hampered by the availability of data or resources for deriving species-specific models. Among the principal components of bioenergetics models are metabolism equations that historically have been derived from series of long experiments in which fish of different sizes are acclimated and tested at each temperature for extended periods. Acclimation may take several weeks to months and actual observation on metabolism (oxygen consumption) may take several days for each group of fish with...