Population dynamics of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) during maintenance liming of an acidic lake

Maintenance liming of an acidic lake in the Adirondack Mountains of New York state (Woods Lake) was conducted three times over a 5 yr period in an attempt to establish a self maintaining brook trout population. Various strains and age classes of marked brook trout were stocked annually and the population was inventoried semi annually to evaluate survival, growth, and reproductive success. The Woods Lake brook trout population was dominated by young, stocked fish throughout the maintenance liming period of 1985-89. Based on spring emergent fry trap catches and fall trap net catches of unmarked fish, only one naturally produced year class (1986) was successfully recruited to the Woods Lake brook trout population. Low annual survival rates (G 20%) of juvenile trout were observed throughout the study period. Although initial growth rates and condition of young trout were satisfactory, increased intraspecific competition for food resulted in declining growth rates and condition of older age classes. Fall standing crops of brook trout remained at relatively low levels of 6 to 10 kg ha^?1 and both production per unit biomass and growth efficiency decreased over the 5-yr. Repeated whole lake liming and limited spawning habitat improvement were not sufficient to sustain brook trout natural reproduction in Woods Lake. Low productivity, marginal spawning habitat quality, and low survival rates of stocked trout in Woods Lake resulted in the failure to establish a self maintaining, productive brook trout population in Woods Lake.     

Fates of metal radiotracers added to a whole lake: Accumulation in fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) and lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush)

Six gamma-emitting isotopes, Se-75, Hg-203, Cs-134, Fe-59, Zn-65 and Co-60, were introduced simultaneously in a single epilimnetic addition to an oligotrophic lake on the Precambrian Shield of northwestern Ontario, Canada. Accumulation of each isotope was monitored in fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) for 274 days. Isotope accumulation in blood, gill, gut, liver, kidney, spleen, gonad, brain, muscle and gut contents of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) was monitored for 352 days. Fish accumulated only traces of Fe-59. Isotopes which occured in water primarily in the charcoal-extracted fraction (Se-75 and Zn-65) were most readily accumulated by fish. Fathead minnow accumulated higher concentrations of all isotopes than lake trout. In lake trout, the highest concentrations of isotopes were found in the following tissues: Se-75, liver; Hg-203 and Co-60, kidney; Cs-134, muscle; Zn-65, gut. Food seemed to be the primary source of all isotopes to fish. Ratios of isotope concentrations in fish to those in water were higher for both fathead minnow and lake trout than ratios reported from laboratory studies using aqueous exposures. Concentration ratios for Cs-134 in both fathead minnow and lake trout from oligotrophic Lake 224 were over an order of magnitude greater than published data for fish from eutrophic lakes.     

Survival of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) embryos and fry in streams of different acid sensitivity in Shenandoah National Park,USA

Shenandoah National Park receives more atmospheric sulfate loading than any other USA national park. pH has been gradually declining in low-ANC streams for more than 10 years. We have completed four 1-to-3 month-long field bioassays in three streams differing in acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), using a total of 18,000 hatchery brook trout eyed-eggs through fry. In three of the four bioassays, embryos/fry showed poorer survivorship in the low-ANC stream, compared to the high-ANC stream. Substantial mortalities occurred under different hydrological conditions, including steady rain plus significant rain events (fall 1992), low rainfall followed by a significant rain event (spring 1993), and steady light rain and snowmelt with no large rain events (spring 1994). In a fourth bioassay (fall 1993), poor survivorship occurred in all three streams due to drought conditions. Trout placed in the intermediate-ANC stream showed variable survivorship, in two bioassays as high as in the high-ANC stream, and in one bioassay as poor as in the low-ANC stream. Baseflow ANC in the intermediate-ANC stream is 40–100 ueq/L, and pH never falls below 6.0. However, during episodes, pH in this stream sometimes fluctuates rapidly in the range of 6.0 to 7.0, and this fluctuation itself may be a source of physiological stress.     

Differences in acid tolerance during the early life stages of three strains of brook trout,Salvelinus fontinalis

Brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, embryos and fry from three sources (an acidic watershed in Kejimkujik Park at pH 4.7 to 5.3, a neutral watershed at pH 7, a hatchery at pH 7) were exposed separately to lethal and sublethal levels of acidity (pH 7.0, 5.2, 4.7, 4.3, 3.9), beginning at fertilization. Significant differences in mortality between the strains at low pH were observed and these suggested a genetic component to acid tolerance. Mortality in the strain from the acidic watershed was the lowest, followed by the second wild strain. Survival in both wild strains at low pH was much better than survival in hatchery embryos. These differences in survival at sublethal acidity (4.7 to 7.0) were principally the result of high mortality shortly after fertilization. After this period, survival stabilized. Only at pH 4.3 did substantial mortality occur at hatching. The early embryonic stage therefore appears to be the most susceptible to sublethal acid stress in brook trout. Hatchery strain embryos were also introduced at the eyed stage at 213 degree-days. Subsequent survival of this group was better at low pH than that of hatchery embryos introduced at fertilization, thereby indicating an early or cumulative deleterious effect. Higher acidity retarded hatch in all cases. The time to 50% hatch was delayed by 1.2 degree-days with each increase of 1 μM H⁺.     

