The influence of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) predation and habitat complexity on the structure of littoral zone fish assemblages

2001 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 342-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela SD MacRae ◽  
Donald A Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Complexity ◽  
Littoral Zone ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Visual Assessment ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Culaea Inconstans ◽  
Brook Stickleback ◽  
The Impact

Fish assemblages in small lakes ([Formula: see text]50 ha) in central Ontario were characterized to determine the impact of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) predation and habitat complexity on the structure of littoral zone fish assemblages. Data were collected employing minnow traps and visual assessment. Although species richness did not differ between lakes with and without smallmouth bass, species composition and relative abundance did differ. We identified two distinct fish assemblage types: one characterized by small-bodied species, mainly cyprinids, and a second by large-bodied centrarchid species, e.g., smallmouth bass. Smallmouth bass appear to reduce abundance, alter habitat use, and extirpate many small-bodied species such as brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans), fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas), pearl dace (Margariscus margarita), and Phoxinus spp.

Factors influencing Fish Assemblages and Species Richness in Subtropical Florida Lakes and a Comparison with Temperate Lakes

1990 ◽  
Vol 47 (11) ◽  
pp. 2137-2146 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. E. Keller ◽  
T. L. Crisman
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Littoral Zone ◽  
Trophic State ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Temperate Lakes ◽  
Florida Lakes ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Dissolved Aluminum ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Lake Size

From detailed analyses of 36 lakes, we determined that while species assemblages and richness change with lake size, trophic state, and pH, the responses were not as dramatic in Florida as in temperate lakes. At a given pH, there were more species in Florida lakes than in comparable lakes of the temperate zone. The impact of lake size on species richness was also less obvious in Florida lakes. The greater importance of centrarchids, increased contribution of the littoral zone to primary production, and lower dissolved aluminum levels may contribute to greater species richness in Florida lakes than in temperate lakes of comparable pH or size.

Spatial and temporal distributions of smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) nests in Lake Opeongo, Ontario

1997 ◽  
Vol 54 (9) ◽  
pp. 2007-2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Rejwan ◽  
B J Shuter ◽  
M S Ridgway ◽  
N C Collins
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Littoral Zone ◽  
Nest Site ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Competitive Interactions ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Distributions ◽  
Nest Site Choice ◽  
Habitat Variables

Smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) nests were patchily distributed within the littoral zone of Lake Opeongo at two spatial scales (1 km and 100 m shoreline segments). Nest locations were recorded by snorkelling along 155 and 6.3 km of littoral zone over 4 and 11 years, respectively. The degree of patchiness was greater and occurred more consistently at the 1-km than at the 100-m spatial scale. However, the degree of patchiness was not significantly affected by 200% differences in spawning population size, implying that competitive interactions did not strongly influence nest locations over the study period. High-density nesting areas remained stationary between years at the 1-km and 100-m scales. This suggests that habitat variables having stationary spatial characteristics, influence nest site choice. Since the locations of nest patches are less stationary and less consistent among 100-m than among 1-km scale sites, influential habitat variables at the 100-m scale are either less important to the locations of nests or less stationary from year-to-year in their effects on nest distributions. If stationary nest patches are typical of spawning smallmouth bass in lakes, permanent protection of known patch locations could enhance their reproductive success.

Laboratory survival of four prey in the presence of northern pike

1989 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 418-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clifford L. K. Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Fathead Minnow ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Perca Flavescens ◽  
Relative Survival ◽  
Single Species ◽  
Northern Pike ◽  
Culaea Inconstans ◽  
Predator Interactions ◽  
Brook Stickleback

I determined experimentally the relative survival of similar-sized yellow perch (Perca flavescens), brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans), fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas), and finescale dace (Phoxinus neogaeus), individually and in all possible species combinations, in the presence of northern pike (Esox lucius). Overall, perch showed the highest, sticklebacks and dace the intermediate, and fatheads the lowest relative survival. Differential laboratory survival of prey demonstrates the utility of single species experiments in predicting the results of multiple prey and predator interactions. The results also support the hypothesis that piscivory can maintain the distinctness of assemblages of predation-tolerant and piscivorous species versus assemblages of predation-intolerant species.

