**The title, authors, and abstract for this completion report are provided below.  For a copy of the completion report, please contact the GLFC via e-mail or via telephone at 734-662-3209**

Sex Pheromone Communication in the Sea Lamprey, Part 3

Weiming Li¹, Nicholas Johnson², and Cory Brant¹

¹ Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, Room 13, Natural Resources Building, East Lansing, MI 48824

² USGS Hammond Bay Biological Station, 11188 Ray Rd. Millersburg, MI 49759

December 2010

Abstract

The four objectives of this project were: 1) Determine whether 3kPZS mainly induces upstream movement in ovulated females, 2) Determine whether Δ⁴-bile acids mainly signal approaching ovulated females to land in a nest, 3) Determine whether 3kACA mainly induces spawning behaviors of ovulated females in a nest, and 4) Determine release patterns of pheromone compounds by feral males in nests. Our data, pertinent to each objective respectively, demonstrated that: 1) 3kPZS induced robust upstream odor-conditioned rheotaxis of ovulated females, drew them past natural male odors, and lured them into traps, 2) A male-released sulfated bile acid similar to 3kPZS induced increased upstream movement and promoted landing on a nest of ovulated females in streams, 3) 3kACA did not induce preference or nesting behaviors of ovulating females; however, a valuable discovery of an optimal behaviorally-active pheromone extraction technique from spermiating male-conditioned water was determined, and 4) The release rate of three identified male compounds were affected by a suite of environmental, physical, and behavioral variables. Our findings have been applied in the development of the first field scale study of the pheromone-based control for a non-indigenous aquatic vertebrate, the sea lamprey.