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Natural habitat change, commercial fishing, climate, and dispersal interact to restructure an Alaskan fish metacommunity

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Abstract

The metacommunity concept has recently been described to account for the roles of dispersal in regulating community structure. Despite its strong theoretical basis, there exist few large-scale and long-term examples of its applicability in aquatic ecosystems. In this study we used a long-term dataset (1961–2007) on the relative abundances of the dominant limnetic fishes from two interconnected lakes to investigate the synergistic effects of naturally declining lake volume (approximately 50% in 50 years), climate variation, fishery management, and dispersal on community composition. We found a marked shift in fish community composition and variability during a period of rapid natural habitat change; however, the change was most apparent in the downstream, more stable lake of the system rather than at the site of disturbance. Multivariate analysis suggested significant shifts in community composition and variability in the downstream lake. Results indicated that the community composition in both lakes was best explained by habitat loss in the upper watershed and the number of spawning adult sockeye salmon the previous year (reflecting both natural processes and commercial fishing). Furthermore, communities exhibited site-specific responses to climatic conditions (e.g., index of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation), whereby the upper lake responded to climate within a given year and with a 1-year time lag, whereas the downstream community responded only with a 1-year lag. We attribute this difference largely to downstream dispersal and recruitment of fish from the upper lake. Thus, we suggest that the interconnected nature of the communities in this system provides a useful and large-scale example of the metacommunity concept, whereby the effects of environmental disturbance on community structure ultimately depend on the effects of these disturbances on dispersal among ecosystems.

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Acknowledgments

We are indebted to the efforts of previous FRI researchers, especially D. Narver, D. Phinney, M. Dahlberg, and B. Parr. J. Scheuerell, J. Carter, and J. Pomarang are thanked for their efforts working with the historical database. We thank the residents of Chignik, especially J. and E. Slaton (who we will sadly miss), for their friendship and support. For field work in 2005 and 2006 we thank I. Smith, M. Henderson, J. Armstrong, J. Anderson, R. Simmons, and M. Conte. J. Olden offered timely advice on multivariate statistics. D. Hauser, J. Shurin, J. Fryxell and two anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments on an earlier version of the manuscript. This work was possible through support from the National Marine Fisheries Service, the National Science Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and the Chignik Regional Aquaculture Association. The work in the Chignik system complied with regulations of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the University of Washington’s Animal Care Committee. This is a contribution by the Alaska Salmon Program, School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington.

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  1. Peter A. H. Westley

    Present address: Ocean Sciences Centre, Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1 Marine Lab Road, St. John’s, NL, A1C 5S7, Canada

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Alaska Salmon Program, School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, P.O. Box 355020, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA

    Peter A. H. Westley, Daniel E. Schindler, Thomas P. Quinn & Ray Hilborn

  2. Natural Resources Consultants Incorporated, 4039 21st Avenue, West Suite 404, Seattle, WA, 98199, USA

    Gregory T. Ruggerone

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  1. Peter A. H. Westley
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  4. Gregory T. Ruggerone
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Correspondence to Peter A. H. Westley.

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Communicated by Joel Trexler.

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Westley, P.A.H., Schindler, D.E., Quinn, T.P. et al. Natural habitat change, commercial fishing, climate, and dispersal interact to restructure an Alaskan fish metacommunity. Oecologia 163, 471–484 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-009-1534-3

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