Pleistocene Watershed Exchanges and the Fish Fauna of the Peel River Basin, Yukon Territory
- 1 March 1977
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Canadian Science Publishing in Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada
- Vol. 34 (3), 388-395
- https://doi.org/10.1139/f77-062
Abstract
The Peel River basin is a unique Canadian glacial refugium containing many relict fish populations. Peel River is presently tributary to the Mackenzie River system, but at least twice during Pleistocene glaciations it was diverted into headwaters of the Yukon River system, offering the possibility of two-way transfer of aquatic organisms between the Mackenzie and Yukon. Present fish distributions in the Peel basin are summarized. Biochemical and morphological evidence suggests that races of at least six species now inhabiting the area (Coregonus clupeaformis, Prosopium coulteri, Thymallus arcticus, Salvelinus namaycush, Esox lucius, Cottus cognatus) originated from types which either came from the Yukon River system or developed in situ in unglaciated parts of the Peel.This publication has 6 references indexed in Scilit:
- Evidences of multiple glaciation in South Nahanni National Park, Mackenzie Mountains, Northwest TerritoriesCanadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 1976
- The Number of Genes for Lactate Dehydrogenase in Salmonid FishesJournal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada, 1976
- Intraspecific Variations and Postglacial Distribution of Lake Char (Salvelinus namaycush)Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada, 1971
- Pleistocene Pike, Esox lucius, and Esox sp., from the Yukon Territory and OntarioCanadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 1970
- Pleistocene grayling, Thymallus, from Yukon, CanadaCanadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 1969
- Problems in Zoogeography of the Lake Trout, Salvelinus namaycushJournal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada, 1964