Abstract
The influence of zooplanktivorous fishes on the plankton community and water quality of Americana Reservoir, Brazil was studied experimentally in 4 floating enclosures during the dry seasons (July–September) of 1982 and 1983. Two enclosures were stocked with adult fish (Astyanax bimaculatus in 1982;A. fasciatus in 1983) at near maximal densities measured in the reservoir upper surface waters (35 m−2) and two were fish-free during each experiment lasting about one month. Marked differences were evident between the fish and fish-free enclosures after a 2–3 week period in each experiment, particularly with respect to water transparency, phytoplankton biomass, and zooplankton abundance as well as species and size composition. By the end of each experiment water transparencies were lower and phytoplankton biomass higher in the fish enclosures compared to those without fish. Also at that time Rotifera were the prominent zooplankters in the fish enclosures and Cladocera in the fish-free ones. Larger or more conspicuous species of Cladocera asDaphnia gessneri, D. ambigua, andMoina micrura were present in the fish-free enclosures but not in the fish enclosures. The interactions between fish predation, zooplankton grazing, phytoplankton biomass and water quality conditions are discussed in relation to eutrophication of a tropical aquatic ecosystem.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andersson, G., H. Berggren, G. Cronberg & C. Gelin, 1978. Effects of planktivorous and benthivorous fish on organisms and water chemistry in eutrophic lakes. Hydrobiologia 59: 9–15.
Arcifa, M. S., 1984. Zooplankton composition of ten reservoirs in southern Brazil. Hydrobiologia 113: 137–145.
Arcifa, M. S., M. A. J. Carvalho, S. M. F. Gianesella-Galvão, G. Y. Shimizu, C. G. Froehlich & R. M. C. Castro, 1981. Limnology of ten reservoirs in southern Brazil. Verh. int. Ver. Limnol. 21: 1048–1053.
Brooks, J. L. & S. I. Dodson, 1965. Predation, body size, and composition of plankton. Science 150: 28–35.
Ferguson, A. J. D., J. M. Thompson & C. S. Reynolds, 1982. Structure and dynamics of zooplankton communities maintained in closed systems, with special reference to algal food supply. J. Plankton Res. 4: 523–543.
Gliwicz, Z. M. & A. Prejs, 1977. Can planktivorous fish keep in check planktonic crustacean populations? A test of the size-efficiency hypothesis in typical Polish lakes. Ekol. pol. 25: 567–591.
Golterman, H. L., 1969. Methods for chemical analysis of fresh waters. IBP Handbook No. 8, Blackwell Sci. Publ., Oxford and Edinburgh, 172 pp.
Grasshoff, F., 1976. Methods of seawater analysis, Springer-Verlag, N.Y., 317 pp.
Hall, D. J., S. T. Threlkeld, C. W. Burns & P. H. Crowley, 1976. The size-efficiency hypothesis and the size structure of zooplankton communities. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 7: 177–208.
Hrbáček, J., M. Dvořakova, V. Kořínek & L. Procházkóva, 1961. Demonstration of the effect of the fish stock on the species composition of zooplankton and the intensity of metabolism of the whole plankton association. Verh. int. Ver. Limnol. 14: 192–195.
Langeland, A. & P. Larsson, 1980. The significance of the predator food chain in lake metabolism. Prog. Wat. Tech. 12: 181–187.
Leah, R. T., B. Moss & D. E. Forrest, 1980. The role of predation in causing major changes in the limnology of a hyper-eutrophic lake. Int. Revue ges. Hydrobiol. 65: 223–247.
Lynch, M. & J. Shapiro, 1981. Predation, enrichment, and phytoplankton community structure. Limnol. Oceanogr. 26: 86–102.
Nilsson, N.-A., 1978. The role of size-biased predation in competition and interactive segregation in fish. In S. D. Gerking (ed.) Ecology of freshwater fish production. Blackwell Sci. Publ., Oxford: 303–325.
Northcote, T. G., M. S. Arcifa & O. Froehlich, 1985. Effects of impoundment and drawdown on the fish community of a South American river. Verh. int. Ver. Limnol. 22: 2704–2711.
Peters, R. H. & J. A. Downing, 1984. Empirical analysis of zooplankton filtering and feeding rates. Limnol. Oceanogr. 29: 763–784.
Reynolds, C. S., J. M. Thompson, A. J. D. Ferguson & S. W. Wiseman, 1982. Loss processes in the population dynamics of phytoplankton maintained in closed systems. J. Plankton Res. 4: 561–600.
Schoenberg, S. A. & R. E. Carlson, 1984. Direct and indirect effects of zooplankton grazing on phytoplankton in a hypereutrophic lake. Oikos 42: 291–302.
Shapiro, J., 1979. The need for more biology in lake restoration, in: Lake Restoration, Proceedings of a national conference, Aug. 22–24, 1978. Minneapolis, Minnesota. EPA 440/5–79–001. U.S. Gov't Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402.
Shapiro, J., 1980. The importance of trophic-level interactions to the abundance and species composition of algae in lakes. In J. Barica and L. R. Mur (eds), Hypertrophic Ecosystems, Developments in Hydrobiology, Vol. 2, Dr. W. Junk b.v. Publishers — The Hague, The Netherlands: 105–116.
Timms, R. M. & B. Moss, 1984. Prevention of growth of potentially dense phytoplankton populations by zooplankton grazing, in the presence of zooplanktivorous fish, in a shallow wetland ecosystem. Limnol. Oceanogr. 29: 472–486.
Zaret, T. M., 1980. Predation and freshwater communities. Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 187 pp.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Arcifa, M.S., Northcote, T.G. & Froehlich, O. Fish-zooplankton interactions and their effects on water quality of a tropical Brazilian reservoir. Hydrobiologia 139, 49–58 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00770241
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00770241