Responses of blacknose dace (Rhinichthys atratulus) and brook char (Salvelinus fontinatis) to acidified water in a laboratory stream

As part of the Shenandoah National Park: Fish in Sensitive Habitats (SNP: FISH) project, movements of blacknose dace (Rhinichthys atratulus) and brook char (Salvelinus fontinalis) were examined during exposure to artificial acidification in paired channels of a laboratory stream. The objective of this study was to determine the ability of the fish to avoid depressions in the ambient pH and recognize and use a neutral-pH microhabitat refuge during acute reductions. Fish preference for a particular channel was statistically predictable based on the delivery of food. We tested fish avoidance behavior by manipulating food and the delivery of a pulse of acidified water. Both blacknose dace and brook char avoided the acid pulse (ambient pH reduced from 7.2 to 5.1) by sheltering in the pH-neutral refuge. Extensive field sampling in refuge microhabitats before and during episodic acidification is needed to determine changes in the distributional patterns of these species associated with acid precipitation events.     

Metals in stocked Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in lakes near Sudbury,Canada

Muscle tissue from stocked lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) from lakes near the smelters at Sudbury, Canada was analyzed for Al, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, and Zn. Metals in tissue were not abnormally high compared with fish from lakes farther away from the smelters. Tissue concentrations of Al, Fe, Mn, and Zn declined significantly after stocking. Because metal concentrations were lower in hatchery water than the study lakes, this decline in tissue metal suggests that diet plays a prominent role in the uptake of these metals in lake trout. Only Hg showed evidence of accumulation to levels that might be harmful for human consumption, and then only in a few older, larger trout. In contrast, tissue Mn and Zn were inversely correlated with trout weight. Fluctuations, independent of age, body weight or time of year, were observed in tissue concentrations of Al, Cu, and Zn. Annual cycles, independent of pH and alkalinity were observed in tissue concentrations of Fe, Hg, Mn, and Ni. Bioaccumulation of metal proved to be an unfounded concern for the rehabilitation of fish populations in lakes near Sudbury.     

Avoidance of low pH and elevated Al concentrations by Brook Charr (Salvelinus fontinalis) Alevins in laboratory tests

Laboratory studies were conducted to test the ability of brook charr (Salvelinus fontinalis) alevins, the earliest free-swimming life stage of the species, to detect and avoid toxic levels of H⁺ and inorganic Al. Alevins were tested in steep gradient choice tanks using a range of H⁺ (pH 4.0 to 5.5) and Al (0 to 500 μg L^?1) concentrations in low Ca (2.0 mg L^?1) water. The young brook charr actively avoided acidic water with a pH < 5.0. Aluminum additions of 500 μg L^?l increased the avoidance response. The observed behavioral response of alevins to low pH and elevated levels of Al, may be of significant adaptive advantage in systems undergoing acidification.     

Mortality and physiological stress of year-classes of landlocked and migratory Atlantic salmon,brown trout and brook trout in acidic aluminium-rich soft water

Physiological stress, measured as changes in plasma chloride, and mortality were measured on different year-classes of landlocked and migratory Atlantic salmon, two strains of brown trout, and brook trout, in a flow-through system with acidic Al-rich soft water. The oldest year-classes of salmon were smolts. Water from Lake Byglandsfjord (pH = 5.9), was enriched 1 th inorganic Al (as AlCl₃) and H₂SO₄ to pH = 5.1, total Al = 225 ug L^?1 , and labile Al = 135 ug L^?1 . As a reference, lake water was limed by means of a shellsanj filter to pH = 6.2, increasing Ca-concentration from 1.0 to 1.5 mg L^?1. During the 83 hr experiment, neither mortality nor physiological stress occurred in any species or year-class in the limed water. In the acid water, no mortality occurred on any stage of brown trout or brook trout. Among the migratory and landlocked salmon, however, 5% of the alevins died after 49 and 70 hr, respectively. All smolts of both the landlocked and the migratory salmon died after 83 and 35 hr, respectively, the co responding loss rate of plasma chloride was ?0.76 and ?1.26 meq Cl hr^?1. Brook trout, however, increased plasma ion concentration during the experimental period, and hence showed no stress.     

