Abstract
Ova fecundities of Scottish Atlantic salmon Salmo salar, predicted from log(10) regression of ova numbers and female fork length (L(F)), differed widely between upland and lowland stocks within the same river, whereas sea-age, river and year factors had insignificant effects on fecundity once L(F) was accounted for. For upland fish, the relationship between log(10)L(F) and log(10) ova mass (M(O)) was stable between two datasets collected 40 years apart. Although upland and lowland females both produced comparable log(10)M(O) (log(10)L(F))(-1), lowland females partitioned this into 45% more, but smaller ova, whereas upland females produced fewer, but larger, eggs. The possible causes and implications of this are discussed for evolutionary perspectives (lifetime production), population structure (local tributary v. large catchments; environmental effects), population dynamics and stability (density-dependent control mechanisms) and fisheries management (stock-recruitment; short and long-term stock sustainability).
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 921-938 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | Journal of Fish Biology |
Volume | 81 |
Issue number | 3 |
Early online date | 11 Jun 2012 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Aug 2012 |
Keywords
- mathematical statistics
- atlantic salmon
- salmo salar
- ova fecundity
- scottish
- causal mechanisms
- sustainable fisheries management
- population dynamics
- stock–recruitment