afishinado
Moderator
Staff member
Found article linked below about chemicals found in the J river which interfere with SMB spawning.
Here is an excerpt from that article >
"A study was conducted in in 2019 by our own Juniata College and published in the Journal of Freshwater Ecology. It identified potential threats to the Smallmouth Bass Population in the Juniata River. It is a technical read but I came here to summarize what it says:
Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) were found at all 11 sites (tributaries to the Juniata River, like Aughwick/Millerstown etc) in relatively high concentrations, specifically Atrazine and Metolachlor (herbicide chemicals). These chemicals disrupt the hormones in the smallmouth bass and other fish, causing the males to produce eggs (Vitellogenisis) in their testes. 100% of the 22 male Smallmouth Bass caught and examined in this study had the protein precursor (Vitellogenin) which signals to the bass to incorrectly produce the eggs. This can have cascading reproductive effects on not only these fish but also in the food chain. Atrazine is arguably the most significant agricultural EDC in the United States at this time, as it is the most widely used herbicide on broadleaf crops including corn, soybeans, and sorghum . Most recently, the US EPA’s risk assessment concluded concentrations of atrazine at 5 ug/L are likely to have reproductive effects on fish, yet its application has been outright banned for agricultural use in the European Union since 2003. Metolachlor is also present and this study also says that when there are multiple EDCs present they work together to have an even stronger effect."
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Here is an excerpt from that article >
"A study was conducted in in 2019 by our own Juniata College and published in the Journal of Freshwater Ecology. It identified potential threats to the Smallmouth Bass Population in the Juniata River. It is a technical read but I came here to summarize what it says:
Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) were found at all 11 sites (tributaries to the Juniata River, like Aughwick/Millerstown etc) in relatively high concentrations, specifically Atrazine and Metolachlor (herbicide chemicals). These chemicals disrupt the hormones in the smallmouth bass and other fish, causing the males to produce eggs (Vitellogenisis) in their testes. 100% of the 22 male Smallmouth Bass caught and examined in this study had the protein precursor (Vitellogenin) which signals to the bass to incorrectly produce the eggs. This can have cascading reproductive effects on not only these fish but also in the food chain. Atrazine is arguably the most significant agricultural EDC in the United States at this time, as it is the most widely used herbicide on broadleaf crops including corn, soybeans, and sorghum . Most recently, the US EPA’s risk assessment concluded concentrations of atrazine at 5 ug/L are likely to have reproductive effects on fish, yet its application has been outright banned for agricultural use in the European Union since 2003. Metolachlor is also present and this study also says that when there are multiple EDCs present they work together to have an even stronger effect."
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