Life History and Taxonomic Status of an Isolated Population of Arctic Char, Salvelinus alpinus, from Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland

Abstract

Landlocked Arctic char, Salvelinus alpinus, from Candlestick Pond, Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland, were characterized by slow growth, short life span (max 7 yr), and small size (max fork length = 164 mm). Sexual maturity was obtained at age 3, fecundity was low (max 104 ova per fish), and spawning annual. Major food items were zooplankton and aquatic insect larvae. Eight morphometric and eight meristic characters were examined and compared with available literature data for nonanadromous S. alpinus in eastern North America. Arctic char from Candlestick Pond were not significantly different from S. alpinus oquassa from Quebec and Maine but were significantly different from char from Labrador and other locations in insular Newfoundland. It is proposed that Arctic char from Candlestick Pond are descendents of an aboriginal form of S. alpinus that has been largely displaced along the Atlantic coast of North America. Key words: Salvelinus alpinus, Newfoundland, life history, taxonomic status