Cisco_Supporting Data (all).xlsx

Abstract

The lake cisco (Coregonus artedi) is not often caught by recreational anglers in open-water in western Canada, but becomes a common component of catch and release ice fisheries in the winter. Little is known about the composition of recreational cisco fisheries, or factors that affect the success of winter catch and release. We examined the size and body condition of 555 cisco caught by anglers in four interconnected lakes in southern Saskatchewan, Canada. We also examined the influence of length on the probability of hooking injuries, and determined the age of a subset of angled fish. Cisco caught by anglers ranged in total length from 24-48 cm, and 110-1,370 g mass; however, 60.2% of cisco caught ranged from 37-40 cm, and 470-560 g. The scale ages of cisco caught by anglers ranged from 4-10 years, with the most common ages caught being 6-8 years; however, scales likely underestimated age beginning around 8 years. Overall, cisco from our four study lakes had lower body conditions compared to Lake Superior populations based on standard weight comparisons. The length, mass, age, and body condition of cisco caught by anglers varied significantly among our four study lakes, following a west-to-east productivity gradient. Of the 555 cisco assessed, 54 (9.7%) experienced gill bleeding and 21 (3.8%) had other visible hooking injuries. Longer cisco had a significantly increased probability of gill bleeding, but length did not affect the probability of other injuries. Cisco are relatively slow growing in our study area and warrant more consideration from a catch and release angling perspective. 

Ethics Statement

Animal Research

(a) Animal Care and Use Protocol 16-08 "Population Ecology and Genetics of Freshwater Fish" approved by the University of Regina President's Committee on Animal Care following the guidelines of the Canadian Council on Animal Care.

Field Research

(b) Academic Research Permit 20AR007fp issued under the authority of the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment

(c) Authorization to tag fish ATF01_20AR007fp issued under the authority of the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment

Description of Dataset

Dataset for Stewart et. al's manuscript entitled "Body size and condition, age, and catch and release injury of ice-angled cisco (Coregonus artedi) from four connected lakes in Saskatchewan, Canada." The dataset includes sheets for all cisco length and masses, tournament cisco excluded, all cisco Fulton's Condition Factor (K) and relative weight (Wr), most common subset Fulton's Condition Factor (K) and relative weight (Wr), cisco scale age by lake, cisco catch and release injury occurrence.