Sulfur constituents of sediments and their relationship to lake acidification

Sulfate is a major component of acid precipitation in the Northeastern United States. Transformations and fluxes of S may be important indices of the effect of acidification on limnetic systems. Sulfur constiuents and respiration rates were compared in sediments among Oneida, Deer and South Lakes in New York which exhibit a range of buffering capacity and pH from high to low, respectively. Total S in Deer and South was higher near their major inlets. Sulfide was highest in Oneida sediment, which had a lower redox potential (Eh). Ester sulfate was a major portion of the S in the three lakes. Oxygen consumption was highest in Oneida and lowest in South sediments. The low ester sulfate and an elevated C/N ratio of South sediment may indicate that acidification inhibits decomposition     

Vertical distribution of brown trout (Salmo Trutta) and perch (Perca Fluviatilis) in an acidified lake

Brown trout (Salmo trutta) and perch (Perca fluviatilis) had different vertical distributions throughout the year in the acidified lake Gjerstadvann. During summer, the brown trout lived in the 0 to 16 m depth interval, whereas the perch lived in the 0 to 8 m interval. In Gjerstadvann, the thermocline lies at 8 to 10 m depth. The epilimnion pH was usually > 5.6, and the thermocline pH was about 5.2. Brown trout and perch in Gjerstadvann, thus experienced different chemical environment during summer-stratification. Two rivers, one of them acidified, the other circum-neutral, were the most important spawning areas for the Gjerstadvann brown trout. Brown trout parr in the acidified river migrated to the lake and matured at younger ages than the brown trout spawning in the non-acidic river. The brown trout stocks were juvenilized because of low survival rate of adult fish (S = 0.15 to 0.19). The short life span was probably dus to low pH and elevated Al. The perch in Gjerstadvann showed fluctuating year class strength but the survival rate of adult perch (S = 0.57) did not seem to be affected by acidification during this investigation. This may due to its vertical distribution during summer.     

Simulated mobilization of metals from sediments in response to lake acidification

The regeneratable forms of pollutant metals in lake sediments were estimated using different chemical extractants and the effects of lake acidification on the mobilization of such metal fractions studied in laboratory microcosm. The release of each metal was found to increase exponentially below a threshold pH value, which was about 4.0 for Cu, Ni, Zn, Cd and Fe. The data suggest that a large percentage of pollutant metals are mobile as determined by chemical extraction techniques and long-term release experiments.     

The role of organic acids in the acidification of surface waters in the Eastern U.S.

There is considerable uncertainty concerning the role of naturally occurring organic solutes in the acidification of surface waters. To provide a preliminary assessment of this process, we evaluated water chemistry data obtained from the US EPA Eastern Lake Survey (ELS). A wide range of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and organic anion concentrations were evident across acid-sensitive lake districts in the Eastern US. In particular, lakes in Maine, the Upper Midwest and Florida contained high concentrations (greater than 1000 gmol C · L^?1) of DOC. High concentrations of organic anions, estimated by discrepancy in charge balance in several subregions, suggest that dissociation of naturally occurring organic acids could significantly reduce the ANC of dilute surface waters. Unfortunately, analysis of acidification by organic solutes is complicated by uncertainty in H⁺ dissociation characteristics. Input of organic acids with weakly acidic pK _a values do not alter acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), while strongly acidic organic functional groups dissociate completely and decrease ANC. As a first step to assess the acid/base characteristics of naturally occurring organic solutes, we calibrated the Oliver et al. (1983) model, using a reduced version of the ELS data set. This model explained 94% of the observed variability in organic anion concentration in this data set. However, model parameters obtained from the ELS calibration were somewhat different than values provided by Oliver et al. (1983), based on potentiometric titrations of pre-concentrated organic acids. The discrepancy in model parameters has implications for estimating organic anion concentrations in water using the Oliver et al. (1983) model. Finally, data from the ELS indicates that across glaciated regions of the eastern US, concentrations of DOC and organic ions were negatively correlated with SO _inf2? ^p4 . This trend would appear to be consistent with the hypothesis that inputs of strong acids immobilize organic acids, resulting in a shift of surface water acidification by organic acids to strong acids.     