Branching complexity and morphological characteristics of coarse woody structure as lacustrine fish habitat

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (9) ◽  
pp. 2110-2123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael G Newbrey ◽  
Michael A Bozek ◽  
Martin J Jennings ◽  
James E Cook
Keyword(s):  
Littoral Zone ◽  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Fish Habitat ◽  
Lepomis Macrochirus ◽  
Perca Flavescens ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Rock Bass ◽  
Ambloplites Rupestris

The objective of this study was to quantify the physical characteristics of coarse woody structure (CWS) as fish habitat in a north temperate lake. Sixteen species of fish were observed in submerged CWS habitat. Branching complexity, distance above the bole, area below the bole, distance to other CWS, and water depth around CWS were significantly related to abundance of schooling cyprinids (Cyprinidae), rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris), smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu), bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), yellow perch (Perca flavescens), and walleye (Sander vitreus). Branching complexity was the most common characteristic of CWS related to richness, diversity, and total adult abundance of fish taxa, but was not correlated with the total lengths of fish found in submerged trees. Branching-complexity values ranged from 1 (simple) to 500 (moderately complex) in the littoral zone; for comparison, a living riparian conifer had a branching-complexity value of over 1000. Most CWS in the littoral zone was composed of simple trees without branching, but fish tended to inhabit CWS with branching-complexity values greater than 45. This study shows the importance of CWS with fine branching as littoral-zone fish habitat.

Historical Changes in Large River Fish Assemblages of the Americas

2005 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Waste Treatment ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
River System ◽  
Agricultural Runoff ◽  
Large River ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Ohio River ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
Wabash River ◽  
Spotted Bass

<em>Abstract.</em>—The present ichthyofauna (1965–2001) of the Wabash River system is compared to that of three periods: presettlement through 1820, 1875–1900, and 1940– 1950. This second largest Ohio River tributary flows freely for 350 mi. However, its environment and watershed have been altered greatly from presettlement times; twothirds has been converted to agriculture, eliminating all prairies and most forests and wetlands. Canals, large and small dams, channelization, and effluents have extinguished 12 fish species, diminished some, and favored others. Thirteen of approximately 175 species are recent, including 3 aliens. Better municipal and industrial waste treatment has improved water quality, but excessive agricultural runoff remains detrimental to many fishes. Degraded habitats exacerbate these problems. Many sensitive species are today either absent or severely reduced in distribution and abundance compared to 50 years ago. Smallmouth bass <em>Micropterus dolomieu </em>has been replaced by largemouth bass <em>M. salmoides </em>or spotted bass <em>M. punctulatus, </em>and few visual piscivores occur except near reservoirs.

Managing Centrarchid Fisheries in Rivers and Streams

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Growth Models ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Smallmouth Bass ◽  
Ecological Change ◽  
Micropterus Dolomieu ◽  
River Herring ◽  
Penobscot River ◽  
Tidal Area ◽  
Dam Removals

