Document Type

Dissertation - Open Access

Award Date

1974

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department / School

Entomology

First Advisor

Robert W. Kieckhefer

Abstract

Corixids were sampled each week in littoral zone areas of Lake Poinsett during the open water seasons, April-October, in 1970, 1971, and 1972. Fish were sampled each week in littoral zone areas in 1970 and food habits studies were conducted to determine if fish predation would influence corixid population dynamics. Seven genera and 15 species of the family Corixidae were collected. Major indigenous species were Palmarcorixa buenoi Abbott, Trichocorixa borealis Sailer, Cenocorixa dakotensis (Hungerford), and Sigara conocephala (Hungerford). Species migrating to Lake Poinsett in the fall to overwinter were Sigara alternata (Say), S. solensis (Hungerford), S. bicoloripennis (Walley), Hesperocorixa vulgaris (Hungerford), and Callicorixa audeni Hungerford. Corixid population density increased from a mean annual standing crop of 4.9/m2 in 1970 to 17.6/m2 in 1971 and 56.9/m2 in 1972. The mean density of P. buenoi (19.8/m2) was approximately five fold greater than that of T. borealis (3.8/m2), the second most abundant species, and in combination with T. borealis represented 95 percent of the three year mean standing crop (24.7/m2) of Corixidae in Lake Poinsett. Both P. buenoi and T. borealis produced two generations each year, but P. buenoi overwintered as primarily fourth instar nymphs and T. borealis overwintered as adults. Food habits analysis of littoral zone fishes, Pimephales promelas Rafinesque, Etheostoma nigrum Rafinesque, Ictiobus cyprinellus (Valenciennes), Percopsis omiscomaycus (Walbaum), Notropis hudsonius (Clinton), N. stramineus (Cope), and N. lutrensis {Baired and Girard), indicated that corixids were not prey species and that littoral zone fish predation had no significant effects on corixid population dynamics. The lack of predation of littoral zone fishes on corixids appeared to be primarily related to the fish species composition and to the high densities of more vulnerable prey.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Corixidae -- South Dakota -- Poinsett, Lake
Fishes -- Food
Poinsett, Lake (S.D.)

Format

application/pdf

Publisher

South Dakota State University

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Included in

Entomology Commons

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