interesting.
my wc lng and sng would be mn population. now one thought to the flood stage i was talking about. are the gars having nothing in terms of chemistry with this would that include the river populations? the river that i found my lng fry in was in a flood stage o the river and the river was fluctuating from 5' to 15' above normal flow. it was in the st. crouix. with that much flow of run off i would think it would have some affect on them. could it be more of a poulation isolated spawning trigger of events/ combination that causes spawning and that is why it has been so hard to isolate the exact triggers? different populations have somewhat different triggers. like lake vs. river populations having different triggers? they would be simmilar to an extent so maybe that could explane the simulated spawning behavior and colors you experienced? also the increased water change may have simulated the run off but would the chemistry of the water be the same as say rain water? that may also be a reason for the mock spawn but no actual spawn. maybe it is the actual rain water that triggers it. may be off but a thought.
i know of a few lakes around me that no one i have talked with that live on the lakes have seen gars, but the dnr gets them in every servay. they never get bowfished from those lakes or seen by fisherman and these are big walleye/muskie lakes so they get pressure day and night. could the behavioral difference between the lake and river fish be that different that it has an effect on spawn triggers aswell?
one reason i am kinda stuck on the spring flood as a possible spawn trigger is i have corralated it with other spieces. i am an avid fisherman aswell as hobbyist. i have been catching and timing the lake sturgeon and trout spring runs to spawn for years. now i am sure that the sturgeons directly relate to the flood stage to trigger the spring run. i have been keeping notes over the years. the fish i catch are larger spawning age fish during the second rise of the river. they also are on the move more when the river is on the rise. as the river falls they seem to stop the run/feed. also while the river is stable the sturgeon bite is slowed and we get more nursery fish. also the fish spawn at a dam just up river. they get into the base of tge dam at flood stage and become trapped during the low stable times. the dnr have a sanctuary in the reigon the get stuck in. i have also documented the temps of the river during this time frame. normally once the river reaches 50f it begins to flood for the second time. on years that the river gets to 50f without a rise in flow the big sturgeon dont move until the second rise. the higher the rise the bigger the migration and the more large broodstock fish we catch. this corralation i have seen with the steelhead on the north shore of lake superior. the temps are colder, but the river runoff is the same. you can even see the run off enter the big lake at the time the steelhead make there run via satilite. these rivers that the steelheads run into change from a few feet deep creeks to raging rivers and the fish come. i think that it may have a simmilar effect with gars, but it may be the actual rain water or runnoff water that we cant get from a wc not consiting of said water. like i said not sure if you used or have tried actual rain water or snow melt during your seasonal wc increase. did see if you have or have not. it may not make as much of a difference as i see it to, but i cant get it out of my head as a possibility.
also could the introductions of tannes to the water from the spring floods play a part in the spawn trigger? new pockets of tannes being flushed out with the high water cause a change in chemistry. could they be a possible trigger or if combined with the runnoff? i have so many thoughts running through my mind on this and possibilities.
i know roof runoff rain water is bad so i planned on having the bins out in an open area to collect the rain water not contaminated by roof or other things.
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