Growth Rate of 0+ Fish in Relation to Temperature, Body Size, and Food in Shallow Eutrophic Lake Tjeukemeer

Abstract

The growth rate of young-of-the-year of the six most abundant fish species (smelt (Osmerus eperlanus), pikeperch (Stizostedion lucioperca), perch (Perca fluviatilis), ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernua), bream (Abramis brama), and roach (Rutilus rutilus)) in Lake Tjeukemeer was predicted from water temperature using the model [Formula: see text]. For each species the model parameters were estimated using data from approximately 120 field observations of body size over a period of 13 yr; about 94% of the variance in body size could be explained by the model. The growth rate was correlated with temperature for all planktivorous species, except smelt. The relationship between growth rate and temperature was also significant for piscivorous pikeperch but not for benthivorous ruffe. These conclusions were corroborated by comparing the unexplained sum of squares of the temperature growth model with that of a temperature-neutral, logistic growth model. The abundance of food was not related to the temperature-corrected growth rate of planktivorous fishes, except in one year during which food conditions were extremely poor. We concluded that in most years the growth rate of 0+ planktivorous fish was not food limited. For piscivorous pikeperch, however, the variation in growth rate could be explained by the higher availability of smelt in warmer years.