TY - JOUR
T1 - Effects of zooplankton spatial variation on growth of larval striped bass
T2 - An experimental approach
AU - Chick, John H.
AU - Van Den Avyle, Michael J.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was funded by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) through a fellowship in their population biology program. Jim Bulak, Jim Cowan, and Edward Chesney provided valuable suggestions on the design of this research. We are grateful to Gary Grossman, Gene Helfman, Karen Porter, and Richard Wiegert for their comments on earlier versions of this manuscript. We thank Van Garner, Anthony Overton, Carl, Ruetz, Laura Townley, and Thomas Waldrop for assistance in the field and laboratory. We thank Tom Curtis, Forest Sessions, the staff of the J. D. Bayless Hatchery, and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources for logistical and personnel support and valuable assistance with this research. The Georgia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit is jointly sponsored by the University of Georgia, the U.S. Geological Survey Biological Resource Division, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the Wildlife Management Institute.
PY - 1999/3
Y1 - 1999/3
N2 - We quantified growth and mortality rates of larval striped bass Morone saxatilis in laboratory experiments simulating variability of prey abundance and composition along the riverine to lentic gradient in Lake Marion, South Carolina. Larvae were reared from 4 to14 d posthatch in three treatments: (1) low-prey, which simulated average prey abundance and composition in riverine and transitional habitats; (2) medium-prey, which simulated average abundance and composition in lentic habitats; and (3) high-prey, which simulated peak (patch) abundance and composition in lentic habitats. Larvae did not grow (weight-specific growth, G = −0.80 to −0.062/d; −0.02 to −0.01 mm/d) in the low-prey treatment but grew in the medium- and high-prey treatments (G = −0.035 to 0.105/d; 0.02–0.17 mm/d). Additionally, mortality also varied significantly among prey treatments. Larvae in the medium- and high-prey treatments experienced minimal mortality (Z = 0.041–0.085/d), whereas mortality was greater in the low-prey treatment (Z = 0.072–0.238/d). These results suggest that large-scale (km) spatial variability of zooplankton and other prey in Lake Marion may affect growth and survival of larval striped bass. Cohorts of striped bass transported to lentic habitats in the upper portion of Lake Marion should experience better growth and survival than cohorts in riverine or transitional habitats.
AB - We quantified growth and mortality rates of larval striped bass Morone saxatilis in laboratory experiments simulating variability of prey abundance and composition along the riverine to lentic gradient in Lake Marion, South Carolina. Larvae were reared from 4 to14 d posthatch in three treatments: (1) low-prey, which simulated average prey abundance and composition in riverine and transitional habitats; (2) medium-prey, which simulated average abundance and composition in lentic habitats; and (3) high-prey, which simulated peak (patch) abundance and composition in lentic habitats. Larvae did not grow (weight-specific growth, G = −0.80 to −0.062/d; −0.02 to −0.01 mm/d) in the low-prey treatment but grew in the medium- and high-prey treatments (G = −0.035 to 0.105/d; 0.02–0.17 mm/d). Additionally, mortality also varied significantly among prey treatments. Larvae in the medium- and high-prey treatments experienced minimal mortality (Z = 0.041–0.085/d), whereas mortality was greater in the low-prey treatment (Z = 0.072–0.238/d). These results suggest that large-scale (km) spatial variability of zooplankton and other prey in Lake Marion may affect growth and survival of larval striped bass. Cohorts of striped bass transported to lentic habitats in the upper portion of Lake Marion should experience better growth and survival than cohorts in riverine or transitional habitats.
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U2 - 10.1577/1548-8659(1999)128<0339:EOZSVO>2.0.CO;2
DO - 10.1577/1548-8659(1999)128<0339:EOZSVO>2.0.CO;2
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0033057101
SN - 0002-8487
VL - 128
SP - 339
EP - 351
JO - Transactions of the American Fisheries Society
JF - Transactions of the American Fisheries Society
IS - 2
ER -