BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Spirinchus sp. 1
Pygmy Longfin Smelt
| Scientific Name: | Spirinchus sp. 1 | ||||||||||
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| English Name: | Pygmy Longfin Smelt | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | McPhail, J.D. 2007. The freshwater fishes of British Columbia. The University of Alberta Press, Edmonton, Alberta. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Vertebrate Animal | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | F-SPSP-01 | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G5T2Q (Oct 2019) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S2 (May 2019) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Red | ||||||||||
| Provincial FRPA list: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Wildlife Act: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Status: | Data Deficient (Nov 2004) | ||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | |||||||||||
| General Status Canada: | 5 - Undetermined (2000) | ||||||||||
| Ecology & Life History | |||||||||||
| General Description: | |||||||||||
| Global Reproduction Comments: | No data available. | ||||||||||
| Global Ecology Comments: | The lakes have a relatively diverse fish community. Spirinchus and Gasterosteus aculeatus are the most common limnetic planktivores, although juvenile Oncorhynchus nerka are also potential competitors (Henderson et al. 1991). However, a detailed study has shown that there is little overlap in distribution and diet among these three species (Diewart and Henderson 1992). The density of predaceous fish in the lake is low; the primary predators of smelt are probably Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and O. mykiss (Diewart and Henderson 1992). | ||||||||||
| Migration Characteristics: (Global / Provincial) | |||||||||||
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Nonmigrant: Local Migrant: Distant Migrant: Within Borders Migrant: |
Y / N / N / na / |
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| Global Migration Comments: | Appear to be nonmigratory populations, in contrast with the anadromous populations which reach at least Pitt Lake annually. | ||||||||||
| Habitats: (Type / Subtype / Dependence) |
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| Global Habitat Comments: | Large, oligotrophic, fiord lakes. Nocturnal trawls indicate that these smelt are found primarily in the limnetic zone of these oligotrophic lakes, at depths between 7 and 60 m. Spawning areas are unknown. | ||||||||||
| Food Habits: |
Invertivore: Adult, Immature
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| Global Food Habits Comments: | Smelt in Pitt Lake ate primarily copepods (about 70% volume) and cladocera (about 30% volume), with some Diptera larva present as well (Diewart and Henderson 1992). | ||||||||||
| Global Phenology: | |||||||||||
| Global Phenology Comments: | Present and active throughout the year. In Pitt Lake, catch per unit effort data shows a distinct peak in September, which is probably the result of an influx of anadromous smelt (Henderson et al. 1991). In July, smelt are concentrated in upper half of lake (i.e., closer to inlet), whereas in November a pattern is not obvious (catch per unit effort is very low) (Henderson et al. 1991). | ||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Colonial Breeder: | N | ||||||||||
| Length(cm)/width(cm)/Weight(g): | 8/ / 7 | ||||||||||
| Elevation (m) (min / max): |
Global:
Provincial: |
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | Y | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | This species is endemic to British Columbia. The range extent is approximately 3800m2. This encompasses Harrison and Pitt lakes which are located in the lower Fraser River Valley. | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | Hammerson, G. | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Oct 20, 1993 | ||||||||||
| Provincial Information Author: | CANNINGS, S.G. | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Mar 06, 1992 | ||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
Begle, D. P. 1991. Relationships of the osmeroid fishes and the use of reductive characters in phylogenetic analysis. Systematic Zoology 40:33-53. |
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Campbell, R.R. 1988. Rare and endangered fish and marine mammals of Canada: COSEWIC Fish and Marine Mammal Subcommittee Status Reports: IV. Canadian Field-Naturalist 102:81-86. |
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Diewart, R.E., and M.A. Henderson. 1992. The effect of competition and predation on production of juvenile sockeye salmon (ONCORHYNCHUS NERKA) in Pitt Lake. Can. Tech. Rep. of Fish. and Aquatic Sci. (in press). |
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Henderson, M.A., R.E. Diewart, J. Hume, K. Shortreed, D. Levy, and K. Morton. 1991. The carrying capacity of Pitt Lake for juvenile sockeye salmon (Onchorhynchus nerka). Can. Tech. Rep., Fish. and Aquatic Sci. No. 1797. 161 pp. |
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Hume, J. 1991. Tow summaries for Pitt, Harrison, and Cultus lakes. Unpubl. data, Dep. Fish. and Oceans, Cultus Lake, BC. |
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McPhail, D. 1991. Personal communication. |
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Page, L. M., and B. M. Burr. 1991. A field guide to freshwater fishes: North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 432 pp. |
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Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea, and W.B. Scott. 1991. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20. 183 pp. |
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 1993. Species Summary: Spirinchus sp. 1. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Apr 14, 2025).