Response of some soils of Galicia (NW Spain) to H2SO4 acidification

This paper presents the results of an acidification experiment, consisting of seven consecutive equilibrations of repesentative soils of Galicia with a H₂SO₄ solution (pH 3). Different responses to soil acidification, such as SO₄ retention and cation release, were evaluated. In soils derived from gabbro and amphibolite, SO₄ retention and Al release were the principal acid neutralization mechanisms, whereas in soils derived from granite, schist, shale and sandstone Al release was the main process. The SO₄ retention was significantly correlated with Al and Fe extracted with dihionite-citrate-bicarbonate and crystalline Fe. The released base cations came mainly from exchange sites, though sometimes also from other sources, probably by mineral weathering. The major sources of Al in these soils were metalorganic complexes and weatherable minerals. Solutions with pHs close to 4 are in equilibrium with gibbsite, kaolinite, jurbanite and alunite; at lower pH values, with jurbanite and alunite.     

Chrysophyte scales in lake sediments provide evidence of recent acidification in two Quebec (Canada) lakes

Several lake surveys have indicated that many lakes in Quebec are sensitive to acidification, but no historical data are available to provide conclusive evidence of lake acidification. Paleolimnological studies can provide such evidence. Chrysophycean algal microfossils were analyzed from the sediments of Lake Bonneville and Lake Truite Rouge in Quebec. The chrysophyte flora in the study lakes was stable until 40 yr ago, but since then the taxa characteristic of acidic or slightly acidic waters increased in abundance. The study provides evidence of recent lake acidification in Quebec.     

The use of zooplankton in a biomonitoring program to detect lake acidification and recovery

A detailed review of the zooplankton literature found strong evidence that lake acidification consistently causes declines in crustacean and rotifer species richness, the relative abundance of cyclopoids and daphnids, and the relative abundance of 16 particular zooplankton species. Five species were found to consistently increase as lake pH declines. Inconsistent effects were observed on crustacean biomass and mean organism size. Biomonitoring response variables recommended to detect incipient community changes include the relative abundance of pH sensitive species, overall crustacean and rotifer community composition plotted in abundance ordination space, crustacean and rotifer species richness, and the relative abundance of acid tolerant species. If acidification effects have been detected using the above response variables, then more detailed monitoring to understand the functional characteristics of affected systems (e.g. crustacean biomass, rotifer biomass and/or overall community size spectra) is appropriate. A lake selection procedure is recommended to maximize the number of systems containing sensitive species, and ensure a set of reference systems whose acidity is unlikely to change significantly.     

Inter-regional comparison of patterns and trends in surface water acidification across the United States

Temporal trends in acid-base chemistry are reported for surface waters in 6 regions of the United States. The lakes and streams are low ANC, dilute systems, selected to represent acid-sensitive aquatic resources in the 6 regions. The predominant trends observed were decreases in lake and stream SO₄ ^2? concentrations in sites east of the Mississippi River, and increases in NO₃ ^? in the Adirondack lake and Catskill stream sites (both located in eastern New York State). Correlations of trend results from all sites with other factors indicated that trends in precipitation volume were highly correlated with the observed trend patterns. From the surface water trend results, three distinct clusters were identified that corresponded to three trend patterns: ‘dilution,’ ‘recovery,’ and ‘acidification.’ These were distributed across the LTM regions, with no particular geographic patterns.     

Québec lake survey: II. Origin and extent of acidification

Over 95% of the province of Québec is located on the Canadian Shield where the bedrock offers a very low acid neutralizing capacity. Some areas of Québec are more vulnerable than others because of shallow soils or soils presenting very low carbonated content. Lakes in these areas tend to be more acidic and more sensitive than elsewhere on the Precambrian Shield. There are two major areas showing high sensitivity (ANC≤100 μeq L^?1): the southwestern portion of Québec and the easternmost part of the province. In the former, lake acidity is mainly driven by SO₄ deposition, while in the latter area, organic acidity appears to be the main controlling factor. The origin of acidification can be related to the pattern of SO₄ deposition, the higher loadings being measured in the southwestern portion of Québec. These depositions follow a west to east decreasing gradient as they are mostly related to sources located west and southwest of Québec.     

Physiological response of brown trout (Salmo trutta) spawners and postspawners to acidic alminum-rich stream water

High immediate postspawning mortality due to inferior autumn water quality has been hypothesized to cause juvenilization in some brown trout populations in acidified areas. We exposed male and female spawners and female postspawners from a juvenile-dominated brown trout population to acidic streamwater (pH = 4.83, Al_i = 240 μg L^?1) and a limed control (pH = 5.70, Al_i = 55 μg L^?1) for 28 days in November and December, 1984. Water chemistry was monitored at least bi-daily, and physiological stress was assessed by analysis of plasma chloride, osmolality and haematocrit. Neither pronounced physiological stress nor mortality was observed at the control site. At the exposure site trout showed significant but moderate stress responses and 15 % died. The results are discussed in terms of potential population effects and physiological mechanisms, e.g., plasma volume reduction.