Differential Relations of Age-0 Black Crappie and Yellow Perch to Climatological Variables in a Natural Lake

Abstract

ABSTRACT To better understand recruitment processes of black crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus and yellow perch Perca flavescens in natural lakes, we sampled age-0 fishes during late summer-early fall 1988–1995 in Brant Lake, South Dakota, with a bottom trawl. Age-0 black crappie catch per unit effort (CPUE) was only >5.0/min when yellow perch CPUE was <0.1/min. Age-0 yellow perch CPUE was only >0.1/min when black crappie CPUE was <5.0/min. We also found that the CPUE for both species was relatively low compared to other South Dakota waters and concluded that the relation between black crappie and yellow perch was probably not simply interspecific competition. Therefore, we assessed climatological variables to help explain this relation. In general, crappie CPUE was negatively correlated with precipitation and positively correlated with mean daily temperature difference and mean wind speed. Conversely, CPUE for perch was positively correlated with precipitation and negatively correlated with mean daily temperature difference and mean wind speed. Although these are not necessarily cause-and-effect relations, age-0 yellow perch were most abundant during years with more precipitation, less wind and less variation in daily temperatures in Brant Lake, whereas age-0 black crappie were most abundant during years with less precipitation, more wind and greater daily variation in temperature.