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Changes in the insect emergence at the water–air interface in response to fish density manipulation in high altitude lakes

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Abstract

Emerging insects are important nutrient vectors for lake-to-land linkages, but they are affected by fish predation. We manipulated the fish density in four high altitude lakes in connection with a brook trout eradication project. We used a paired benthic and surface funnel trap design to test whether fish density affects abundance, size, and proportion of aquatic insects reaching the surface in the pelagic zone. The study was complemented with benthic macroinvertebrates and fish diet data. Due to sample size, we focused on midge pupae, which rely on water surface tension (water–air interface) to emerge. Conspicuous insects emerging along the shoreline (water–land interface) were rarely collected in the traps, even if they rapidly recovered through the eradication. There was a positive relationship between fish density and midge abundance, and negative relationship for size and proportion reaching the surface. The increase in the emergence of midges in the presence of fish supports several other studies, but we have provided evidence that this pattern exists in conjunction with a size reduction even when fish consume a substantial amount of midges. The inclusion of small Diptera emergence at the water–air interface is a likely keystone in understanding fish impact on insect subsidy.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Bruno Bassano, Achaz von Hardenberg (GPNP) and Giuseppe Bogliani (University of Pavia) for their commitment to research in the GPNP, and two anonymous reviewer for their constructive comments. Special thanks to the Park wardens for their help and hospitality, to Stefano Malaguti, Giovanni Cecioni, Jean Laurant Jordaney, Kevin Liautaud, Andreu Porcar, Gioele Grandi for their help during the field work, and to Ben T. Jennings and Mia Berwick for their kind linguistic revision. Funding and logistic support for this research was provided by the GPNP within the framework of the LIFE + project BIOAQUAE (Biodiversity Improvement of Aquatic Alpine Ecosystems, LIFE11 BIOIT000020). All field work was performed under licenses from the GPNP and approved by the Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (ISPRA). Permissions for fishing activities have been issued by the GPNP (protocol number 1798/1013/BB) with the favorable opinion of ISPRA (Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e Ricerca Ambientale, protocol number 0017655—29/04/2013).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Alpine Wildlife Research Centre, Gran Paradiso National Park, Degioz 11, 11010, Valsavarenche, Aosta, Italy

    Rocco Tiberti & Stefano Brighenti

  2. DSTA, Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e dell’Ambiente, Università di Pavia, Via Ferrata 9, 27100, Pavia, Italy

    Rocco Tiberti

  3. Department of BioSciences, Swansea University, Singleton Park, Swansea, SA2 8PP, UK

    Matteo Rolla

  4. DBS, Dipartimento di Bioscienze, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 26, 20133, Milan, Italy

    Rocco Iacobuzio

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  1. Rocco Tiberti
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Correspondence to Rocco Tiberti.

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Tiberti, R., Rolla, M., Brighenti, S. et al. Changes in the insect emergence at the water–air interface in response to fish density manipulation in high altitude lakes. Hydrobiologia 779, 93–104 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2801-z

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