Correlations of Regulated Lake Levels and Climatic Factors with Abundance of Young-of-the-Year Walleye and Yellow Perch in Four Lakes in Voyageurs National Park

Abstract

The relationships between year‐class strengths of walleye Stizostedion vitreum and yellow perch Perca flavescens, as determined from seine catches of young of the year, and regulated lake levels, air and water temperatures, and wind velocities during the spawning period of both species were studied in four lakes in Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota, from 1981 through 1985. Significant positive correlations were found between lake level and walleye year‐class strength in three of the four lakes sampled. The correlation between lake level and yellow perch year‐class strength, while generally positive, was significant in only one lake. Significant positive correlations were also found between thermal conditions during the 30‐d period following ice‐out and year‐class strengths of walleye and yellow perch; the strongest year classes of both species were produced in years with higher, more stable temperatures. An alternative water management scheme is proposed that may enhance walleye and yellow perch reproductive success by providing higher lake levels earlier in the spring.

Effect of a Simulated Cold-Front on Hatching Success of Yellow Perch Eggs

“…Similarly, fluctuations in spring water temperature may affect subsequent yellow perch recruitment. Yellow perch and Eurasian perch year-class strength is higher during springs with stable, warm water temperatures (Eshenroder 1977, Kallemeyn 1987, Karas 1996, Kjellman et al 2003. Year-class strength of yellow and Eurasian perch has also been related to summer temperature during the first year of life (LeCren et al 1977, Craig et al 1979, Craig and Kipling 1983, Bohling et al 199 1, Lehtonen and Lappalainen 1995, Tolonen et al 2003, Paxton et al 2004).…”

The influence of a severe reservoir drawdown on springtime zooplankton and larval fish assemblages in Red Willow Reservoir, Nebraska

“…Similarly, entrainment of adult fish through the dam during drawdown could have resulted in decreased adult population densities (sensu Stober et al 1983;Post et al 2006), thus resulting in decreased production of offspring. Loss of littoral habitat is deleterious to many fishes, particularly when the loss is a consequence of reservoir drawdown (Paller 1997;Frohnauer et al 2007); low water levels can reduce the availability of adequate spawning habitat (Ploskey 1986;Kallemeyn 1987), which could partially explain the changes we observed in the larval fish assemblage.…”

“…Low water levels can reduce the availability of adequate spawning (Ploskey 1986;Kallemeyn 1987) and nursery (Edwards and Twomey 1982;Werner et al 1983;Gotceitas and Colgan 1987;Werner and Hall 1988) habitat for fish. Seasonal changes in reservoir flushing rate can cause changes in zooplankton and phytoplankton abundance; a high flushing rate can lead to low zooplankton abundance (Watson et al 1996;Kalff 2003), which could reduce food availability for larval fish at a critical stage.…”

Ecological impacts of winter water level drawdowns on lake littoral zones: a review

“…Regulated water level fluctuations (e.g., rises and recessions) during spawning can negatively affect juvenile fish densities (Miranda and Lowery 2007), partly due to the loss of physical structural complexity (Neal et al 2001). For species that spawn in littoral areas in late autumn, winter, and early spring (Table 1), low water levels during the spawning period reduce year class sizes (Kallemeyn 1987a;Sutela et al 2002). A delay in spring flood peak relative to natural variation limits recruitment for early spring spawning species because of inaccessibility to littoral spawning habitat (Gaboury and Patalas 1984;Kallemeyn 1987a, b;Wilcox and Meeker 1992).…”

“…For example, Esox niger (chain pickerel), a spring phytophilous spawning species, has experienced population declines in winter drawdown lakes likely because of recruitment failure due to insufficient spawning habitat (Wegener and Williams 1975;McDowell 2012). If water levels are low during the spring, S. vitreus (walleye) are unable to find suitable upper littoral habitat for spawning (e.g., stony bottom), with documented negative effects on recruitment (Kallemeyn 1987a). In the same annual winter drawdown system, Larson et al (2016) found increases in age-0 abundance of S. vitreus and P. flavascens in a year after a drawdown amplitude reduction.…”