Lake Huron: Effects of Exploitation, Introductions, and Eutrophication on the Salmonid Community

Berst, A. H.; Spangler, George R.

doi:10.1139/f72-131

Cited by 54 publications

(52 citation statements)

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“…Our collections of Longnose Sucker in Hammond Bay likely originated from the spawning run in the Ocqueoc River (Berst and Spangler, 1972;Goodyear et al, 1982). Densities of Lake Whitefish were highest at nearshore sites at Hammond Bay and De Tour in 2007.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Spatial distribution of pelagic fish larvae in the northern main basin of Lake Huron

Roseman

O’Brien

2013

Aquatic Ecosystem Health &Amp; Management

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Larval fish occurrence in inshore and offshore zones in the northern main basin of Lake Huron was assessed during 2007 as part of a larger ecological examination of Lake Huron foodwebs and habitats. Day and night collections using neuston and conical nets at inshore (1.5-15 m depths) and offshore (37 and 91 m depths) locations at De Tour and Hammond Bay to assess the abundance, phenology, and spatial distribution of pelagic ichthyoplankton during spring and early summer were made. In general, densities of larval fishes were higher at De Tour than Hammond Bay during daytime neuston net collections, with the exception of Longnose Sucker, which were only collected at Hammond Bay. Lake Whitefish, Burbot, and Rainbow Smelt dominated inshore catches in early spring with Cisco, Deepwater Sculpin, Emerald Shiner, Bloater, Slimy Sculpin, Ninespine Stickleback, and Yellow Perch larvae also collected.Nighttime nearshore and offshore sampling revealed that Rainbow Smelt and Burbot larvae were present in relatively high abundances compared to inshore densities. Concentrations of larvae of deepwater demersal fishes such as Lake Whitefish and Deepwater Sculpin suggest that inshore zones in northern Lake Huron are important nursery habitats emphasizing a critical production and recruitment linkage between inshore and deepwater zones.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Spatial distribution of pelagic fish larvae in the northern main basin of Lake Huron

Roseman

O’Brien

2013

Aquatic Ecosystem Health &Amp; Management

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“…blue pike (Stkzosbedion vs'breum gdaucum) in Lake Erie and whitefish, lake trout (Sadvedinus namayc%rs8a), and sea lamprey (Peeromyzon marinus) in Lake Huron, occurred when system maturity was low because of a major enjuvenation event. In the cases above, the respective events were overexploitation (Regier et al 1969), the 1942-43 die-off of rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordm) (Van Oosten 1947), and the collapse of lake trout stocks due to lamprey predation and fishing (Fry 1953;Berst and Spangler 1972). We should then expect the greatest increases in variation of y e a class strength just before population collapse.…”

Section: Some Succession Theorymentioning

confidence: 95%

A Perspective on Great Lakes Fish Community Rehabilitation

Christie¹,

Spangler²,

Loftus³

et al. 1987

Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci.

