Upper Great Lakes Kiyi
Scientific Name: Coregonus kiyi kiyi
Taxonomy Group: Fishes
Last COSEWIC Assessment: May 2005
Last COSEWIC Designation: Special Concern
SARA Status: Schedule 1, Special Concern
Image of Upper Great Lakes Kiyi
The Kiyi (Coregonus kiyi kiyi) is among the deepest water forms of cisco species found in Canada. It is a member of the Salmonidae family and has the following characteristics: a laterally compressed body with large eyes that comprise 22 to 26 per cent of the head length; a terminal mouth with lower jaw usually extending beyond the upper jaw; is mainly silver in colour with some pink and purple iridescences; has long paired fins; is sexually mature between ages two and five years; and has a typical measurements range between 100 and 200 millimeters, and weights of 10 to 60 grams, but has been recorded in excess of 300 millimeters and 125 grams.
Distribution and Population
The Kiyi is endemic to all of the Laurentian Great Lakes except Lake Erie. The Upper Great Lakes population (Coregonus kiyi kiyi) is believed to currently exist only in Lake Superior. Believed extirpated, it was last recorded in Lake Huron in 1973 and in Lake Michigan in 1974. The Lake Ontario population (Coregonus kiyi orientalis) is considered extinct, last recorded in 1964. Kiyi appears to be widely distributed in the deep waters of the offshore (generally most abundant at depths of 150 meters) making up a significant proportion of the fish community in Lake Superior. They are also found in reduced numbers in the shallow waters of the nearshore. Kiyi move to shallower water depths at night, typically less than 50 meters, in search of their prey.
Little is known about the habitat preferences and life history of the Kiyi. It lives in a clear, cold-water environment at depths ranging from 10 meters to 305 meters, with peak abundances found at depths between 130 to 150 meters. Kiyi have been collected over lake bottoms of clay and mud substrates.
Spawning generally occurs in the late fall at depths between 91 and 168 meters. The age of maturity is between two and five years. The maximum known age for females is 22 years, and 16 for males. The Kiyi is prey for Burbot (Lota lota) and deepwater forms of Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush). Kiyi eggs may also provide a prey source for other fish, including Lake Whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis). The Kiyi feeds on deepwater crustaceans such as Mysis relicta and Diporeia hoyi. Secondary prey items chironomids, calanoid copepods, clams and Daphnia species.
Commercial overfishing of Kiyi was likely the cause of its decline in lakes Huron, Michigan and Ontario. Remaining Kiyi populations in lakes Huron and Ontario likely have competed with, or have been preyed upon by, introduced fish species such as the Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus), Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus mordax). Other issues, including degraded water quality (from the continuing pressures of contaminant and nutrient inputs in the Great Lakes) are also ongoing, with likely impacts on Kiyi survival and habitat. Climate change has been identified as a possible factor that could worsen the situation in the future. Lastly, certain pathogens, particularly viral hemorrhagic septicaemia (VHS), have the potential to generate mass mortality in a variety of fish species. Detected in Lake Superior watershed in 2010, future outbreaks of VHS could decimate the remaining Kiyi population.
Federal ProtectionMore information about SARA, including how it protects individual species, is available in the Species at Risk Act: A Guide.
Provincial and Territorial Protection
PLEASE NOTE: Not all COSEWIC reports are currently available on the SARA Public Registry. Most of the reports not yet available are status reports for species assessed by COSEWIC prior to May 2002. Other COSEWIC reports not yet available may include those species assessed as Extinct, Data Deficient or Not at Risk. In the meantime, they are available on request from the COSEWIC Secretariat.
8 record(s) found.
- COSEWIC Status Reports (1 record(s) found.)
- COSEWIC Assessments (1 record(s) found.)
- Response Statements (1 record(s) found.)
- Management Plans (1 record(s) found.)
- Orders (2 record(s) found.)
- COSEWIC Annual Reports (1 record(s) found.)
- Consultation Documents (1 record(s) found.)
COSEWIC Status Reports
COSEWIC Assessment - Kiyi (2005)Lake Ontario Kiyi Designated Special Concern in April 1988. Split into two subspecies (Upper Great Lakes kiyi and Lake Ontario kiyi) in May 2005. The Lake Ontario kiyi was designated Extinct in May 2005. Last assessment based on an update status report. ________________________________________________________________ Upper Great Lakes Kiyi Designated Special Concern in April 1988. Split into two subspecies (Upper Great Lakes kiyi and Lake Ontario kiyi) in May 2005. The Upper Great Lakes kiyi was designated Special Concern in May 2005. Last assessment based on an update status report.
COSEWIC Annual Reports
COSEWIC Annual Report - 2005 (2005)2005 Annual Report to the Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council (CESCC) from the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada.
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