Libor Závorka

Inactive trout come out at night: behavioral variation, circadian activity, and fitness in the wild

Theory suggests that high activity levels in animals increase growth at the cost of increased mortality. This growth-mortality tradeoff has recently been incorporated into the wider framework of the pace-of-life syndrome (POLS) hypothesis. However, activity is often quantified only in the laboratory and on a diurnal basis, leaving open the possibility that animals manage predation risk and feeding efficiency in the wild by modulating their circadian activity rhythms. Here we investigate how laboratory activity in wild brown trout parr (Salmo trutta L.) associates with circadian activity, growth, and mortality in their natal stream. We found that individuals with high activity in the laboratory displayed high dispersal and cathemeral activity in their natal stream. In contrast, trout with low laboratory activity showed variation of activity in the wild, which was negatively related to the light intensity. Our results do not support the growth-mortality trade-off of the POLS hypothesis as highly active, fast-growing individuals showed higher survival than inactive conspecifics. These novel results show for the first time that active and inactive individuals, as scored in the lab, can show different circadian patterns of behavior in the wild driven by light intensity. This implies that studies conducted under a narrow range of light conditions can bias our understanding of individual behavioral variation and its fitness consequences in the wild.

Distribution and growth of brown trout in pristine headwaters of Central Europe

The majority of stream-dwelling salmonid populations in Europe are affected by artificial stocking and the fragmentation of riverine ecosystems. The present study was performed in the unique pristine headwaters of the Otava River in the Elbe catchment area of the Czech Republic. The aim was to investigate the spatial distribution and individual growth pattern of brown trout, Salmo trutta, populations. Twenty sites in two main streams and their tributaries were sampled twice a year (spring and autumn) during the period 2005–2011. The sampling sites were grouped into fourteen so-called synchronised population units within the boundaries of three populations, according to analyses of synchrony in population abundance. The individual growth of juveniles (age-0, age-1) varied between all three spatial units (sampling sites, synchronised population units and populations), while the individual growth of adults (age-2 and older) did not. The distinctiveness regarding individual growth and demographic independence among the synchronised population units and populations indicates their suitability for use as population units for management purposes.

Validation of scale-reading estimates of age and growth in a brown trout Salmo trutta population

In this study, we validated a scale-reading method estimating age and growth in brown trout Salmo trutta in wild, landlocked, stream-dwelling populations from mountain headwaters in the Elbe catchment area of the Czech Republic. The values estimated from scale reading were compared with measured values, collected using a mark-recapture program over eight consecutive years. The age-corrected absolute percentage error was 10.71%, primarily because the ages of the oldest individuals according to scale reading were underestimated, and the ages of juvenile individuals were slightly overestimated. The back-calculated length was slightly underestimated (the mean error was −4.60 mm), but it was not significantly different from the real measured length. This study suggests that in cold mountain headwaters, scale reading is a sufficiently accurate method for age and growth estimation in juvenile brown trout; however, the results for adult individuals must be taken with caution.

Co‐existence with non‐native brook trout breaks down the integration of phenotypic traits in brown trout parr

Summary A phenotypic syndrome refers to complex patterns of integration among functionally related traits in an organism that defines how the organism interacts with its environment and sustains itself. Human-induced biological invasions have become important sources of environmental modifications. However, the extent to which invasive species affect the phenotypic syndromes of individuals in a native is currently unknown. Such knowledge has important implications for understanding ecological interactions and the management of biological invasions. Here, field monitoring in a natural stream were combined with standardized estimates of behavioral, physiological and morphological traits to address the hypothesis that coexistence with a non-native invader induces a novel environmental pressure that disrupts the adaptive integration among phenotypic traits of the native species. We compared the strength of integration among key phenotypic traits (i.e. aerobic scope, standard metabolic rate, body growth, activity, and body shape) and ecological niche traits (i.e. spring and summer diet, home range size, daily movements) of an allopatric group of native brown trout (Salmo trutta) with a group of brown trout living in sympatry with non-native brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). We found that the integration of phenotypic traits was substantially reduced in the sympatric brown trout and that allopatric and sympatric brown trout differed in key phenotypic and ecological niche traits. Brown trout living in sympatry with non-native brook trout consumed more terrestrial prey, had smaller home ranges, and a stouter body shape. Sympatric brown trout also had lower specific growth rate, suggesting a lower fitness. The results are generally in line with our hypothesis suggesting that the reduction in fitness observed in sympatric brown trout is caused by the breakdown of their adaptive phenotypic syndrome. This may be caused by differences in the plasticity of the response of phenotypic traits to the novel selection pressure induced by the non-native species. Our results may help explaining deleterious effects of non-native species reported in the absence of direct competition with the native species. A lay summary is available for this article.

