Getting cosy in freshwater: assumed to be brackish pike are not so brackish after all
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Getting cosy in freshwater : assumed to be brackish pike are not so brackish after all. / Birnie-Gauvin, Kim; Højrup, Lasse Birch; Kragh, Theis; Jacobsen, Lene; Aarestrup, Kim.
I: Ecology of Freshwater Fish, Bind 28, Nr. 3, 2019, s. 376-384.Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskrift › Tidsskriftartikel › Forskning › fagfællebedømt
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Getting cosy in freshwater
T2 - assumed to be brackish pike are not so brackish after all
AU - Birnie-Gauvin, Kim
AU - Højrup, Lasse Birch
AU - Kragh, Theis
AU - Jacobsen, Lene
AU - Aarestrup, Kim
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Pike (Esox lucius) occupy coastal streams and rivers of the Baltic Sea, where they attain large sizes (>5 kg). These large sizes are perhaps due to the fact that they can tolerate relatively high salinities and can thus forage in the nearby more productive brackish environments. In an attempt to quantify the extent to which pike utilise brackish environments, and to provide some insight into the underlying causes for brackish water migrations, we tagged 30 pike from a western Baltic river with acoustic transmitters and were able to track 21 individuals for 1 year. Based on experienced from local anglers, this population was assumed to be brackish in nature, where individuals underwent freshwater migrations to spawn. Our findings however suggest that the smallest and most active individuals make short exits into brackish waters and do so on rare occasions. Our results further indicate that neither sex nor size is related to activity level. We suggest that these patterns reflect two distinct behaviours—active and passive—and that large pike can be supported by the food availability in the river, without the need to venture into coastal zones, thus defying the conventional view that Baltic pike are all brackish in nature.
AB - Pike (Esox lucius) occupy coastal streams and rivers of the Baltic Sea, where they attain large sizes (>5 kg). These large sizes are perhaps due to the fact that they can tolerate relatively high salinities and can thus forage in the nearby more productive brackish environments. In an attempt to quantify the extent to which pike utilise brackish environments, and to provide some insight into the underlying causes for brackish water migrations, we tagged 30 pike from a western Baltic river with acoustic transmitters and were able to track 21 individuals for 1 year. Based on experienced from local anglers, this population was assumed to be brackish in nature, where individuals underwent freshwater migrations to spawn. Our findings however suggest that the smallest and most active individuals make short exits into brackish waters and do so on rare occasions. Our results further indicate that neither sex nor size is related to activity level. We suggest that these patterns reflect two distinct behaviours—active and passive—and that large pike can be supported by the food availability in the river, without the need to venture into coastal zones, thus defying the conventional view that Baltic pike are all brackish in nature.
KW - brackish
KW - ecosystem functioning
KW - Esox lucius
KW - freshwater
KW - reproductive migrations
U2 - 10.1111/eff.12460
DO - 10.1111/eff.12460
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85058067560
VL - 28
SP - 376
EP - 384
JO - Ecology of Freshwater Fish
JF - Ecology of Freshwater Fish
SN - 0906-6691
IS - 3
ER -
ID: 211861528