The Effect of Turbidity on the Reproductive Rate of Largemouth Bass
Rayna Maleki
Green Hope High School
Introduction
The purpose of the experiment is to determine the effect of turbidity on the reproductive rate of Largemouth Bass. The study will compare reproductive rates of largemouth bass living in ideal turbidity levels to the reproductive rates of largemouth bass.
Wetlands are land where water saturates or covers the soil. Types of wetlands include marshes, swamps, bogs and prairie potholes. Wetlands reduce flood impact and erosion because they absorb the overflow from larger bodies of water. Fish and other types of wildlife live in wetlands and use it as a breeding ground. Wetlands can support terrestrial and aquatic species. They provide habitat, food, and nutrients for these organisms. Wetlands filter out toxic waste from water and dilute the pollutants coming from runoff (“What is a Wetland?,” 2017).
Coastal wetlands are coastal lands covered with saltwater. They are tidally influenced systems, so they may be covered with saltwater all or just part of the year. Because of the salinity, the types of species that can live here are limited. Salt marshes, which are estuarine wetlands, are the most productive of all wetlands. The grass dominating them filters the water. Bogs are inland freshwater wetlands that are dominated by mosses and receive a lot of precipitation. They are usually located at a low elevation and do not receive as much nutrients as other wetlands. Swamps can be freshwater, estuarine, or marine wetlands that are mostly dominated by trees. Swamps serve as places of refuge for fish during dry spells because swamps have water present for most, if not all, of the year. Coastal wetlands are important because they protect the shores from erosion.
Turbidity is the measure of clarity and cloudiness in a volume or body of water. It is a qualitative characteristic of water and shows the amount of light scattered by the water when light is on the water. Highly turbid water is very opaque while less turbid water has clarity and doesn’t scatter light as well. Turbidity can be measured using highly technical turbidity meters that are installed in some lakes and rivers. Measuring methods include the Jackson Candle turbidimeter and the nephelometric method. It can also be measured by collected water in a clear bottle and determining how much light is scattered. The units for turbidity are nephelometric turbidity units, or NTU (Perlman, 2016).
Turbidity of a body of water is determined by flow and precipitation. During low flow, turbidity is low because particles are stable and not moving around. Low turbidity is considered to be less than 10 NTU. During high flow, turbidity is also high because sediment is moving around in the water and particles from surrounding land are being washed into the river. Precipitation also causes water to mix with sediment and runoff, causing turbidity to be anywhere from 50 to 600 NTU.
Turbidity causes water to be cloudy. Highly turbid water is not suitable for drinking. It looks and can be unhealthy. Turbid water is a home for pathogens and viruses, causing waterborne disease outbreaks. Turbidity itself does not present health concerns, but there is direct correlation between the removal of turbidity and the removal of pathogens. Turbid water can still be used for drinking and household activities because water treatments filter the water and reduce health concerns.
Suspended sediment in a body of water has adverse effects on aquatic wildlife. Since the water is cloudy, it blocks sunlight and doesn’t allow plants to photosynthesize and support the ecosystem. It can smother small organisms and also carries contaminants harmful to the environment such as mercury and bacteria (“Turbidity,” 2010).
Micropterus salmoides is the scientific name for largemouth bass. Micropterus salmoides is classified as Actinopterygii and belongs to the Centrarchidae family of the kingdom Animalia. Other common names include Black Bass, Green Trout, Bigmouth Bass and Lineside Bass. It was named largemouth bass for its large mouth.
Largemouth bass have the ability to grow up to 6 inches in their first year and up to 16 inches in their lifetime. The average weight is two to four pounds but largemouth bass can weigh as much as 10 pounds. They are green with a puffy horizontal line along their bodies. They have divided dorsal fins with nine spines and around 12 soft rays.
Humans are the only predator of largemouth bass, making them the top predator in the wetland ecosystem. Largemouth bass fry eat zooplankton and insect larvae before becoming able to be an active predator, at about 2 inches in length. Adults prey on other fish and large invertebrates, and the largest fish can even feed on smaller bass (Hart, 2016).
