Nearshore fish habitat utilization and species associations in Lake Opinicon (Ontario, Canada)

Keast, Allen; Harker, Jennifer; Turnbull, Deborah

doi:10.1007/bf00691941

Cited by 85 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Studies (Keast et al 1978, Guillory et al 1979, Conrow et al 1990) have shown that increased habitat diversity associated with aquatic macrophytes increases fish species diversity, richness, and number. The diked wetland fish community therefore might have been expected to contain more species and be more diverse.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fish communities in a diked Lake Erie wetland and an adjacent undiked area

1997

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Most (84%) of Ohio's remaining Lake Erie wetlands are diked to maximize food production and habitat for migrating waterfowl. Typically these wetlands are partially drained during spring and refilled the following fall. Fish populations have not been managed extensively, probably because few quantitative data are available on fish communities in diked wetlands and on how water-level manipulations affect these communities. We used trap nets to sample fish monthly (April-August) in diked West Marsh and in the formerly diked Muddy Creek Bay. We compared fish communities on the basis of species richness, composition, and equitability; relative abundance; and mean length and body condition of species common to both areas. We collected 23 species from the diked area and 40 species from the undiked area. Although there were more species collected in the undiked area, species equitability was greater in the diked wetland. The five most abundant species in the diked wetland were white crappie Pomoxis annularis, brown bullhead Amieurus nebulosus, black bullhead A. melas, goldfish Carassius auratus, and common carp Cyprinis carpio. The dominant species in the undiked area were white perch Morone americana, gizzard shad Dorosoma cepedianum, white crappie, brown bullhead, and yellow perch Perca flavescens. Neither area contained a classical, diverse wetland fish community. Mean lengths of white crappie, common carp, goldfish, and brown bullhead were significantly greater from the undiked area during all months. Body condition indices of > 150 mm white crappies and > 225 mm brown bullheads were significantly greater in the undiked area after June. The large differences in length and condition indices indicate that fish communities in the diked wetland may be biologically isolated from those in the adjacent undiked area. This has management implications given that an almost complete exchange of water occurs annually and could result in extensive movement of fish in and out of the diked wetland. Management strategies compatible with or enhancing existing wildlife management strategies need to be developed for improving fish communities in diked wetlands and enhancing their contribution to Lake Erie.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fish communities in a diked Lake Erie wetland and an adjacent undiked area

1997

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“…However, we will identify key aspects of different species life-history strategies as required to aid in our interpretation of findings. All six of these species occur naturally in Lake Opinicon and spawn in the littoral zone throughout the lake (Keast et al 1978). To facilitate frequent monitoring of nests and to avoid heavy angling pressure, we used a study site close to the Queen's University Biological Station that included $4 km of shoreline.…”

Section: Subjects and Study Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

Energetics of parental care in six syntopic centrarchid fishes

2006

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We studied parental behavior in six syntopically breeding species of centrarchid fishes to determine whether energetic costs could contribute to our understanding of the diversity of parental care. We used a combination of underwater videography, radio telemetry and direct observation to examine how the cost of parental care varied with both its duration and intensity. Duration of parental care, activity patterns, and energetic costs varied widely among species. Overall, the duration of care increased with parental size between species. When energetic costs were adjusted for species-specific differences in the duration of parental care, the cost of parental care also increased with mean size of the species. Species with extended parental care exhibited stage-specific patterns of activity and energy expenditure consistent with parental investment theory, whereas fish with short duration parental care tended to maintain high levels of activity throughout the entire period of parental care. The only apparent exception (a species with brief parental care but stage-specific behavior) was a species with multiple breeding bouts, and thus effectively having protracted parental care. These data suggest that some species with short duration parental care can afford not to adjust parental investment over stages of offspring development. Using our empirical data on parental care duration and costs, we reevaluated the relationship between egg size and quality of parental care. Variation in egg size explained almost all of the observed variation in total energetic cost of parental care, and to a lesser degree, duration-the larger the eggs, the more costly the parental care. This research highlights the value of incorporating energetic information into the study of parental care behavior and testing of ecological theory.

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“…Knowledge of such space use in aquatic communities lags behind that in terrestrial systems Although it has been demonstrated that fish spe- (Werner et al 1977). cies in lakes divide living space in both the horizonIn this study we examine space use and foraging tal (Engel & Magnuson 1976, Werner et al 1977 patterns in an assemblage of fish occupying the Keast et al 1978) andvertical (Brandt 1980, Baker offshore open waters of Lake Opinicon (Leeds & Ross 1981) planes, few attempts have been made County, Ontario). This work supplements previto identify space use patterns in a diel and seasonal ous research on the littoral zone fish community of this lake (Keast 1978,1985a.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%