Northern brook lamprey (Ichthyomyzon fossor) COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 4
Distribution
Global range
The distribution of the northern brook lamprey includes Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Manitoba, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Quebec, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin (Figures 2 and ). 3
In general, the distribution is likely more widespread than indicated by existing records because of the difficulty in identifying ammocoetes and collecting ammocoetes and adults (Becker 1983). The specialized equipment and techniques required to collect lampreys have not often been used in many regions outside of the Great Lakes basin. The widely used electrofishing surveys that target multiple species of fishes rarely collect larval lampreys, as the ammocoetes tend to become ‘narcotized’ within their burrows. Because, special efforts usually must be made to obtain representative samples, the number of ammocoete populations is probably largely under-represented (Fortin et al. 2005). To obtain a true understanding of their distribution, surveys that specifically target lamprey species are required on a much broader scale than they are currently performed. Streams within the Great Lakes basin have been sampled more intensively due to regular and specialized assessment for sea lamprey ammocoetes. However, even within the Great Lakes basin, assessment activities are normally restricted to sections of streams accessible to lake-dwelling migratory species of lampreys, and headwater areas are often overlooked.
Canadian range
In Canada, the distribution of this species is limited to the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence, and the Winnipeg River watersheds (Figure 2). Since 1990, adults or transforming individuals of this species have been found in 36 stream systems, including tributaries to Lake Nipissing, Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Winnipeg River, Ottawa River, and St. Lawrence River (Table 1).
Stream Name | Length (km) | Width (m) | Basin |
---|---|---|---|
Grand River | 65.64 | 60.00 | Lake Erie |
Thames River | 3.24 | *31.92 | Lake St. Clair |
Bar River | 16.45 | 10.50 | Lake Huron |
Beaver River | 10.02 | *31.92 | Lake Huron |
Browns Creek | 3.78 | 4.55 | Lake Huron |
Chikanishing River | 2.90 | 12.11 | Lake Huron |
Hog Creek | 10.44 | 5.00 | Lake Huron |
Manitou River | 5.38 | 18.06 | Lake Huron |
Nine Mile River | 6.15 | *31.92 | Lake Huron |
Nottawasaga River | 132.10 | 23.45 | Lake Huron |
Sauble River | 15.67 | 50.17 | Lake Huron |
Saugeen River | 82.49 | 105.61 | Lake Huron |
Shebeshekong River | 5.65 | 15.43 | Lake Huron |
Wye River | 14.40 | *31.92 | Lake Huron |
Coldwater River | 19.08 | 15.00 | Lake Huron |
Echo River | 35.04 | 13.89 | Lake Huron |
French River | 5.10 | *31.92 | Lake Huron |
Spanish River | 92.19 | 20.28 | Lake Huron |
St. Clair River | Not available | Lake St. Clair | |
Chippewa Creek | 3.23 | 3.00 | Lake Nipissing |
Wolsely River | 8.93 | 20.00 | Lake Nipissing |
South Creek | 7.60 | *31.92 | Lake Nipissing |
Bear Creek | 6.56 | 6.00 | Lake Nipissing |
Nipigon River | 17.02 | 257.50 | Lake Superior |
Pearl River | 4.95 | 16.42 | Lake Superior |
Prairie River | 2.21 | *31.92 | Lake Superior |
Stokely Creek | 0.48 | 8.42 | Lake Superior |
Unnamed | 0.34 | 2.00 | Lake Superior |
Sibley Creek | 1.08 | 3.00 | Lake Superior |
Birch. River | 35.77 | *31.92 | Winnipeg River |
Whitemouth River | 114.01 | *31.92 | Winnipeg River |
Rivière Châteauguay | 4.12 | *31.92 | St. Lawrence River |
Rivière Gatineau (Comtois et al., 2004) | 0.8 | 250.00 | St. Lawrence River |
Rivière aux Outardes-Est | Not available | St. Lawrence River | |
Rivière Richelieu | Not available | St. Lawrence River | |
Rivière des Prairies | Not available | St. Lawrence River | |
Rivière Saint-François | Not available | St. Lawrence River |
The SLCC has documented streams throughout the Great Lakes drainage (n= 66) with Ichthyomyzon ammocoetes over the previous 15 years (Table 2); however, these individuals could not be identified to species as a result of a lack of distinguishing characters for ammocoetes. It is strongly suspected that, due to their location within the stream system (Schuldt and Goold 1980), over half of these populations are northern brook lamprey. As silver lamprey are migratory in nature and usually swim downstream to a large lake for the parasitic phase of their life cycle (Scott and Crossman 1973), it is unlikely that larvae found above barriers are silver lamprey. The absence of adult silver lamprey in sea lamprey traps (which are ineffective in catching smaller brook lampreys) in many of these streams also suggests that the larvae are northern brook lamprey. Sampling efforts targeting adult lampreys are required to unequivocally determine the identity of these larval populations.