Micropterus salmoides begin reproducing in the spring or early summer, when the water starts to get warmer. Male bass tend to build nests in about five feet of quiet, vegetated water. Female bass lay up to 43,000 eggs in the nest, and they are soon chased away by the male guarding the eggs. The fry hatch in five to ten days. They stay in a school of fish near the nest and are supervised by the male bass after they have hatched. Once grown, they become solitary, never interacting with other bass. They hide in vegetation and wait for prey so they can stealthily strike. Largemouth bass live on average for sixteen years (“Largemouth Bass,” 2017).
Micropterus salmoides live in stable structures, such as logs and rock ledges. They prefer the quiet but can survive in any environment. Largemouth bass originate from the eastern United States, and scattered throughout the bodies of water of Texas, southeast Canada, and northeast Mexico. It is a popular species to fish for, and has been introduced to many other places in the world solely for this reason.
Largemouth bass have subspecies of Florida largemouth bass and Micropterus salmoides. The largemouth bass is the most hunted fish species in Texas. This popularity has caused largemouth bass to be introduced into non-native waters. Largemouth bass are not invasive, but are adaptable to a variety of environments. The biggest threats to Micropterus salmoides are pollution and drought (“Largemouth Bass,” n.d.).
In this study, the effect of turbidity on the reproductive rate of largemouth bass will be determined. The independent variable is the turbidity in NTU of the water. The dependent variable is the reproductive rate of largemouth bass. The temperature of the water, the amount of food, the amount of sunlight, and the amount and genders of largemouth bass will remain constant. If the water in an ecosystem has turbidity less than 10 NTU, then the reproductive rate of largemouth bass will increase.
Materials
Six 500 gallon aquarium tanks
12 male largemouth bass
12 female largemouth bass
120 square feet of cattail
12 square feet of hydrilla
84 cubic feet of gravel
32 square feet per tank
2640 gallons of freshwater
5 kilograms or 5000 grams of silt
Scale
2,880 2 to 3 inch minnows
720 Caddisflies
Methods
Spread 14 cubic feet of gravel in the bottom of each 500 gallon tank.
Submerge 20 square feet of cattail in the gravel of each 500 gallon tank.
Arrange 2 square feet of hydrilla in around the cattail in each tank.
Add 440 gallons of freshwater to each tank.
Label one tank 0 NTU, as no silt has been added.
Add 2.92 grams of silt into one of the tanks. Label this tank 5 NTU.
Add 58.8 grams of silt into one of the tanks. Label this tank 10 NTU.
Add 343.2 grams of silt into one of the tanks. Label this tank 60 NTU.
Add 1137.4 grams, or 1.1374 kilograms of silt into one of the tanks. Label this tank 200 NTU.
Add 3419.24 grams, or 3.41924 kilograms of silt into one of the tanks. Label this tank 600 NTU.
Put 2 female and 2 male largemouth bass in each tank.
The male bass should build nests and the females should lay eggs in the nests.
Feed the bass daily. Put 16 minnows and 4 caddisfly in each tank each day for 30 days or until the eggs of hatched.
Once the eggs have hatched, count the amount of fish produced in each tank and record the amount of offspring along with the corresponding turbidity.
Works Cited
Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderlund, L., & Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). General format. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Conversion Relationship between Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTU) into mg/l for Alberta Transportations’ Turbidity specification. (n.d.). Retrieved October 08, 2017, from http://www.transportation.alberta.ca/Content/docType245/Production/The%20conversion%20of%20Nephelometric%20Turbidity%20Units.pdf
Department of Game & Inland Fisheries. (n.d.). Retrieved October 03, 2017, from h
https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/fish/largemouth-bass/
Hart, D. (2016, November 2). What bass eat. Retrieved October 08, 2017, from https://www.bassmaster.com/what-bass-eat
Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides). (n.d.). Retrieved October 03, 2017, from https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/lmb/
Perlman, H. (2016, December 02). Turbidity. Retrieved October 02, 2017, from https://water.usgs.gov/edu/turbidity.html
Turbidity. (2014, June 16). Retrieved October 02, 2017, from http://www.fondriest.com/news/turbidity.htm
What is a Wetland? (2017, February 27). Retrieved October 01, 2017, from https://www.epa.gov/wetlands/what-wetland