The effect of habitat heterogeneity on the population density of juvenile Atlantic salmon Salmo salar L

In each of eight sites in 2 years in Catamaran Brook and the Little Southwest Miramichi River, in New Brunswick, Canada, 36 boulders (median diameter = 0·20 m) were added to a 2 × 3 m quadrat in one treatment, all boulders were removed in another treatment, and one quadrat was left as a control. As...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of fish biology 2007-01, Vol.70 (1), p.206-214
Main Authors: Dolinsek, I. J., Grant, J. W. A., Biron, P. M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
boulders
Freshwater
habitat quality
Kalleberg
Marine
Salmo salar
territoriality
visual isolation
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Summary:In each of eight sites in 2 years in Catamaran Brook and the Little Southwest Miramichi River, in New Brunswick, Canada, 36 boulders (median diameter = 0·20 m) were added to a 2 × 3 m quadrat in one treatment, all boulders were removed in another treatment, and one quadrat was left as a control. As predicted, adding boulders increased the density of salmonid fishes, primarily juvenile Atlantic salmon Salmo salar, by 2·8‐fold, but had no significant effect on non‐territorial fishes, primarily cyprinids and catostomids. Moreover, the effect of adding boulders was greatest for age 0+ year Atlantic salmon, intermediate for age 1+ year Atlantic salmon and had no effect on age 2+ year Atlantic salmon. The results suggest that adding boulders is an effective short‐term technique for increasing the density of stream‐dwelling salmonids.
ISSN:0022-1112
1095-8649
DOI:10.1111/j.1095-8649.2006.01296.x