The extent of occurrence encompasses a large range, at 441,922 km². Once broken down in terms of designated units (DUs), this corresponds to an extent of occurrence of 280,000 km² and 5,000 km² for the Great Lakes – Upper St. Lawrence DU and Saskatchewan-Nelson DU, respectively. In Canada, total length of known occupied stream (i.e. having had adult or transformed northern brook lamprey documented since 1990) is estimated at 733 km. The area of occupancy, based on approximate area of stream inhabited is 31 km²(see Table 1); about 26 km² for the Great Lakes – Upper St. Lawrence DU and 5 km² for the Saskatchewan – Nelson DU. This total stream length and the area of occupancy are conservative, given that they exclude several streams for which data were unavailable (see Table 1) as well as streams where ammocoetes have been identified to genus only but that presumably harbour some northern brook lamprey (see Table 2).
Lake | Stream Name |
---|---|
Lake St. Clair | St. Clair River |
Lake St. Clair | Thames River |
Lake Erie | Silver Creek |
Lake Erie | Big Otter Creek |
Lake Erie | Big Creek |
Lake Erie | Grand River |
Lake Huron | St. Mary’s River |
Lake Huron | Root River |
Lake Huron | Garden River |
Lake Huron | Echo River |
Lake Huron | Bar River |
Lake Huron | Thessalon River |
Lake Huron | Mississagi River |
Lake Huron | Blind River |
Lake Huron | Serpent River |
Lake Huron | Spanish River |
Lake Huron | Kagawong River |
Lake Huron | Manitou River |
Lake Huron | Blue Jay Creek |
Lake Huron | Chikanishing River |
Lake Huron | French River System |
Lake Huron | Key River |
Lake Huron | Still River |
Lake Huron | Magnetawan River |
Lake Huron | Naiscoot River |
Lake Huron | Shawanaga Landing Creek |
Lake Huron | Shebeshekong River |
Lake Huron | Blackstone Creek |
Lake Huron | Musquash River |
Lake Huron | Coldwater River |
Lake Huron | Sturgeon River |
Lake Huron | Hog Creek |
Lake Huron | Wye River |
Lake Huron | Nottawasaga River |
Lake Huron | Silver Creek |
Lake Huron | Beaver River |
Lake Huron | Bighead River |
Lake Huron | Sydenham River |
Lake Huron | Sauble River |
Lake Huron | Saugeen River |
Lake Huron | Nine Mile River |
Lake Huron | Bayfield River |
Lake Nipissing | Bear Creek |
Lake Nipissing | South Creek |
Lake Nipissing | Wolsely River |
Lake Nipissing | Chippewa Creek |
Lake Superior | West Davignon Creek |
Lake Superior | Little Carp River |
Lake Superior | Cranberry Creek |
Lake Superior | Goulais River |
Lake Superior | Stokely Creek |
Lake Superior | Jones Landing Creek |
Lake Superior | Chippewa River |
Lake Superior | Pic River |
Lake Superior | L. Munro Creek |
Lake Superior | Little Pic River |
Lake Superior | Prairie River |
Lake Superior | Pays Plat River |
Lake Superior | Gravel River |
Lake Superior | Jackfish River |
Lake Superior | Nipigon River |
Lake Superior | Black Sturgeon River |
Lake Superior | Pearl River |
Lake Superior | Sibley Creek |
Lake Superior | Mackenzie River |
Lake Superior | Neebing-McIntyre Floodway |
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