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Consequences of fish kills for long-term trophic structure in shallow lakes: Implications for theory and restoration

Consequences of fish kills for long-term trophic structure in shallow lakes: Implications for theory and restoration
Consequences of fish kills for long-term trophic structure in shallow lakes: Implications for theory and restoration
Fish kills are a common occurrence in shallow, eutrophic lakes, but their ecological consequences, especially in the long-term, are poorly understood. We studied the decadal-scale response of two UK shallow lakes to fish kills using a palaeolimnological approach. Eutrophic and turbid Barningham Lake experienced two fish kills in the early 1950s and late 1970s with fish recovering after both events, whereas less eutrophic, macrophyte-dominated Wolterton Lake experienced one kill event in the early 1970s from which fish failed to recover. Our palaeo-data show fish-driven trophic cascade effects across all trophic levels (covering benthic and pelagic species) in both lakes regardless of pre-kill macrophyte coverage and trophic status. In turbid Barningham Lake, similar to long-term studies of biomanipulations in other eutrophic lakes, effects at the macrophyte-level are shown to be temporary after the first kill (c. 20 years) and non-existent after the second kill. In plant-dominated Wolterton Lake permanent fish disappearance failed to halt a long-term pattern of macrophyte community change (e.g. loss of charophytes and over-wintering macrophyte species) symptomatic of eutrophication. Important implications for theory and restoration ecology arise from our study. Firstly, our data support ideas of slow eutrophication-driven change in shallow lakes where perturbations are not necessary prerequisites for macrophyte loss. Secondly, the study emphasises a key need for lake managers to reduce external nutrient-loading if sustainable and long-term lake restoration is to be achieved. Our research highlights the enormous potential of multi-indicator palaeolimnology and alludes to an important need to consider potential fish kill signatures when interpreting results.
1432-9840
1289-1309
Sayer, C.D.
7943b86e-b2c1-46e8-a97f-9feb39386dfc
Davidson, T.A.
5d6935af-8174-4475-a71f-ca8b1d2c2234
Rawcliffe, R.
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Langdon, P.G.
95b97671-f9fe-4884-aca6-9aa3cd1a6d7f
Leavitt, P.R.
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Cockerton, G.
552975e0-54c2-45bb-a727-68465b3fdb45
Rose, N.L.
d6917731-7683-42c7-8d5b-ce3672cd815b
Croft, T.
329dc725-f285-4fe8-bb8e-0b8c72d6bccc
Sayer, C.D.
7943b86e-b2c1-46e8-a97f-9feb39386dfc
Davidson, T.A.
5d6935af-8174-4475-a71f-ca8b1d2c2234
Rawcliffe, R.
2a9a5a4c-e901-4f4b-a519-44c6c5455e2c
Langdon, P.G.
95b97671-f9fe-4884-aca6-9aa3cd1a6d7f
Leavitt, P.R.
1b388d77-80cd-47d6-9f75-847138622af1
Cockerton, G.
552975e0-54c2-45bb-a727-68465b3fdb45
Rose, N.L.
d6917731-7683-42c7-8d5b-ce3672cd815b
Croft, T.
329dc725-f285-4fe8-bb8e-0b8c72d6bccc

Sayer, C.D., Davidson, T.A., Rawcliffe, R., Langdon, P.G., Leavitt, P.R., Cockerton, G., Rose, N.L. and Croft, T. (2016) Consequences of fish kills for long-term trophic structure in shallow lakes: Implications for theory and restoration. Ecosystems, 19 (7), 1289-1309. (doi:10.1007/s10021-016-0005-z).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Fish kills are a common occurrence in shallow, eutrophic lakes, but their ecological consequences, especially in the long-term, are poorly understood. We studied the decadal-scale response of two UK shallow lakes to fish kills using a palaeolimnological approach. Eutrophic and turbid Barningham Lake experienced two fish kills in the early 1950s and late 1970s with fish recovering after both events, whereas less eutrophic, macrophyte-dominated Wolterton Lake experienced one kill event in the early 1970s from which fish failed to recover. Our palaeo-data show fish-driven trophic cascade effects across all trophic levels (covering benthic and pelagic species) in both lakes regardless of pre-kill macrophyte coverage and trophic status. In turbid Barningham Lake, similar to long-term studies of biomanipulations in other eutrophic lakes, effects at the macrophyte-level are shown to be temporary after the first kill (c. 20 years) and non-existent after the second kill. In plant-dominated Wolterton Lake permanent fish disappearance failed to halt a long-term pattern of macrophyte community change (e.g. loss of charophytes and over-wintering macrophyte species) symptomatic of eutrophication. Important implications for theory and restoration ecology arise from our study. Firstly, our data support ideas of slow eutrophication-driven change in shallow lakes where perturbations are not necessary prerequisites for macrophyte loss. Secondly, the study emphasises a key need for lake managers to reduce external nutrient-loading if sustainable and long-term lake restoration is to be achieved. Our research highlights the enormous potential of multi-indicator palaeolimnology and alludes to an important need to consider potential fish kill signatures when interpreting results.

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Accepted/In Press date: 15 April 2016
e-pub ahead of print date: 22 July 2016
Published date: November 2016
Organisations: Palaeoenvironment Laboratory (PLUS)

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 393826
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/393826
ISSN: 1432-9840
PURE UUID: 4482aab2-78c7-497c-b2d0-2680b9a17d2b
ORCID for P.G. Langdon: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-2724-2643

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Date deposited: 06 May 2016 09:32
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 05:33

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Contributors

Author: C.D. Sayer
Author: T.A. Davidson
Author: R. Rawcliffe
Author: P.G. Langdon ORCID iD
Author: P.R. Leavitt
Author: G. Cockerton
Author: N.L. Rose
Author: T. Croft

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