Artificial macrophytes as fish habitat in a Mediterranean reservoir subjected to seasonal water level disturbances |
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| Authors: | Luciano N Santos Angelo A Agostinho Carles Alcaraz Joaquim Carol Alejandra F G N Santos Pablo Tedesco Emili García-Berthou |
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| Institution: | 1.Graduate Course in Ecology of Inland Aquatic Ecosystems,Maringá State University,Maringá,Brazil;2.Department of Biology/NUPELIA,Maringá State University,Maringá,Brazil;3.Institute of Aquatic Ecology,University of Girona,Girona,Spain;4.Institute for Research and Technology on Food and Agriculture,Tarragona,Spain;5.Minuartia Environmental Studies,Barcelona,Spain;6.Fluminense Federal University,Niterói,Brazil;7.National Museum of Natural History,Paris,France;8.Department of Ecology and Marine Resources,Federal University of Rio de Janeiro State,Rio de Janeiro,Brazil |
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| Abstract: | Artificial macrophytes were experimentally deployed in Boadella Reservoir (NE Spain) and assessed for fish use throughout
the first 3 months of the 2007 summer drawdown. In total, 1,832 individuals of seven fish species were recorded through visual
censuses, with introduced perch Perca fluviatilis being the prevalent species. Fish richness and abundance were significantly higher in artificial macrophytes than in rocky
shores and sandy beaches, displaying a unimodal variation through time. P. fluviatilis, Rutilus rutilus and Abramis brama were significantly more abundant in artificial macrophytes than in the other two naturally submersed habitats, where no individuals
of these species were recorded. The abundances of Squalius laietanus, Lepomis gibbosus, Micropterus salmoides and Cyprinus carpio were overall greater in artificial macrophytes than in rocky shores but displayed significant habitat × time interactions.
A decrease in predation risk was apparently the key-factor of the intensive use of artificial macrophytes by small fish (≤100 mm
TL) in Boadella Reservoir, since most species reduced drastically or completely the use of submerged structures when body
size increased. This study demonstrates that adding artificial structures mimicking aquatic macrophytes can be an interesting
tool to mitigate the adverse effects of water level fluctuations on fish assemblages in structure-less and homogeneous ecosystems,
and to understand the mechanisms affecting habitat use and species replacement. |
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