478:, ascending from saltwater to freshwater to spawn. Smelt are also capable of completing their life history exclusively in freshwater. Landlocked adult rainbow smelt spawn shortly after ice-off at night in the lower reaches of streams. Shaw found in his research that no shoreline spawning had ever occurred. McKenzie states that the number of eggs extruded by a female is positively related to its size and Nellbring stated in his 1989 research that the eggs are adhesive and attach to substrates such as gravel, sand, mud, or submerged vegetation. Eggs are left unattended and hatch in 1–4 weeks, depending on water temperature. The time to sexual maturity is dependent on food supply and water temperature and abundant food and warmer temperatures encourage faster growth. Crossman and Scott state that in optimal conditions and large lakes, rainbow smelt may reach 35.6 centimetres (14.0 in) and can live for over seven years.
345:
487:
75:
412:). However, they also stated that this predator had not affected the population of bloaters but that impact could be a possibility. A 2003 study by Horppila et al. shows that smelt densities can exceed 40,000 individuals per hectare and may create a large predation pressure on the lake. Horppila et al. also states that a single smelt can consume between 0.12 and 0.14 grams food wet weight per day. Another study showed that in Lake Ontario the primary food sources for rainbow smelt were
50:
31:
228:
380:, New York, where they were intentionally introduced in 1917. The ability of rainbow smelt to disperse is determined by the connectivity of lakes, the ability of smelt to move through connecting streams, and the suitability of connected lakes as habitat. Rainbow smelt are weak swimmers so they cannot make it over fish ladders. This has helped to prevent an even wider spread of their range.
341:. The rainbow smelt has been introduced into water bodies in the U.S. states of Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
515:. While this is effective, it also harms other organisms and is unpopular with the public. Cox and Kitchell state that declines in smelt numbers, following natural recovery or stocking of grown predator fish, have been reported from lakes ranging in size from Lake Superior and Hessen. Additionally, similar results were found in a small pond near
307:
spring spawners and prefer clean streams with light flow and light siltation. The rainbow smelt face several barriers. They are weak swimmers and struggle to navigate fish ladders preventing them from making it past dams to the headwater streams where they spawn. The rise in erosion and dams helped
510:
The populations of the rainbow smelt in areas where it has been introduced, such as the Great Lakes, have been increasing in many regions, even with efforts to control its spread. Several things are being done to manage this species. Massive fish removal by over-fishing reduced the rainbow smelt
383:
Rainbow smelt occur in rivers, coastal areas and ponds. In their anadromous territories, they spend the summers along the coast, normally in waters no more than 20 feet (6.1 m) deep and no more than 1 mile (1.6 km) from shore. They overwinter under the ice in estuaries, producing an
320:
purple, blue, and pink on the sides, with a light underside. When full grown, the rainbow smelt is between 7 and 9 inches (18 and 23 cm) long and weighs about 3 ounces (85 g). Individuals over 12 inches (30 cm) long are known.
360:, from which fish escaped into Lake Michigan and spread quickly throughout the Great Lakes and their tributaries. Early records documenting the smelt's range expansion in the Great Lakes include Lake Michigan,
355:
Rainbow smelt invaded the Great Lakes watershed through the intentional introduction of eggs from historically known landlocked populations in Maine to
Crystal Lake, Michigan in 1912. This lake drains into
502:
and the spring smelt run is a tradition in many parts of their distribution. Fishing for rainbow smelt using a gill net has historically been a popular activity along the City of
Chicago's lakefront.
498:
alone was around 9 million fish, while today few smelt are found in the
Charles River. They are commonly processed into animal feed, but are also eaten by humans. They are a popular winter
519:, Norway in 1983. This research shows that the reintroduction of large piscivores such as walleye can help lead to the reduction of chemicals and poison needing to be used.
