| 1. |
- Berggren, Terese, et al.
(författare)
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Warmer water increases early body growth of northern pike (Esox lucius), but mortality has larger impact on decreasing body sizes
- 2021
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Ingår i: Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. - : Canadian Science Publishing. - 0706-652X .- 1205-7533. ; 79, s. 771-781
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Large fish species often display truncated size distributions related to harvest. In addition, temperature, food availability and density dependence affect body growth and together with natural mortality influence population size structure. Here we study changes in body growth, size distributions and mortality in both harvested and nonharvested populations of northern pike (Esox Lucius) over 50 years along the Baltic Sea coast and in Lake Malaren, Sweden. For coastal pike, body growth has increased coincidentally with increasing water temperatures, yet in the last two decades there has been a decrease of larger individuals. In Lake Malaren, in contrast, size distributions and body growth were stationary despite similar increases in water temperature. A dominance of slow-growing individuals in older age classes was evident in all studied populations, also in the no-take zone, suggesting other factors than fishing contribute to the mortality pattern. We propose that increasing temperatures have favoured body growth in coastal areas, but this has been counteracted by increased mortality, causing pike sizes to decline. To regain larger coastal pike, managers need to consider multiple measures that reduce mortality.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Bergström, Ulf, et al.
(författare)
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Long-term decline in northern pike (Esox lucius L.) populations in the Baltic Sea revealed by recreational angling data
- 2022
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Ingår i: Fisheries Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0165-7836 .- 1872-6763. ; 251
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In the Baltic Sea, the large predatory fish northern pike (Esox lucius L.) is important for both recreational fisheries and ecosystem functioning. As existing fishery-independent surveys do not adequately monitor pike populations, a general lack of knowledge on population status and trends poses challenges for management. Here we use recreational angling data as an alternative method to describe pike population development along the Swedish Baltic Sea coast from 1938 onwards and assess the change over time in potential mortality factors by estimating harvest by fisheries and consumption by large predators. Data from a Swedish national register on trophy-sized pike (>12 kg) showed that numbers and maximum sizes peaked in 1990-1995, after which declines in both metrics are evident. In logbooks from a sport fishing club in the Stockholm archipelago, a simultaneous decrease in maximum sizes of pike was observed, together with a decrease in the total number of pike caught per fishing day. Jointly, these data indicate a decline in the abundance of large pike since around 1990. While commercial pike fisheries in the Baltic Sea have decreased continuously since the 1950s, recreational fishing increased after 1985, when Swedish coastal waters were made open access to anglers. The declines in large pike starting in the 1990s could, thus, have been driven by an increase in mortality from recreational fisheries, which at the time primarily practiced catch and kill. Since the 2000s, bag and slot length limits, spawning closures, and a general increase in catch-and-release fishing has reduced the landings of pike in recreational fisheries. Despite these fisheries regulations and higher release rates the decline in catches of large pike has continued, indicating an effect of other mortality factors. The strong growth of grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis) populations suggest that predation pressure on pike has increased over time. In the Stockholm archipelago these two predators were estimated to remove 5-18 times (range based on different diet composition estimates) more pike biomass than total fisheries landings in 2014-2017. To improve the situation for northern pike in the Baltic Sea managers need to consider both fisheries restrictions and measures to decrease predation pressure and increase recruitment. Catch data from recreational fisheries may be used to evaluate such management efforts by providing information on the population development of this keystone species.
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| 4. |
- Bergström, Ulf, et al.
(författare)
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Storskarvens (Phalacrocorax carbo) ekologi, roll i ekosystemet och effekter på fiskbestånd : Sammanställning av kunskap och kunskapsbehov
- 2023
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Det råder kunskapsbrist om storskarvens ekologi i svenska akvatiska ekosystem och hur fiskpopulationer och ekosystem påverkas av storskarv i olika områden. Framförallt behövs bättre underlag om skarvarnas födoval, födosöksbeteende, antal och migrationer för att kunna bedöma påverkan på fiskpopulationer och ekosystem. Grundläggande underlag om storskarvens biologi, för bättre förståelse av dess ekologiska roll, bör samlas in genom standardiserad och internationellt samordnad övervakning. Akvatiska ekosystem är komplexa och sammanlänkade, med flera arter och ekologiska processer som samverkar med varandra. Fiskpopulationer påverkas även av en rad andra faktorer än predation från storskarv, både biologiska och icke-biologiska. Det kan därför vara svårt att separera effekter från storskarv från annan påverkan. Att dra generella slutsatser om storskarvens påverkan på olika fiskpopulationer i olika områden och under olika tidsperioder är därför svårt. Generellt verkar påverkan från storskarv på fiskpopulationer vara liten i friska ekosystem. Dock verkar skarvpredation kunna ha negativ påverkan på specifika fiskpopulationer, i synnerhet svaga populationer som även påverkas negativt av andra faktorer. För att förbättra kunskapsläget är det viktigt att förvaltningsåtgärder som syftar till att minska storskarvens påverkan på fiskpopulationer följs upp vetenskapligt. Dessa förvaltningsåtgärder bör om möjligt samordnas med andra åtgärder för att öka förståelsen av vilka påverkansfaktorer som har störst betydelse för olika fiskpopulationer.
