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Delta Smelt Formalin Fixation and Preservation Effects on Fish Weight and Length

General Information
Data Package:
Local Identifier:edi.62.11
Title:Delta Smelt Formalin Fixation and Preservation Effects on Fish Weight and Length
Alternate Identifier:DOI PLACE HOLDER
Abstract:

Natural history museum specimen are invaluable for a variety of conservation and ecological applications. Fishes are commonly preserved in formalin; however, formalin preservation is associated with reduced fish length and increased weight, but the magnitude and timing of these changes may vary among species. Unaccounted for preservation-driven shifts in fish length and weight may have drastic effects on any conservation or ecological conclusions drawn from specimen preserved for various durations as well as when compared to fresh, unpreserved specimen. The ​purpose of this study was to ​test whether formalin fixation and preservation affects endangered Delta Smelt, Hypomesus transpacificus, lengths and weights with implications for the use of data collected on preserved and fresh specimen. Fresh Delta Smelt were lengthed and weighted, then fixed and preserved in 10% buffered formalin​. Repeated measures of specimen length and weigh were recorded weekly for 4 weeks, fortnightly from preservation week 4 through preservation week 24, and then approximately annually through 6 total years of preservation.

Publication Date:2020-08-13

Time Period
Begin:
2014-06-11
End:
2020-06-11

People and Organizations
Contact:Slater, Steven B. (California Department of Fish and Wildlife) [  email ]
Creator:Slater, Steven B. (California Department of Fish and Wildlife)
Creator:Burdi, Christina E. (California Department of Fish and Wildlife)
Creator:Gaeta, Jereme W. (California Department of Fish and Wildlife)
Creator:Frick, Madeleine A. 
Associate:Bippus, Tricia (California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Associated Party)
Associate:Interagency Ecological Program (IEP)(California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Associated Party)
Associate:Paiste, Rhonda (California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Associated Party)

Data Entities
Data Table Name:
Delta Smelt formalin preservation data
Description:
Delta Smelt weight and length measured fresh and repeatedly after fixation and preservation in formalin
Detailed Metadata

Data Entities

Data Table

Data:https://pasta-s.lternet.edu/package/data/eml/edi/62/11/81ab83c28069adaeefbdced643d4a84c
Name:Delta Smelt formalin preservation data
Description:Delta Smelt weight and length measured fresh and repeatedly after fixation and preservation in formalin
Number of Records:1008
Number of Columns:10

Table Structure
Object Name:Delta_Smelt_formalin_preservation_Slater_etal_2020.csv
Size:64851 bytes
Authentication:f033799b47fa36141e83b9055bbe9f4a Calculated By MD5
Text Format:
Number of Header Lines:1
Record Delimiter:\n
Orientation:column
Simple Delimited:
Field Delimiter:,

Table Column Descriptions
 
Column Name:specimen_no  
sex  
process_date  
preservation_day  
standard_length_mm  
fork_length_mm  
total_length_mm  
weight_g  
processor_id  
flag  
Definition:the assigned number to each specimen placed in 10% formalinthe sex of the fishdate of the measurements takenthe number of days since initial preservation on 2014-06-11measurement from the tip of the fish snout to their posterior end of the midlateral portion of the hyperial plate; this measurement excludes the tail, in mmmeasurement from the tip of the fish snout to the end of the caudal fin rays in mmmeasurement from the tip of fish snout to the end of the tail pressed together, in mm; intentionally not measured after 2014-06-25weight of fish in g after fish removed from preservative, rinsed and soaked in tap water, and drainedthe individual processor taking fish measurementsflag codes: nofl - no fork length measured due to damage to the fins of the fish, sometimes total length measured instead outlier - measurement value is greater than 3 standard deviations from the mean
Storage Type:string  
string  
date  
float  
float  
float  
float  
float  
string  
string  
Measurement Type:nominalnominaldateTimeratioratioratioratiorationominalnominal
Measurement Values Domain:
Definitionthe assigned number to each specimen placed in 10% formalin
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeM
Definitionmale
Source
Code Definition
CodeF
Definitionfemale
Source
FormatYYYY-MM-DD
Precision
UnitnominalDay
Typewhole
Min0 
Max2192 
Unitmillimeter
Typereal
Min55 
Max84.24 
Unitmillimeter
Typereal
Min58.47 
Max90.54 
Unitmillimeter
Typereal
Min63.88 
Max98 
Unitgram
Typereal
Min1.94 
Max8.0473 
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
Code1
Definitionprocessor 1
Source
Code Definition
Code1, 2, 3
Definitionprocessor 1, 2, 3
Source
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
Codenofl
Definitionno fork length measured; no longer able due to missing tail
Source
Code Definition
Codeoutlier
Definitionmeasurement value is greater than 3 standard deviations from the mean
Source
Missing Value Code:        
CodeNA
Explnot measured
CodeNA
Explnot measured
CodeNA
Explnot measured
    