Energy costs of catfish space use as determined by biotelemetry.

Animals use dispersed resources within their home range (HR) during regular day-to-day activities. The high-quality area intensively used by an individual, where critical resources are concentrated, has been designated as the core area (CA). This study aimed to describe how animals utilize energy in the HR and CA assuming that changes would occur according to the size of the used areas. We observed energetic costs of space use in the largest European freshwater predator catfish, Silurus glanis, using physiological sensors. Catfish consumed significantly more energy within the CA compared to the rest of the HR area. In addition, energetic costs of space use within a large area were lower. These results generally indicate that utilization of larger areas is related to less demanding activities, such as patrolling and searching for new resources and mates. In contrast, fish occurrence in small areas appears to be related to energetically demanding use of spatially limited resources.

Encystment of parasitic freshwater pearl mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) larvae coincides with increased metabolic rate and haematocrit in juvenile brown trout (Salmo trutta)

Gill parasites on fish are likely to negatively influence their host by inhibiting respiration, oxygen transport capacity and overall fitness. The glochidia larvae of the endangered freshwater pearl mussel (FPM, Margaritifera margaritifera (Linnaeus, 1758)) are obligate parasites on the gills of juvenile salmonid fish. We investigated the effects of FPM glochidia encystment on the metabolism and haematology of brown trout (Salmo trutta Linnaeus, 1758). Specifically, we measured whole-animal oxygen uptake rates at rest and following an exhaustive exercise protocol using intermittent flow-through respirometry, as well as haematocrit, in infested and uninfested trout. Glochidia encystment significantly affected whole-animal metabolic rate, as infested trout exhibited higher standard and maximum metabolic rates. Furthermore, glochidia-infested trout also had elevated levels of haematocrit. The combination of an increased metabolism and haematocrit in infested fish indicates that glochidia encystment has a physiological effect on the trout, perhaps as a compensatory response to the potential respiratory stress caused by the glochidia. When relating glochidia load to metabolism and haematocrit, fish with low numbers of encysted glochidia were the ones with particularly elevated metabolism and haematocrit. Standard metabolic rate decreased with substantial glochidia loads towards levels similar to those of uninfested fish. This suggests that initial effects visible at low levels of encystment may be countered by additional physiological effects at high loads, e.g. potential changes in energy utilization, and also that high numbers of glochidia may restrict oxygen uptake by the gills.

Behavioral type, in interaction with body size, affects the recapture rate of brown trout Salmo trutta juveniles in their nursery stream

Movement activity levels of wild animals often differ consistently among individuals, reflecting different behavioral types. Previous studies have shown that laboratory-scored activity can predict several ecologically relevant characteristics. In an experiment on wild brown trout Salmo trutta, spanning from June to October, we investigated how spring swimming activity, measured in a standardized laboratory test, related to relative recapture probability in autumn. Based on laboratory activity scores, individuals clustered into 2 groups, which showed contrasting patterns in the size-dependency of their recapture probability. Size had a slightly positive effect on recapture probability for passive fish but a clear negative effect on active fish. Our results show that the population structure in a cohort, in terms of relative proportions of behavioral types in different size classes, can vary over time. The results of this study could depend on either selective mortality or migration. However, selective disappearance of individuals with specific phenotypes, regardless of the mechanism, will have implications for trout population management, such as stocking efficiency of hatchery fish with high growth rates or maintenance of fishways past migration barriers.

The negative ecological impacts of a globally introduced species decrease with time since introduction

While there is a long-history of biological invasions and their ecological impacts have been widely demonstrated across taxa and ecosystems, our knowledge on the temporal dynamic of these impacts remains extremely limited. Using a meta-analytic approach, we investigated how the ecological impacts of non-native brown trout (Salmo trutta), a model species with a 170-year-long and well-documented history of intentional introductions across the globe, vary with time since introduction. We first observed significant negative ecological impacts immediately after the species introduction. Second, we found that the negative ecological impacts decrease with time since introduction and that the average ecological impacts become nonsignificant more than one century after introduction. This pattern was consistent across other ecological contexts (i.e., geographical location, levels of biological organization, and methodological approach). However, overall negative ecological impacts were more pronounced at the individual and population levels and in experimental studies. While the mechanisms leading to this decrease remain to be determined, our results indicate that rapid response of native organisms (e.g. adaptation, but also local extinction) may play an important role in this dynamic. Changes in native species traits and local extinction can have important conservation implications. Therefore, we argue that the decline of the negative ecological impacts over time should not be used as an argument to neglect the negative impacts of biological invasions.