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| 5. |
- Dahlin, Iris, et al.
(författare)
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Fishing cyprinids for food - Evaluation of ecosystem effects and contaminants in cyprinid fish
- 2021
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- We conclude that a coastal cyprinid fishery may have positive effects on the ecosystem and with regard to levels of toxic contaminants, the fish is safe for humans to eat. There is, however, a need to scale up the targeted cyprinid fishery in order to evaluate and quantify the effects on the ecosystem. Scaling up from the pilot scale fisheries requires a change in consumer’s attitude and product development, so that larger quantities of cyprinid fish can be harvested and sold. Several wild fish stocks in the Baltic Sea are in poor condition and today the supply of fish for human consumption in Sweden heavily relies on farmed and imported fish. At the same time, eutrophication and climate change has led to increasing populations of cyprinid fish (e.g. bream, roach, ide) in many coastal areas of the Baltic Sea, which threatens to violate Swedish and international environmental goals. During recent years, there has been an increased interest to fish cyprinids for human consumption in Finland and Sweden. This report evaluates potential ecosystem effects resulting from an increased cyprinid fishery, and how to monitor and assess these effects in the Baltic Sea. We also assess potential barriers to increased cyprinid fisheries for human consumption due to food safety issues resulting from environmental contaminants and market incentives for fishers. In a literature review on biomanipulation targeting cyprinids in lakes, we show that removing cyprinids as a measure to improve water quality has been successful in around 60% of the cases where it has been tested. In the Baltic Sea, however, there have only been a few pilot projects of biomanipulation of cyprinids. Differences between coastal areas and lakes makes it unlikely that the same success rate as in lakes would also apply to coastal areas, especially when considering lowering of nutrient concentrations. Still, we think that a sustainable fishery targeting cyprinids may promote at least positive effects on water transparency and macrophytes in the Baltic Sea on a longer time-scale. In line with results from our literature review, we suggest a monitoring program for evaluation of a targeted cyprinid fishery in coastal areas. Based on the potential ecosystem effects of a cyprinid fishery we suggest that monitoring should prioritize fish community composition, water transparency, chlorofyll α, and submerged macrophytes. For more thorough scientific evaluations, the monitoring program should also include abundance of phyto- and zooplankton, as well as and nutrient and oxygen levels. An increased use of cyprinids from the Baltic Sea as human food will also have societal impacts. To examine if human consumption of cyprinid fish entails any increased risk of exposure to contaminants, we analysed concentration levels of several toxins (mercury, cadmium, dioxins, PCBs, PFAS and PBDE) in bream, ide and roach from five sites along the Swedish coast of the northern Baltic Sea. Our results show that, based on the regulations in Sweden today, cyprinids meet all health regulations for human food. Based on recommendations of weekly intake there are no apparent health risks of consuming cyprinid fish from the Baltic Sea at least weekly. However, since knowledge and regulations of certain environmental toxins are poor or non-existent, we believe it is important to conduct a more comprehensive study, especially for PFAS. An increased fishery targeting cyprinids would diversify the small-scale coastal fishery in Sweden, but the currently low demand makes it risky for fishers to invest in equipment and distribution becomes relatively expensive.
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| 6. |
- Eklöf, Johan S., 1978-, et al.
