Stuart Welsh, PhD

Invasive species are often central to conservation efforts, particularly when concerns involve potential impacts on rare, endemic native species. The lower New River drainage of the eastern United States is a watershed that warrants conservation assessment, as the system is naturally depauperate of native fish species and it is nearly saturated with non-native fish species: there are 31...

The Paddlefish (Polyodon spathula), a large-bodied and highly migratory species of large river systems, has experienced population declines or extirpation in parts of its native range. As an effort to reestablish a Paddlefish population in the Ohio River of West Virginia, the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources has stocked fingerling Paddlefish in the previous two decades. Post...

The management and conservation of faunas at regional scales depend on current data on species diversity and distribution. Relative to the ichthyofauna of West Virginia, few studies have recently documented the richness and distribution of fishes in the state, with even the most comprehensive publications rarely discussing either the conservation status of individual fishes or historical...

In a laboratory experiment, we quantified microhabitat use of small yellow-phase American eels (Anguilla rostrata, n = 130, 224–338 mm TL) conditional on five benthic substrate types common to rivers within their geographic range. During nine, 4-day trials replicated with three aquaria, American eels were given a choice to burrow into five equally available benthic substrates: cobble (90...

Flathead catfish (Pylodictis olivaris) were sampled in the Robert C. Byrd Pool of the Ohio and Kanawha rivers, West Virginia, to inform management decisions based on population characteristics of size structure, age, growth, and mortality. Sampling was conducted with low-frequency boat electrofishing during late May to early June over a four-year period (2017–2020). We examined size...

Understanding walleye (Sander vitreus) spawning behavior is important for managing walleye fisheries, but such information is limited for Appalachian reservoirs. We assessed spawning movements and spawning locations for a reestablished walleye population in Cheat Lake, West Virginia. We tagged fifty-two walleye with acoustic telemetry transmitters to evaluate environmental correlates...

Historically, the Monongahela, Tygart, and Cheat River watersheds in West Virginia were impaired by acidification from acid mine drainage and Walleye Sander vitreus were extirpated from these watersheds by the 1940s. Walleye were reestablished after water quality improvements following passage of environmental legislation and subsequent reintroduction efforts. We compared population...

Crayfish are an aquatic fauna of conservation concern, yet regional studies are lacking on zoogeography and life history. We compared recent and historical species distribution data and assessed conservation standings of native and nonindigenous crayfish of the Potomac River Basin in West Virginia. From 2007–2011, a total of 1764 crayfish were collected from 159 sites. Data collection...

The disjunct distribution of Cambarus monongalensis has led to speculation about its taxonomic status. An Appalachian Plateau population occurs in northern and central West Virginia and Southwestern Pennsylvania, and a mountain population occurs in the Allegheny Mountains and Ridge and Valley physiographic provinces of the Virginias. Herein we describe the mountain population as Cambarus...

Estimates of population characteristics of sport fishes inform fisheries management decisions and provide feedback on management strategies. Cheat Lake provides an unusual fishery in West Virginia because the hydropower reservoir supports a Yellow Perch Perca flavescens population. We estimated age structure, size structure, condition, total instantaneous mortality, growth, and summer...

Candy Darters (Etheostoma osburni) and Variegate Darters (E. variatum) are both native to West Virginia and Virginia. The geographic ranges of these two species were historically separated by Kanawha Falls, a natural barrier to fish dispersal located at Glen Ferris, WV. In the early 1980s, Variegate Darters or putative hybrids (E. osburni × E. variatum) were first collected at locations...

Extreme flood events can substantially affect riverine systems, modifying instream habitat and influencing fish assemblages and densities. Rare species are especially vulnerable to these disturbance events because of their small population size and often reduced phenotypic heterogeneity. In June 2016 the lower Elk River in West Virginia experienced severe flooding, resulting in a peak...