329:
The rainbow smelt is widespread across North
American watersheds. The North American native range of the rainbow smelt extends through the Atlantic drainages between
428:), but nothing was said on whether this predation had significant impact on the populations. In 1973 Havey reported that there was increased growth in landlocked
494:
Rainbow smelt are fished both commercially and for sport. Commercial harvests are down from historic levels; for example around 1880 an annual harvest from the
440:) could be a keystone predator species for the smelt. Hrabik et al. (1998) found evidence of competition for food between introduced rainbow smelt and native
533:
has some concerns regarding status and threats, but for which insufficient information is available to indicate a need to list the species under the U.S.
874:
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Roth, B.M.; T. R. Hrabik; C. T. Solomon; N. Mercado-Silva; T. F. Kitchell (2010). "A simulation of food-web interactions leading to rainbow smelt
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less than 6.0 in several surveys. Because of snowmelt, rainbow smelt eggs might be exposed to lethal pH decreases in poorly buffered lakes.
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376:. Rainbow smelt were first reported from Lake Ontario in 1929, and probably reached it by dispersal along natural waterways from the
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to decimate the smelt population in the 1980s. There are currently plans to try to reduce damming and to help control erosion.
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Treberg, J. R.; Wilson, C. E.; Richards, R. C.; Ewart, K. V.; Driedzic, W. R. (2002). "The freeze-avoidance response of smelt
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Bentzen, P.; Taylor, E. B. (1993). "Evidence for multiple origins and sympatric divergence of trophic ecotypes of smelt (
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populations in some lakes by the 1980s. Some people are taking a chemical approach to this growing problem, using
462:) by outcompeting for food. Acidity may alter smelt distributions because they were not found in small lakes with
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448:) in Wisconsin lake habitats, and smelt may be partially responsible for the decline of Great Lakes whitefish (
432:
populations after the introduction of the smelt. It was also shown by Brandt and Madon in 1986 that adult
1163:
1072:
1077:
621:"Fishway passage success for migratory rainbow smelt Osmerus mordax is not dictated by behavioural type"
986:
839:
Shaw, J. L.; Curry, R. A. (2011). "Ontogenetic divergence of growth among rainbow smelt morphotypes".
1282:
594:
454:
spp.). The U.S. EPA stated in 2008 that they believe the smelt contributed to the extinction of the
74:
1050:
316:
The body of the rainbow smelt is slender and cylindrical. It has a silvery, pale green back and is
1217:
804:: initiation and subsequent suppression of glycerol, trimethylamine oxide and urea accumulation".
303:), and other small organisms, but are aggressive and will eat almost any fish they find. They are
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388:. In the spring, they spawn at night in small streams, often ones that go dry in the summer.
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Landsman, S. J.; Wilson, A. D. M.; Cooke, S. J.; van den Heuvel, M. R. (2017).
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270:, and other larger fish prey on these smelt. The rainbow smelt prefer juvenile
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In 1883 Stedman and Argyle found that the rainbow smelt consumed
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746:. USGS Nonindiginous Aquatic Species Database. nas.er.usgs.gov.
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to Arctic drainages, and the
Pacific drainages as far south as
96:
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Nova Scotia
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries factsheet
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Gulf of Maine
Rainbow Smelt Information and Population Trends
267:
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Canadian
Technical report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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530:
252:
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529:, one of those species about which the U.S. Government's
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960:. Gardiner, Maine: Tilbury House. pp. 39–46.
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595:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T202413A18229730.en
531:National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
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904:dominance in Sparkling Lake, Wisconsin".
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773:Rooney, R. C.; Paterson, M. J. (2009).
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775:"Ecosystem effects of rainbow smelt (
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992:Species fact sheet by Earl J.S. Rook
1306:IUCN Red List least concern species
949:
806:The Journal of Experimental Biology
581:IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
13:
685:) in Northeastern North America".
14:
1352:
975:
524:National Marine Fisheries Service
1341:Taxa named by Samuel L. Mitchill
1321:Freshwater fish of North America
987:Michigan DNR Fish Identification
918:10.1111/j.1095-8649.2010.02764.x
742:Fuller P. and E. Maynard (2011)
73:
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841:Environmental Biology of Fishes
628:River Research and Applications
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490:Ice fishing for rainbow smelts
311:
1:
1316:Freshwater fish of the Arctic
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505:
958:Confluence: Merrymeeting Bay
779:) invasions in inland lakes"
522:The rainbow smelt is a U.S.
