Lauren Jarvis PhD student

Lauren Jarvis (PhD student) 1st first authored paper

Species-specific preferences drive the differential effects of lake factors on fish production” 

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences

https://doi.org/10.1139/cjfas-2020-0105

Recreational fishermen spend an average of $1.6 billion in Ontario every year. Lake trout, walleye, and smallmouth bass are three of the most popular species to fish, and fisheries' managers must keep these populations healthy to protect lake diversity and the industry. However, in the face of global change, this means recognizing that species have different physiological preferences. For example, lake trout prefer cold water and are sensitive to low dissolved oxygen concentrations, walleye  prefer cool water and hunt under low light conditions, and smallmouth bass prefer warm water and high visibility. Therefore, the research described in this paper compared how various climate and lake factors affected the biomass production (kg/ha/yr) of lake trout, walleye, and smallmouth bass. We found that lake trout production was most influenced by temperature, walleye production was most influenced by precipitation, and smallmouth bass production was most influenced by sampling day. These results show the importance of recognizing and incorporating species-specific responses in fisheries' management decisions, and caution against one-size-fits-all strategies.

Sampling

 

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