Rapid response of the nearshore round goby population to temperature declines associated with upwelling events in Lake Ontario

Abstract

Upwellings occur in all the Great Lakes in response to prolonged wind events. Several studies have modeled or measured changes in abiotic conditions associated with upwellings, but few direct observations of fish responses have been documented. Video-capture techniques were used in conjunction with moored temperature loggers to link the disappearance of benthic round gobies to temperature declines during upwelling events along the southern Lake Ontario nearshore in summer of 2019. Benthic water temperatures declined by as much as 18 °C within 18 h over as many as nine events. Round goby density estimates were as high as 50/m2 prior to upwellings, but declined to as low as 0/m2 during the events. Using just nine observation dates, ARMA trend analysis suggested a relationship between benthic temperature and round goby abundance (AIC = 78.7, t = 2.21, P = 0.063). Although the actual response of gobies to rapidly declining temperatures was unknown, this population was unobservable in our sample area during upwellings, yet returned to pre-upwelling densities within days. Understanding the magnitude and frequency of fish responses to these events can improve our understanding of the potential for this non-native benthic fish to affect the nearshore environment.