Abstract
The Mediterranean brown trout (Salmo trutta complex) is native to basins draining to the Western Mediterranean Sea, and natural populations are currently declining in abundance and distribution due to habitat degradation and introgression with stocked trout of the Atlantic lineage. Data on its life history traits are limited, although is an essential first step in developing effective conservation and management strategies. We studied age, growth and reproduction of Mediterranean brown trout from three headwater streams in northeast Iberian Peninsula. The maximum observed fork length was 382 mm in males and 322 mm in females, and six age groups (from 1+ to 6+) were identified. There was large variation in the back-calculated lengths for individual fish within ages. The von Bertalanffy growth curves were similar among streams and comparable to other European populations from small streams, but growth rate was lower when compared to larger and more productive rivers. Overall, sexual maturation began at age 1+, and the estimated L50 was 136 mm for males and 150 mm for females. Monthly variations in the gonadosomatic index showed that spawning occurred between late autumn and early winter, mainly in November and December. Mean fecundity and egg diameter were positively correlated with fish length, and values were within the typical range reported in other brown trout populations. Most of the differences among streams can be explained by differences in water temperature. These results constitute a contribution to better understanding of key aspects of Mediterranean brown trout biology, and to develop conservation and management strategies for preserving their populations.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Almodóvar A, Nicola GG (2004) Angling impact on conservation of Spanish stream‐dwelling brown trout Salmo trutta. Fish Manag Ecol 11:173–182
Almodóvar A, Nicola GG, Ayllón D, Elvira B (2012) Global warming threatens the persistence of Mediterranean brown trout. Glob Chang Biol 18:1549–1560
Aparicio E, García‐Berthou E, Araguas RM, Marínez P, García‐Marín JL (2005) Body pigmentation pattern to assess introgression by hatchery stocks in native brown trout (Salmo trutta) from Mediterranean streams. J Fish Biol 67:931–949
Aparicio E, Rocaspana R, de Sostoa A, Palau-Ibars A, Alcaraz C (2018) Movements and dispersal of brown trout (Salmo trutta Linnaeus, 1758) in Mediterranean streams: influence of habitat and biotic factors. PeerJ 6:e5730
Araguas RM, Vera M, Aparicio E, Sanz N, Fernández‐Cebrián R, Marchante C, García‐Marín JL (2017) Current status of the brown trout (Salmo trutta) populations within eastern Pyrenees genetic refuges. Ecol Freshw Fish 26:120–132
Arslan M, Aras NM (2007) Structure and reproductive characteristics of two brown trout (Salmo trutta) populations in the Çoruh River Basin, North-eastern Anatolia, Turkey. Turk J Zool 31:185–192
Arslan M, Yildirim A, Bekta S (2004) Length-weight relationship of brown trout, Salmo trutta L., Inhabiting Kan Stream, Çoruh Basin, North-Eastern Turkey. Turk J Fish Aquat Sci 4:45–48
Avery E (1985) Sexual maturity and fecundity of brown trout in central and northern Wisconsin streams. Technical Bulletin no. 154. Department of Natural Resources, Madison, Wisconsin
Bagenal TB, Braum E (1978) Eggs and early life history. In: Bagenal TB (ed) Methods for assessment of fish production in fresh waters. IBP Handbook No. 3. Blackwell Scientific Publications, London, pp 165–201
Benejam L, Saura-Mas S, Bardina M, Sola C, Munne A, García-Berthou E (2016) Ecological impacts of small hydropower plants on headwater stream fish: from individual to community effects. Ecol Freshw Fish 25:295–306
Benhaim D, Guyomard R, Chatain B, Quillet E, Begout ML (2013) Genetic differences for behaviour in juveniles from two strains of brown trout suggest an effect of domestication history. Appl Anim Behav Sci 147:235–242