(författare)
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Effects of seasonal spawning closures on pike (Esox lucius L.) and perch (Perca fluviatilis L.) catches and coastal food webs in the western Baltic Sea
- 2023
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Ingår i: Fisheries Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0165-7836 .- 1872-6763. ; 263
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Marine protected areas have become one of the main tools in the battle to curb marine biodiversity loss and habitat degradation. Yet, implementation of permanent fishery closures has often generated resource user conflicts that ultimately undermine conservation goals. Here we assessed the influence of an alternative and often more accepted measure – seasonal fish spawning closures – on large predatory fish and coastal food webs in the western Baltic Sea (Sweden). In spring 2017, we conducted a multivariable field survey in 11 seasonal closures and 11 paired references areas open to fishing. In each area, pike was sampled through angling, and perch and mesopredators through gillnet surveys. To assess trophic cascades, we measured zooplankton abundance and loss of tethered gammarids from predation. Catches per unit effort of northern pike (Esox lucius) – the main target species in recreational fisheries – were ca. 2.5 times higher per unit effort in closures than reference areas; an effect that may be caused by higher abundance and/or higher catchability of pike in the absence of fishing. Catch and weight per unit effort of the more common predator European perch (Perca fluviatilus), and the mesopredators roach (Rutilus rutilus) and three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) in survey nets were, however, unaffected by closures. Moreover, a previously hypothesized trophic cascade from perch to zooplankton via three-spined stickleback was supported by the analyses, but appeared independent of closures. Yet, predation risk for tethered gammarid amphipods (a prey of stickleback and an important grazer on macroalgae) was three times higher in fished areas than in closures; a cascading closure effect that may potentially be caused by small predatory fish being less active in protected areas to avoid pike predation. Overall, our results suggest that spawning closures impact pike abundance and/or behavior and could help limit the effects of fishing, but that more research is needed to disentangle i) what mechanism(s) that underlie the protection effect on pike catches, ii) the apparently weaker closure impacts on other fish species, as well as iii) the potential for cascading effects on lower trophic levels. Therefore, new seasonal spawning closures should be implemented in addition to (and not instead of) much-needed permanent closures, which have well-known effects on the wider ecosystem.
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| 7. |
- Garnier, Aurélie, et al.
(författare)
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Coastal darkening exacerbates eutrophication symptoms through bottom-up and top-down control modification
- 2023
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Ingår i: Limnology and Oceanography. - : Wiley. - 1939-5590 .- 0024-3590. ; 68:3, s. 678-691
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Coastal eutrophication due to excessive anthropogenic nutrient loading is a major threat worldwide, and especially in estuaries and semi-enclosed waterbodies, like the brackish Baltic Sea. In addition, coastal waters may become darker (coastal darkening) due to increased input of colored compounds from terrestrial run-off and sediment resuspension. Still, the effects of darkening on coastal food web responses to eutrophication are unknown. In a mesocosm experiment with benthic and pelagic habitats, we manipulated nutrient loading, presence of fish and light availability to disentangle bottom-up and top-down control of eutrophication symptoms in ambient and darkened waters. Overall, we found higher pelagic Chlorophyll a concentrations (a proxy of algal biomass) with darkening and with nutrient enrichment in both clear and dark waters. Albeit fish had a strong impact on zooplankton and zoobenthos, they had no cascading effect on algae. We conclude that coastal darkening due to changes in land use and climate change can pose an additional challenge concerning the recovery of coastal waters from eutrophication.
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| 8. |
- Herlevi, Heidi, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental abundances of the non-native round goby Neogobius melanostomus influence feeding of native fish predators
- 2023
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Ingår i: Journal of Fish Biology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0022-1112 .- 1095-8649. ; 102:6, s. 1340-1357
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The authors assessed the importance of the round goby Neogobius melanostomus as prey for three native predatory fish species, Atlantic cod Gadus morhua, European perch Perca fluviatilis and northern pike Esox lucius, in a northern and southern area of the Baltic Proper, using a combination of visual analysis and DNA metabarcoding of predator stomach contents. To explore the influence of environmental abundances of N. melanostomus on predation, they related the occurrence of N. melanostomus in predator diets to its abundance in survey fishing. Gadus morhua and E. lucius in the southern area showed the highest tendency to feed on N. melanostomus when it was abundant, as N. melanostomus occurred in up to 100% of stomachs and constituted up to 88% of the total diet volume proportion. The diet contribution of N. melanostomus was associated with N. melanostomus abundances for G. morhua and E. lucius, and when N. melanostomus was abundant, these predators exhibited lower prey richness and a higher degree of piscivory. G. morhua and P. fluviatilis also fed less on crustacean prey when N. melanostomus was abundant. The high importance of N. melanostomus in diets of native fish predators may modify indirect interactions between N. melanostomus and native prey species in invaded coastal communities.
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| 9. |
- Karlsson, Martin, et al.
