BC Conservation Data Centre: Conservation Status Report
Gasterosteus sp. 5
Paxton Lake Benthic Stickleback
| Scientific Name: | Gasterosteus sp. 5 |
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| English Name: | Paxton Lake Benthic Stickleback |
| Provincial Status Summary | |
| Status: | S1 |
| Date Status Assigned: | January 31, 1992 |
| Date Last Reviewed: | March 30, 2018 |
| Reasons: | Paxton Lake Benthic Stickleback is restricted to Paxton Lake on the Sunshine Coast. Potential threats include exotic introductions and excessive draw-down of lake. |
| Range | |
| Range Extent: | A = <100 square km |
| Range Extent Comments: | Paxton Lake Benthic and Limnetic Threespine Sticklebacks are restricted to Paxton Lake on Texada Island, Sunshine Coast. The caluclated extent of occurrence is <0.31km2 (COSEWIC 2010h). |
| Area of Occupancy (km2): | C = 3-5 |
| Area of Occupancy Estimate (km2): | 8 |
| Area of Occupancy Comments: | The area of occupancy is 8km2, or 4 2x2km grid cells (COSEWIC 2010h). |
| Occurrences & Population | |
| Number of Occurrences: | A = 1 - 5 |
| Comments: | Only found in one small lake. |
| Number of Occurrences with Good Viability / Ecological Integrity: | B = 1 - 3 |
| Comments: | The land adjacent to the lake is privately owned and a limestone quarry operates in part of the watershed; the area also has high value for future development (Hatfield and Ptolemy 2001). Forest harvesting also occurs within the watershed. |
| Number of Occurrences Appropriately Protected & Managed: | A = None |
| Comments: | There are no habitat protection provisions specifically for Paxton Lake Benthic and Limnetic Threespine Sticklebacks (COSEWIC 2010h). |
| Population Size: | G = 100,000 - 1,000,000 individuals |
| Comments: | Only a single study has been conducted (Nomura 2005) to estimate abundance of benthics and limnetics (males only) in Paxton Lake; the approximate number of matures males is 90,000 (COSEWIC 2010h). |
| Threats (to population, occurrences, or area affected) | |
| Degree of Threat: | A = Very high |
| Comments: |
2018: The primary threat to the Paxton Lake Benthic Threespine Stickleback is the introduction of an invasive species, as previous introductions in other stickleback species pair lakes have led to the extinction or hybridization of the stickleback species pairs within those lakes (COSEWIC 2010h). 2005: The major threat to all stickleback populations is the introduction of exotics, especially piscivorous fish species such as catfish (Ictalurus nebulosus) and pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) (Hatfield and Ptolemy 2001). Introduced crayfish are also a concern (Oosenbrug et al. 2002). In the past, water extractions for copper mining activity resulted in annual drawdowns of 2.75 m (Larson 1976); however, water use has decreased dramatically under present ownership (Hatfield and Ptolemy 2001). Sediment delivery to lakes, resulting from land and forest development, may lead to increased turbidity and disruption of assortative mating between limnetic and benthic species; hybridization could lead to loss of reproductive potential and increase the likelihood of collapse of both species (Kraak et al. 2001; Oosenbrug et al. 2002; Wood 2003). The degree and duration of turbidity that could precipitate a collapse of these species is unknown. |
| Trend (in population, range, area occupied, and/or condition of occurrences) | |
| Short-Term Trend: | G = Relatively Stable (<=10% change) |
| Comments: | Probably stable. |
| Long-Term Trend: | EH = Decline of <50% to increase of <25% |
| Comments: | Unknown, but population declines may have occurred in the past due to large water extractions (Larson 1976). |
| Other Factors | |
| Intrinsic Vulnerability: | A=Highly vulnerable |
| Comments: | Evidence from the extinction of the Hadley Lake species pair and the sudden hybridization of the Enos Lake pair suggest that these sympatric species pairs are highly vulnerable to the introduction of exotic species and reduced water clarity. |
| Environmental Specificity: | A=Very narrow. Specialist or community with key requirements scarce. |
| Comments: | Inferred from the small number of sites where sympatric species pairs of threespine stickleback that have been found |
| Other Rank Considerations: | |
| Information Gaps | |
| Research Needs: | |
| Inventory Needs: | |
| Stewardship | |
| Protection: | |
| Management: | |
| Version | |
| Author: | Ptolemy, J. (2005); L. Gelling (2018) |
| Date: | March 30, 2018 |
| References | |
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COSEWIC. 2010h. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Paxton Lake Benthic and Limnetic Threespine Stickleback Species Pair Gasterosteus aculeatusin Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. xiv + 22 pp.
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Fisheries and Oceans Canada. 2016. Action Plan for the Paxton Lake and Vananda Creek Stickleback Species Pairs (Gasterosteus aculeatus) in Canada [Proposed]. Species at Risk Act Action Plan Series. Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Ottawa. v + 40 pp.
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Hatfield, T., and J. Ptolemy. 2001. Status of the stickleback species pair, Gasterosteus spp. in Paxton Lake, Texada Island, British Columbia. Can. Field-Nat. 115(4):591-596.
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Kraak, S.B., B. Munweiler, and P.J. Hart. 2001. Increased number of hybrids between benthic and limnetic three-spined sticklebacks in Enos Lake, Canada; the collapse of the species pair? J. Fish Biol. 58:1458-1464.
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Larson, G.L. 1976. Social behavior and feeding ability of two phenotypes of Gasterosteus aculeatus in relation to their spatial and trophic segregation in a temperate lake. Can. J. Zool. 54:107-121.
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McPhail, J.D. 1988. Report on the status of the Enos Lake stickleback species pair, Gasterosteus ssp. Rep. submitted to Comm. on the Status of Endangered Wildl. in Can., Ottawa.
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National Recovery Team for Stickleback Species Pairs. 2007. Recovery Strategy for Paxton Lake, Enos Lake, and Vananda Creek Stickleback Species Pairs (Gasterosteus spp.) in Canada. Species at Risk Act Recovery Strategy Series, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Ottawa. v + 31 pp.
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Oosenbrug, J., P. Wood, and S. Young. 2002. Vananda Creek limnetic stickleback Gasterosteus species 16 and Vananda Creek benthic stickleback Gasterosteus species 17. Unpubl. rep.13pp.
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Schluter, D., M. Roesti and T. Veen. 2017. Mark-recapture estimates of stickleback population sizes in Paxton and Priest Lakes in 2016. Biodiversity Research Centre and Zoology Department University of British Columbia. 9pp.
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Wood, P. 2003. Will Canadian policies protect British Columbia's endangered pairs of sympatric sticklebacks. Fisheries 28(5):19-26
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for information on how the CDC determines conservation status ranks. For global conservation status reports and ranks, please visit the NatureServe website http://www.natureserve.org/.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 2018. Conservation Status Report: Gasterosteus sp. 5. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jan 24, 2025).