Evaluating the utility of a point of care device to assess physiological differences among wild boreal fishes

Abstract

With the increasing risk of anthropogenic impacts in boreal ecosystems there is a need for tools to rapidly assess impacts on organisms and properly inform resource managers. Though well-researched, the i-STAT a portable Point-of-Care device has been minimally validated in species and environments, especially those that represent freshwater species in cold, boreal environments. To determine the accuracy of the i7 STAT, blood from Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush) and White Sucker (Catostomus commersoni) was collected from the IISD Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) and analyses compared between traditional lab methods and results of the i-STAT POCD. The stability of i-STAT-based whole blood parameters was also evaluated over 3-4 hours for both ELA and captive Lake Trout. Finally, the i-STAT was tested in ambient conditions that are outside of its recommended usage (<16°C) to assess changes in physiological status in spawning Lake Trout across various capture and handling methods from five ELA lakes in October 2020. The time between capture method and blood sampling was also assessed for spawning Lake Trout. [...]