CodeNA
Explno flag
Accuracy Report:                    
Accuracy Assessment:                    
Coverage:                    
Methods:                    

Data Package Usage Rights

This information is released under the Creative Commons license - Attribution - CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The consumer of these data ("Data User" herein) is required to cite it appropriately in any publication that results from its use. The Data User should realize that these data may be actively used by others for ongoing research and that coordination may be necessary to prevent duplicate publication. The Data User is urged to contact the authors of these data if any questions about methodology or results occur. Where appropriate, the Data User is encouraged to consider collaboration or co-authorship with the authors. The Data User should realize that misinterpretation of data may occur if used out of context of the original study. While substantial efforts are made to ensure the accuracy of data and associated documentation, complete accuracy of data sets cannot be guaranteed. All data are made available "as is." The Data User should be aware, however, that data are updated periodically and it is the responsibility of the Data User to check for new versions of the data. The data authors and the repository where these data were obtained shall not be liable for damages resulting from any use or misinterpretation of the data. Thank you.

Keywords

By Thesaurus:
(No thesaurus)formalin, Delta Smelt, preservation, total length, weight, Fish Conservation and Culture Laboratory, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Interagency Ecological Program, IEP

Methods and Protocols

These methods, instrumentation and/or protocols apply to all data in this dataset:

Methods and protocols used in the collection of this data package
Description:

On June 11th, 2014, a total of 48 Delta Smelt (males: n = 25 and females: n = 23) were provided ​to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) by the Fish Conservation and Culture Laboratory UC Davis, in Byron, CA. Live fish were euthanized using Tricaine methanesulfonate (MS-222) and promptly processed fresh for weight (g), standard length (SL; mm) and fork length (FL; mm). Following measurements, each fish was placed in a jar containing 200 ml of 10% buffered formalin preservative. The samples were then transported to the CDFW laboratory (Stockton, CA) for storage and future processing. Repeated measures of length and weight were recorded at the following time intervals ​after formalin preservation: 7, 14, 21, 28, 42, 56, 70, 84, 98, 112, 126, 140, 154, 168, 364, 728, 1094, 1457, 1815, and 2192 preservation days. Samples were mixed such that each measurement period (week) the processing order was variable. Prior to processing, fish were removed from preservative, rinsed with tap water for 30 seconds, and then soaked individual​ly in jars of 200 mls of tap water for 30 minutes. Fish were removed from water, blotted dry and buccal cavity (mouth) drained prior to weighing. Initial weights (fresh; day 0) were recorded ​using an Ohaus Scout Pro (0.01 g) and subsequent weights were recorded using a Mettler Toledo XS205DU (0.0001g). We lacked the ability to use the same scale for the initial weights as the rest of the study, but we did check the accuracy between the scales with calibration weights. Lengths were recorded using digital calipers.

People and Organizations

Creators:
Individual: Steven B. Slater
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
Steve.Slater@wildlife.ca.gov
Individual: Christina E. Burdi
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
Christina.Burdi@wildlife.ca.gov
Individual: Jereme W. Gaeta
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
Jereme.Gaeta@wildlife.ca.gov
Individual: Madeleine A. Frick
Email Address:
mfrick@ucsb.edu
Contacts:
Individual: Steven B. Slater
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
Steve.Slater@wildlife.ca.gov
Associated Parties:
Individual: Tricia Bippus
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
tricia.bippus@wildlife.ca.gov
Role:Associated Party
Individual: Interagency Ecological Program (IEP)
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
iep@wildlife.ca.gov
Role:Associated Party
Individual: Rhonda Paiste
Organization:California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Email Address:
rhonda.paiste@wildlife.ca.gov
Role:Associated Party

Temporal, Geographic and Taxonomic Coverage

Temporal, Geographic and/or Taxonomic information that applies to all data in this dataset:

Time Period
Begin:
2014-06-11
End:
2020-06-11
Sampling Site: 
Description:California Department of Fish and Wildlife Laboratory Stockton, CA
Site Coordinates:
Longitude (degree): -121.241808Latitude (degree): 37.906533

Project

Maintenance

Maintenance:
Description:Complete
Frequency:
Other Metadata

Copyright 2024 Environmental Data Initiative. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under grants #2223103 and #2223104. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in the material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Please contact us with questions, comments, or for technical assistance regarding this web site or the Environmental Data Initiative. Please read our privacy policy to know what information we collect about you and to understand your privacy rights.

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