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1987.A perspective on Great Lakes fish community rehabilitatisn. Can. I. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 4-4 (Suppl. 2): 48f5-499.Review of the ASPY syntheses suggested that destabilization and subsequent fish community recovery in the Great Lakes are compatible with a model in which postglacial succession, and the structure and persistence of the fish communities, were governed by piscivores. Recent advances in the areas of particle size distribution, ontogenetic niche theory, and ecosystem stability contributed t o a broader understanding of fishery management alternatives. Species succession in Great Lakes aquatic communities is characterized as a cyclic repetition of maturation followed by seasonal, annual, or periodic setbacks. These are termed "enjuvenation events" and are attributed t o any cultural or climatic factors which induce flux in energy-matter delivery t o the system. The extent of enjuvenation is dependent upon the magnitude of the perturbation and maturity of the community and is predictable t o some degree by the age and biomass distributions of the species present. The time course of rehabilitation t o any arbitrary prior condition of the community is closely related to the ersjuvenation-maturation cycle and t o the life span and reproductive characteristics of the species present. The principal homeostatic mechanism is perceived to lie with variations in the durations of life history stanzas as affected by fish growth rates. The "biomass storage" function of larger organisms in the system i s thought to be a major determinant of the "biotic inertia" or sensitivity of the community to perturbations. We are convinced that trophic linkages from the piscivores downwards must be maintained as biological feedback pathways t o ensure that moderately excessive fishery yields can be segf-limiting. Without these linkages (vulnerable t o intensive exploitation o r other catastrophic reductions in predators), biomass capture of nutrient inputs by algae will vector t o waste as planktivore density limits secondary production. The extent t o which the fish community can be maintained o r driven to a particular species composition is dependent upon the degree of external control of ail sorts that can be applied to the system. The rehabilitation continuum ranges from a self-sustaining assemblage of native species requiring little external controi to a completely artificially supported community of nsn-native species requiring extensive controls for both water quality and fish comsmunity maintenance.U n examen des syntheses de I'ASPY porte h croire que le d6s6quiIibre de la communaute piscicole des Grands Lacs et son r6tablissement ult4rieur csncsrdent 2 u n mod&le 013 la succession post-glaciale ainsi que la structure et la permanence des comrnunautes piscicoles sont r6gl6es par les piscivsres. Les recents prsgres r6alis6s d a m les domatines de la r6partition de la taille des particules, la theorie d'une niche '~o~laABPeatigsw No. 87-04 of the Oratxis Ministry of Natural Resources, Research Section, Fisheries Branch, Bo...

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“…In the early twentieth century, invasive sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) and alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) reached Lake Huron from the Atlantic Ocean through the Welland Canal that allowed them to bypass the Niagara Falls (Ebener and others 1995). Overfishing and mortality imposed by parasitic sea lamprey caused sharp declines in commercial fishery harvests and the abundance of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush), the only dominant native predator in pelagic waters, around 1950 (Berst and Spangler 1972), which facilitated the establishment of the planktivorous prey fish alewife (Miller 1957). In response, the USA and Canada management agencies started to control sea lamprey in the late 1950s mainly through the application of chemical lampricides targeting sedentary larval stages in streams (Smith and Tibbles 1980).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Top-Down and Bottom-Up Controls on the Collapse of Alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) in Lake Huron

2016

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Food web models are powerful tools to inform management of lake ecosystems, where top-down (predation) and bottom-up (resource) controls likely propagate through multiple trophic levels because of strong predator-prey links. We used the Ecopath with Ecosim modeling approach to assess these controls on the Lake Huron main basin food web and the 2003 collapse of an invasive pelagic prey fish, alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus). We parameterized two Ecopath models to characterize food web changes occurring between two study periods of 1981-1985 and 1998-2002. We also built an Ecosim model and simulated food web time-dynamics under scenarios representing different levels of top-down control by Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and of bottom-up control by quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis) and nutrients. Ecopath results showed an increase in the relative importance of bottom-up controls between the two periods, as production decreased across all trophic levels. The production of non-dreissenid benthos decreased most, which could cause decreases in production of pelagic prey fishes feeding on them. Ecosim simulation results indicated that the alewife collapse was caused by a combination of top-down and bottom-up controls. Results showed that while controls by Chinook salmon were relatively constant before alewife collapse, controls by quagga mussels and nutrients increased jointly to unsustainable levels. Under current conditions of low nutrients and high quagga mussel biomass, simulation results showed that recovery of alewives is unlikely regardless of Chinook salmon biomass in Lake Huron, which implies that the shrinking prey base cannot support the same level of salmonine predators as that prevailed during the 1980s.

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Lake Huron: Effects of Exploitation, Introductions, and Eutrophication on the Salmonid Community

Cited by 54 publications

References 0 publications

Spatial distribution of pelagic fish larvae in the northern main basin of Lake Huron

Spatial distribution of pelagic fish larvae in the northern main basin of Lake Huron

A Perspective on Great Lakes Fish Community Rehabilitation

Assessment of Top-Down and Bottom-Up Controls on the Collapse of Alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) in Lake Huron

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