460:Stizostedion vitreum glaucum
7:
875:"Chicago's smelt tradition"
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10:
1357:
481:
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1331:Fish of the United States
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853:10.1007/s10641-011-9835-x
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70:Scientific classification
68:
46:
37:
28:
23:
656:; Pauly, Daniel (eds.).
325:Distribution and habitat
1326:Fish of the Great Lakes
906:Journal of Fish Biology
818:10.1242/jeb.205.10.1419
384:antifreeze protein and
288:Leptodiaptomus ashlandi
1336:Fish described in 1814
588:: e.T202413A18229730.
535:Endangered Species Act
491:
352:
247:) is a North American
234:
552:Pacific rainbow smelt
489:
351:-caught rainbow smelt
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230:
209:Osmerus mordax dentex
202:Osmerus mordax mordax
812:(Pt 10): 1419–1427.
670:. June 2006 version.
570:NatureServe (2013).
438:Salvalinus namaycush
410:Alosa pseudoharengus
40:Conservation status
939:Species of Concern
527:Species of Concern
492:
474:Rainbow smelt are
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1265:Open Tree of Life
1013:Taxon identifiers
967:978-0-88448-282-6
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634:(8): 1257–1267.
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339:Vancouver Island
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881:. 15 April 2015
879:Chicago Tribune
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976:External links
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902:Osmerus mordax
892:
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847:(2): 217–227.
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802:Osmerus mordax
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777:Osmerus mordax
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744:Osmerus mordax
720:
693:(3): 813–832.
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654:Froese, Rainer
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883:. Retrieved
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599:. Retrieved
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547:Smelt (fish)
521:
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493:
473:
470:Life history
459:
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445:
442:yellow perch
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370:Lake Ontario
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213:Steindachner
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127:Osmeriformes
18:
1213:NatureServe
1138:iNaturalist
1045:Wikispecies
601:11 November
517:Lillehammer
312:Description
276:zooplankton
195:Subspecies
1300:Categories
558:References
506:Management
476:anadromous
434:lake trout
366:Lake Huron
331:New Jersey
318:iridescent
305:anadromous
300:L. sicilis
294:L. minutus
687:Evolution
500:game fish
456:blue pike
451:Coregonus
362:Lake Erie
260:Osmeridae
155:Species:
137:Osmeridae
93:Kingdom:
87:Eukaryota
1218:2.934507
1156:10762776
1112:FishBase
1036:Q2641362
1030:Wikidata
926:21039511
885:26 April
861:20838420
826:11976353
715:28567890
667:FishBase
541:See also
513:Rotenone
406:alewives
398:bloaters
386:glycerol
335:Labrador
283:copepods
280:calanoid
278:such as
187:Mitchill
133:Family:
107:Chordata
103:Phylum:
97:Animalia
83:Domain:
60:IUCN 3.1
1311:Osmerus
1130:4283983
789:: 1–20.
707:2410186
683:Osmerus
537:(ESA).
482:Fishing
392:Ecology
272:ciscoes
264:Walleye
255:of the
249:species
189:, 1814)
148:Osmerus
143:Genus:
123:Order:
113:Class:
58: (
1283:126737
1270:739935
1244:126737
1195:202413
1182:162041
1143:179504
1104:357054
964:
924:
859:
824:
713:
705:
420:) and
404:) and
372:, and
257:family
219:, 1870
215:&
1278:WoRMS
1202:NAS:
1169:71169
1151:IRMNG
1091:74ZTP
1078:10696
857:S2CID
703:JSTOR
624:(PDF)
268:trout
1252:ODNR
1239:OBIS
1231:8014
1226:NCBI
1190:IUCN
1177:ITIS
1125:GBIF
1073:BOLD
962:ISBN
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