Contributions to the life history of Sacramento perch, Archoplites interruptus, in Pyramid Lake, Nevada

Authors

Steven Vigg, W. F. Sigler and Associates, Inc., Logan, Utah
Paul A. Kucera, W. F. Sigler and Associates, Inc., Logan, Utah

Abstract

During a two-year period (1976–1977), 180 Sacramento perch (Archoplites interruptus) were sampled from Pyramid Lake, Nevada, on a monthly basis using several capture methods in all lake areas. Age and growth determinations of these fish were inconsistent with previous research on this species. Sacramento perch are entirely carnivorous, adults feeding primarily on tui chub (Gila bicolor). Fish accounted for 6 percent of the diet (by volume) of Sacramento perch less than 300 mm fork length, and 98 percent for those exceeding 300 mm. Amphipods, Odonata, and Chironomidae composed 6.3, 5.7, and 1.8 percent, respectively, of the stomach contents by volume for all sizes combined. Females spawned from June to August when water temperatures approached 20 C, and their gonad weight was about 6 percent of the total body weight. A sample of 20 female perch had a mean fecundity of 84,203 eggs. The mean diameter of mature eggs was 0.88 mm. Sacramento perch almost exclusively inhabit the littoral zone of Pyramid Lake. Activity, as indicated by net catches, was greatest during the warm months of May to October. Monthly catches were significantly correlated with temperature (r = 0.577, P < 0.01). No short-term changes in population abundances were observed during 1976–1977.

Recommended Citation

Vigg, Steven and Kucera, Paul A. (1981) "Contributions to the life history of Sacramento perch, Archoplites interruptus, in Pyramid Lake, Nevada," Great Basin Naturalist: Vol. 41: No. 3, Article 3.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn/vol41/iss3/3