<em>Abstract.</em>—Fish assemblages in Atlantic coastal rivers have undergone extensive ecological change in the last two and a half centuries due to human influence, including extirpation of many migratory fish species, such as river herring <em> Alosa </em>spp. and introduction of nonnative piscivores, notably Smallmouth Bass <em> Micropterus dolomieu</em>. Recently, dam removals and fish passage improvements in the Penobscot River, Maine, have allowed river herring to return to reaches of the river that have been inaccessible since the late 19th century. Alosine populations have increased and this trend is anticipated to continue. This may increase forage in the system which could potentially increase growth for Smallmouth Bass, the dominant piscivore. We examined the diet and growth of Smallmouth Bass collected from areas of the Penobscot River watershed with and without access to river herring as prey. We collected 765 Smallmouth Bass throughout 2015, examined the stomach contents of 573 individuals, and found notable differences in diet among three river reaches with common seasonal trends. Juvenile river herring composed an average of 19% (SE = ±6%) of stomach contents by mass from Smallmouth Bass collected in the freshwater tidal area but were rarely observed in the diets upstream. We used estimates from von Bertalanffy growth models to examine differences in growth among reaches and found that asymptotic length was the longest (425 mm TL) in the Tidal reach where access to river herring was unrestricted. We then used these data to predict changes to growth associated with increased access to juvenile river herring prey with bioenergetics models. Results indicated that substituting juvenile river herring for less energy-dense prey (e.g., invertebrates) may lead to increases in seasonal growth throughout the watershed as river herring populations continue to rebound in response to dam removal. Our results provide insight into the diet and growth of Smallmouth Bass in a large New England river, and provide a foundation for future work investigating unfolding changes to these characteristics following recent dam removals.

Influence of Environmental Factors and Piscivory in Structuring Fish Assemblages of Small Alberta Lakes

1989 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clifford L. K. Robinson ◽  
William M. Tonn
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Hierarchical Classification ◽  
Detrended Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Northern Pike ◽  
Boreal Lakes ◽  
Culaea Inconstans ◽  
Dominant Process

We surveyed 45 small lakes in central Alberta to determine if discrete, repeatable types of fish assemblages exist, to identify the main environmental and biotic processes likely responsible for assemblage-level patterns, and to compare and contrast Alberta patterns with those observed in other regions of North America. Overall, 11 species of fish were caught in 36 lakes; nine lakes were fishless. Hierarchical classification and detrended correspondence analysis of fish species presence/absence identified two main assemblage types, characterized by northern pike (Esox lucius) and yellow perch (Perca flavescens) versus brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) and fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas). Pike/perch lakes were significantly deeper and larger than lakes of the stickleback/fathead assemblage type; however, a subset of the former group lacking yellow perch was environmentally similar to stickleback/fathead lakes. Piscivory by northern pike appears to be the dominant process maintaining nearly complete negative associations between members of the two assemblage types. Despite environmental and faunal-richness differences, our results were not unlike those from southern Ontario and northern Wisconsin. For small boreal lakes of North America, piscivory and processes related to a small number of environmental variables, such as maximum depth, surface area, and isolation, appear to be most important in structuring fish assemblages.

Risk of Predation and Its Influence on the Relative Competitive Abilities of Two Species of Freshwater Fishes

1994 ◽  
Vol 51 (7) ◽  
pp. 1629-1633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark V. Abrahams
Keyword(s):  
Yellow Perch ◽  
Fathead Minnow ◽  
Pimephales Promelas ◽  
Turbid Water ◽  
Feeding Rates ◽  
Culaea Inconstans ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Brook Stickleback ◽  
Competitive Abilities ◽  
Two Parameters

Experiments were conducted with fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) and brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) to determine whether their relative feeding rates were affected by risk of predation. Six groups of both species were observed foraging for food provided by an automated feeder while two parameters were manipulated: the presence or absence of a predator, yellow perch (Perca flavescens), and clear or turbid water. It was hypothesized that the armour and spines of brook stickleback would be of greatest benefit during a direct encounter with a predator. I attempted to simulate this condition with turbid water and predator present. Feeding rates of the two species were significantly different, with fathead minnow feeding at a greater rate than brook stickleback in the absence of a predator. In the presence of a predator the feeding rate of fathead minnow declined significantly whereas that of brook stickleback was unaffected. This resulted in similar feeding rates for the two species in the presence of a predator. Results demonstrate that risk of predation can alter the relative competitive abilities of two species in situations where one species possesses a morphological adaptation against predation. In the absence of predators, these traits may be detrimental in interspecific competition for food.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document