BC Conservation Data Centre: Conservation Status Report
Gasterosteus sp. 18
Misty Lake "Lake" Stickleback
| Scientific Name: | Gasterosteus sp. 18 |
|---|---|
| English Name: | Misty Lake "Lake" Stickleback |
| Provincial Status Summary | |
| Status: | S1 |
| Date Status Assigned: | March 10, 2004 |
| Date Last Reviewed: | March 30, 2018 |
| Reasons: |
Mistly Lake "Lake" Stickleback is restricted to a single lake. It is extremely vulnerable to non-native species introductions that have caused hybridization and extinction in similar species pairs. Molecular data strongly suggests the lake-stream pairs on Graham Island and northern Vancouver Island evolved separately through parallel evolution: neither the Misty lake form nor its corresponding inlet stream form clustered with similar forms from the Drizzle or Mayer lake systems; the Misty pair did not share any mtDNA haplotypes with either of the those pairs; and, the haplotypes were phylogenetically independent from the Graham Island haplotypes (Thompson et al. 1997). |
| Range | |
| Range Extent: | A = <100 square km |
| Range Extent Comments: | Misty Lake has a surface area of 35.6 ha. |
| Area of Occupancy (km2): | AC = 1-5 |
| Area of Occupancy Comments: | Misty Lake has a surface area of 35.6 ha. |
| Occurrences & Population | |
| Number of Occurrences: | A = 1 - 5 |
| Comments: | Part of a parapatric lake-stream pair, lake form known from one small lake on northern Vancouver Island (Lavin and McPhail 1993; Thompson et al. 1997). |
| Number of Occurrences with Good Viability / Ecological Integrity: | U = Unknown |
| Comments: | The Misty Lake Ecological Reserve does not include the drainage area above the lake; it is located adjacent to a well travelled highway. |
| Number of Occurrences Appropriately Protected & Managed: | B = 1 - 3 |
| Comments: | The lake is located within the boundaries of the Misty Lake Ecological Reserve, established for the protection of this large lake stickleback. |
| Population Size: | F = 10,000 - 100,000 individuals |
| Comments: | No population estimate has been done, however assumed greater than 10.000. |
| Threats (to population, occurrences, or area affected) | |
| Degree of Threat: | A = Very high |
| Comments: | Threats include introduction of exotic species, potential impacts of hydrocarbon and pesticide contamination from the adjacent highway and rest stop, water quality and hydrological changes from nearby logging, and recreational use of the lake (canoeing and illegal fishing). |
| Trend (in population, range, area occupied, and/or condition of occurrences) | |
| Short-Term Trend: | G = Relatively Stable (<=10% change) |
| Comments: | Trend is inferred; no reports of apparent decline from active research at this site. |
| Long-Term Trend: | FH = Decline of <30% to increase of 25% |
| Comments: | Probably stable. |
| Other Factors | |
| Intrinsic Vulnerability: | A=Highly vulnerable |
| Comments: | Species has a short life span and is extremely vulnerable to nest predation from non-native species, as seen in the extinction of the Hadley Lake benthic and limnetic sticklebacks. |
| Environmental Specificity: | A=Very narrow. Specialist or community with key requirements scarce. |
| Comments: | Specificity is suspected. Parapatric lake and stream sticklebacks have been observed in only three drainage systems in the northeast Pacific; the others are the Mayer Lake and Drizzle Lake systems on the Queen Charlotte Islands (Moodie 1972, Reimchen et al. 1985; Lavin and McPhail 1993). |
| Other Rank Considerations: | The parapatric stickleback pair found in the Misty Lake system is one of only three known to occur; it is invaluable to the study of evolutionary processes. |
| Information Gaps | |
| Research Needs: | Strategies and techniques to deal with exotic introductions and species recovery need to be determined. |
| Inventory Needs: | Lakes and their tributaries on the northwest coast of North America and on northern Vancouver Island should continue to be surveyed for the presence of similar lake-stream stickleback pairs. |
| Stewardship | |
| Protection: | The boundaries of the Misty Lake Ecological Reserve should capture the entire watershed; the highway rest stop should be moved outside of the watershed; and regular monitoring programs should be established to determine trends in stickleback abundance. |
| Management: | Monitoring plans and strategies to deal with exotic species introductions need to be developed. |
| Version | |
| Author: | Ptolemy, J. |
| Date: | February 04, 2005 |
| References | |
|
Lavin, P.A., and J.D. McPhail. 1993. Parapatric lake and stream sticklebacks on northern Vancouver Island: disjunct distribution or parallel evolution? Can. J. Zool. 71:11-17.
|
|
|
Moodie, G.E.E. 1972b. Morphology, life history, and ecology of an unusual stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus in the Queen Charlotte Islands, Canada. Can. J. Zool. 50:721-732.
|
|
|
Thompson, C.E., E.B. Taylor, and J.D. McPhail. 1997. Parallel evolution of lake-stream pairs of threespine sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) inferred from mitochondrial DNA variation. Evolution 51:1955-1965.
|
|
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. 2005. Conservation Status Report: Gasterosteus sp. 18. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jan 24, 2025).