(författare)
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Kunskapssammanställning om effekter på fisk och skaldjur av muddring och dumpning i akvatiska miljöer: en syntes av grumlingens dos och varaktighet
- 2020
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Uppgrumling av vatten från sediment är en påverkansfaktor i både sötvatten och marina miljöer i samband med muddringsarbeten och dumpning av material i vatten. Det är därför viktigt att de verksamheter som orsakar uppgrumling planeras och genomförs så att inverkan på den akvatiska miljön minimeras. I denna rapport sammanställer vi olika direkta och indirekta biologiska effekter av grumling med avseende på fisk och skaldjur (större kräftdjur och mollusker/musslor), utförligare effekter av muddring och dumpning på främst bottenfauna och växtlighet finns beskrivet i Hammar et al. (2009). Vi lyfter fram två faktorer som är viktiga att beakta för att begränsadirekt påverkan av uppgrumling på fisk och skaldjur: 1) tidpunkt på året för uppgrumling, 2) hur kombinationen dos (mängd suspenderat material i vattnet) och varaktighet över tid påverkar olika fiskar och skaldjur. Genom att beakta både direkta och indirekta effekter, tidpunkt och dos-varaktighet vid muddrings- och dumpningsärenden kan påverkan från grumling på fisk och skaldjur begränsas. Uppgrumling av vatten har generellt störst direkt inverkan under fiskars lekperiod och lokala grumlingar bör därför undvikas den tid på året då många arter leker eller har annan särskilt känslig del av sin livscykel i relation till grumlingsverksamhet. Havs- och vattenmyndighetens applikation Lektidsportalen ger information om när på året svenska fisk-och kräftdjursarter leker i olika vattentyper/delvattentyper i olika delar av Sverige. Applikationen är ett viktigt stöd för att kunna planera muddrings- och dumpningsaktiviteter, både i tid och rum, så att de påverkar så få arter som möjligt. Lektidsportalen möjliggör platsspecifika bedömningar av ”tidsfönster” när grumling troligen har minst kumulativ påverkan på fisk och kräftdjur. Fiskars och skaldjurs respons på grumling är både art- och platsspecifik. En viktig faktor är dock att responsen till grumling beror både på dos (koncentration suspenderat material i vatten) och hur länge organismerna är exponerade för uppgrumling (varaktighet). I denna rapport redovisas en sammanställning av tidigare publicerade studier av fiskars och skaldjurs respons till olika kombinationer av dos och varaktighet. Vi delade upp studier mellan fiskar och skaldjur i söt och saltvatten (miljö), samt för olika livsstadier. Sammanställningen visar att lägre koncentrationer kan vägas mot längre varaktighet, och vice versa, för de flesta grupper. Även om det finns vissa skillnader i känslighet mellan miljöer och livsstadier har generellt koncentrationer < 100 mg/l suspenderat material < 14 dagar låg direkt inverkan. En brist på långtidsstudier kring effekter av låga koncentrationer motiverar ändå försiktighet, Sammanfattning framför allt vid långa exponeringstider. Under kortare exponeringstider, i storleksordningen timmardag(ar), kan många arter klara uppåt 1 000 mg/l. Ägg och larver, som har sämre möjligheter att förflytta sig, visar minskad kläcknings- och överlevnadsförmåga vid nivåer långt under 1 000 mg/l och exponering av grumling för tidiga utvecklingsstadier bör därför undvikas. Det är också viktigt att beakta långvariga indirekta effekter av muddring och dumpning på fisk och skaldjur. Förändrat vattenflöde, vattentemperatur eller bottensubstrat kan vara själva syftet med arbetet, och sådana förändringar kan ha stor påverkan på lek och föryngringsmöjligheter av fisk och skaldjur. Framför allt växtlighet men även bytesdjur kan vara känsligare för suspenderat material än fisk och skaldjur vilket gör att viktiga habitat och födotillgång försämras vid muddring eller dumpning. Möjligheterna till restaurering eller kompensationsåtgärder bör därför också beaktas för att på längre sikt inte utarma fisk- och skaldjursbestånd genom försämring och isolering av habitat.
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| 10. |
- Königson, Sara, et al.
(författare)
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Will harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) be deterred by a pinger that cannot be used as a "dinner bell" by seals?
- 2022
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Ingår i: Marine mammal science. - : WILEY. - 0824-0469 .- 1748-7692. ; 38:2, s. 469-485
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A measure proven successful in mitigating harbor porpoise bycatch, is the use of acoustic deterrents, i.e., pingers. However, most pingers are audible to seals. This may lead to seals associating pinger sounds with easily accessible food, leading to increased depredation, damage, and bycatch. In this study we tested if an experimental pinger, emitting sounds over 30 hr ON/OFF cycles, with low frequency components potentially audible to seals only at close distances, would effectively deter harbor porpoises. The porpoise response was measured by logging echolocation clicks, using C-POD click detectors, moored at different distances from the pinger. In addition, we calculated the theoretical pinger detection range for seals. Results showed that the pinger had a significant negative effect on the porpoise click activity logged at 0 m and 100 m distance but not at 400 m from the pinger. During pinger ON periods, we found no significant increase in echolocation over consecutive days of the study, suggesting no habituation to pinger sounds. Our theoretical detection distances indicate that seals can only detect the pinger at close distances, preventing seals from using this pinger as a "dinner bell."
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