Conservation biologists often face the trade-off that increasing connectivity in fragmented landscapes to reduce extinction risk of native species can foster invasion by non-native species that enter via the corridors created, which can then increase extinction risk. This dilemma is acute for stream fishes
Invasion by nonnative brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) often results in replacement of cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki) in the inland western United States, but the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. We conducted a four-year removal experiment to test for population-level mechanisms (i.e., changes in recruitment, survival, emigration, and immigration) promoting invasion success of brook trout and causing decline of native Colorado River cutthroat trout (O. c. pleuriticus). We chose 700-1200 m segments of four small mountain streams where brook trout had recently invaded cutthroat trout populations, two each at mid elevation (2500-2700 m) and high elevation (3150-3250 m), and annually removed brook trout from two streams (treatments), but not the other two (controls). We used depletion electrofishing, two-way fish weirs, and mark-recapture methods to estimate abundance, movement, and survival of trout. At mid elevation, age-0 and age-1 cutthroat trout survived at 13 times and two times higher rates on average, respectively, where brook trout were removed. At high-elevation sites, recruitment of cutthroat trout failed despite brook trout removals, apparently because of cold water temperatures. In contrast, age-2 and older cutthroat trout survived at similar rates, whether brook trout were removed or not and regardless of elevation. Summer movement by cutthroat trout was unaffected by removal of brook trout. We conclude that brook trout depress cutthroat trout populations at mid elevation through age-specific biotic interactions that reduce juvenile cutthroat trout survival, whereas populations restricted to high-elevation sites by invasion continue to decline because an abiotic factor (low temperature) causes recruitment failure. In comparison, brook trout survived at the same or higher rates than same-aged cutthroat trout. High immigration by brook trout recolonized depleted segments, and may help sustain invasions in sink habitats where environmental conditions limit recruitment. In streams similar to those we studied, eradication of brook trout is likely necessary to eliminate the threat to native cutthroat trout, but selective removal regimes that capture a high percentage of the brook trout population for least three consecutive years, repeated periodically, may permit cutthroat trout populations to persist with brook trout. To identify underlying mechanisms responsible for successful invasion by mobile, age-structured vertebrates such as stream fishes, experiments conducted at realistic spatial and temporal scales and including multiple age classes will be required.
Native salmonid fishes often face simultaneous threats from habitat fragmentation and invasion by nonnative trout species. Unfortunately, management actions to address one may create or exacerbate the other. A consistent decision process would include a systematic analysis of when and where intentional use or removal of barriers is the most appropriate action. We developed a Bayesian belief network as a tool for such analyses. We focused on native westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi) and nonnative brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and considered the environmental factors influencing both species, their potential interactions, and the effects of isolation on the persistence of local cutthroat trout populations. The trade-offs between isolation and invasion were strongly influenced by size and habitat quality of the stream network to be isolated and existing demographic linkages within and among populations. An application of the model in several sites in western Montana (USA) showed the process could help clarify management objectives and options and prioritize conservation actions among streams. The approach can also facilitate communication among parties concerned with native salmonids, nonnative fish invasions, barriers and intentional isolation, and management of the associated habitats and populations.Résumé : Les poissons salmonidés indigènes font souvent face simultanément à une double menace représentée par la fragmentation des habitats et l'invasion de salmonidés non indigènes. Malheureusement, les aménagements faits pour régler un de ces problèmes peuvent faire surgir ou exacerber le second. Un processus de décision cohérent devrait inclure une analyse systématique du moment et de l'endroit les plus appropriés pour l'érection ou le retrait de barriè-res. Nous avons mis au point un réseau de croyance bayésien pour servir d'outil pour ces analyses. Nous nous sommes intéressés spécifiquement à la truite fardée (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi) indigène du versant occidental et à l'omble de fontaine (Salvelinus fontinalis) non indigène; nous avons tenu compte des facteurs du milieu qui influencent les deux espèces, de leurs interactions potentielles et des effets de l'isolement sur la persistance des populations locales de truites fardées. Les compromis entre l'isolement et l'invasion sont fortement influencés par la taille et la qualité des habitats du réseau de cours d'eau à isoler, ainsi que par les liens démographiques établis à l'intérieur des populations et entre elles. L'utilisation du modèle dans plusieurs sites de l'ouest du Montana (É.-U.) montre que le processus peut servir à éclaircir les objectifs et les options de l'aménagement et à établir les priorités des initiatives de conservation dans les différents cours d'eau. Cette méthode peut aussi faciliter la communication entre les divers intervenants préoc-cupés par les salmonidés indigènes, les invasions de poissons non indigènes, les barrières et l'isolement délibéré, ainsi que par l'aménagement des habitats et des populations ...
Impending changes in climate will interact with other stressors to threaten aquatic ecosystems and their biota. Native Colorado River cutthroat trout (CRCT; Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus) are now relegated to 309 isolated high-elevation (>1700 m) headwater stream fragments in the Upper Colorado River Basin, owing to past nonnative trout invasions and habitat loss. Predicted changes in climate (i.e., temperature and precipitation) and resulting changes in stochastic physical disturbances (i.e., wildfire, debris flow, and channel drying and freezing) could further threaten the remaining CRCT populations. We developed an empirical model to predict stream temperatures at the fragment scale from downscaled climate projections along with geomorphic and landscape variables. We coupled these spatially explicit predictions of stream temperature with a Bayesian Network (BN) model that integrates stochastic risks from fragmentation to project persistence of CRCT populations across the upper Colorado River basin to 2040 and 2080. Overall, none of the populations are at risk from acute mortality resulting from high temperatures during the warmest summer period. In contrast, only 37% of populations have a ≥90% chance of persistence for 70 years (similar to the typical benchmark for conservation), primarily owing to fragmentation. Populations in short stream fragments <7 km long, and those at the lowest elevations, are at the highest risk of extirpation. Therefore, interactions of stochastic disturbances with fragmentation are projected to be greater threats than warming for CRCT populations. The reason for this paradox is that past nonnative trout invasions and habitat loss have restricted most CRCT populations to high-elevation stream fragments that are buffered from the potential consequences of warming, but at risk of extirpation from stochastic events. The greatest conservation need is for management to increase fragment lengths to forestall these risks.
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