On the developmental pathway to nonanadromy in sockeye salmon, Oncorhynchus nerka

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Abstract
The evolution of nonanadromous forms of salmonids has been linked to adaptive similarities between migration to the sea and migration to lakes, and to inhibition of smoltification by rapid development rates and early maturation. We examined the seasonal cycle of seawater adaptability in a landlocked (10 000 years) population of kokanee, Oncorhynchus nerka, to determine if the typical anadromous cycle persists in the absence of recent gene flow from sockeye salmon, as would be expected if components of smoltification are beneficial to a lacustrine existence. We also monitored the effects of maturation on seawater adaptability, to determine if they had an inhibitory effect on smoltification, as would be expected if a developmental conflict was responsible for the evolution of nonanadromous forms. Maturation was measured through the growth of gonadal tissue and the increase in circulating testosterone and 11-ketotestosterone. Landlocked kokanee showed the seawater adaptability cycle typical of sockeye salmon, and maturation had no inhibitory effect on seawater adaptability until near, or at, full maturity. We conclude that at least some components of smoltification must be beneficial to a life in lakes to account for the continued maintenance of the cycle. Further, rapid development and maturation on their own do not appear to account for the evolution of nonanadromous populations of O. nerka.

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