Bernatchez L (2001) The evolutionary history of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) inferred from phylogeographic, nested clades, and mismatch analysis of mitochondrial DNA variation. Evolution 55:351–379
Berrebi P, Poteaux C, Fissier M, Cattaneo‐Berrebi G (2000) Stocking impact and allozyme diversity in brown trout from Mediterranean southern France. J Fish Biol 56:949–960
Bohlin T, Sundström LF, Johnsson JI, Höjesjö J, Pettersson J (2002) Density dependent growth in brown trout: effects of introducing wild and hatchery fish. J Anim Ecol 71:683–692
Champigneulle A, Largiader CR, Caudron A (2003) Reproduction de la truite (Salmo trutta L.) dans le Torrent de Chevenne, Haute-Savoie.un fonctionnement original? Bull Fr Pêche Piscic 369:41–70
Crisp DT (1994) Reproductive investment of female brown trout, Salmo trutta L., in a stream and reservoir system in northern England. J Fish Biol 44:343–349
Crisp DT (2000) Trout and salmon: ecology, conservation and rehabilitation. Fishing News Books, Blackwell Science, Oxford
Cunjak RA, Power G (1987) The feeding and energetics of stream‐resident trout in winter. J Fish Biol 31:493–511
Doadrio I, Perea S, Garzón-Heydt P, González JL (2011) Ictiofauna Continental Española. Bases para su seguimiento. Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Medio Rural y Marino, Madrid
Elliott JM (1994) Quantitative ecology and the brown trout. Oxford Series in Ecology and Evolution, Oxford
Elliott JM, Hurley MA (1998). Predicting fluctuations in the size of newly emerged sea-trout fry in a Lake District stream. J Fish Biol 53:1120–1133
Francis RI (1990). Back-calculation of fish length: a critical review. J Fish Biol 36:883–902
Froese R (2006) Cube law, condition factor and weight-length relationships: history, meta‐analysis and recommendations. J Appl Ichthyol 22:241–253
Fuiman LA (1983) Growth gradients in fish larvae. J Fish Biol 23:117–123
Garcia A, Braña F (1988) Reproductive biology of brown trout (Salmo trutta L) in the Allen River (Austurias, Spain). Pol Arch Hydrobiol 35:361–373
Gil J, Caudron A, Labonne J (2015) Can female preference drive intraspecific diversity dynamics in brown trout (Salmo trutta, L.)? Ecol Freshw Fish 25:352–359
Gortázar J, García de Jalón D, Alonso‐González C, Vizcaíno P, Baeza D, Marchamalo M (2007) Spawning period of a southern brown trout population in a highly unpredictable stream. Ecol Freshw Fish 16: 515–527
Jonsson B (1985) Life‐history patterns of freshwater resident and sea‐run trout migrant brown trout in Norway. Trans Am Fish Soc 114:182–194
Jonsson B, Jonsson N (2011) Ecology of Atlantic salmon and brown trout: habitat as a template for life histories. Springer, New York
Jonsson B, L’Abée-Lund JH (1993) Latitudinal clines in life-history variables of anadromous brown trout in Europe. J Fish Biol 43(Suppl A):1–16
Jonsson B, L'Abée-Lund JH, Heggberget TG, Jensen AJ, Johnsen BO, Næsje TF, Sættem LM (1991) Longevity, body size, and growth in anadromous brown trout (Salmo trutta). Can J Fish Aquat Sci 48:1838–1845
Klemetsen A, Amundsen PA, Dempson JB, Jonsson B, Jonsson N, O'Connell MF, Mortensen E (2003) Atlantic salmon Salmo salar L., brown trout Salmo trutta L. and Arctic charr Salvelinus alpinus (L.): a review of aspects of their life histories. Ecol Freshw Fish 12:1–59
Kottelat M, Freyhof J (2007) Handbook of European freshwater fishes. Publications Kottelat, Cornol, Switzerland
L'Abee-Lund JH, Jonsson B, Jensen AJ, Saettem LM, Heggberget TG, Johnsen BO, Naesje TF (1989) Latitudinal variation in life-history characteristics of sea-run migrant brown trout Salmo trutta. J Anim Ecol 58:525–542
Larios-López JE, Tierno de Figueroa JM, Galiana-García M, Gortázar J, Alonso C (2015) Extended spawning in brown trout (Salmo trutta) populations from the southern Iberian Peninsula: the role of climate variability. J Limnol 74:394–402
Lobón-Cerviá J, Montañés C, de Sostoa A (1986) Reproductive ecology and growth of a population of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) in an aquifer-fed stream of Old Castile (Spain). Hydrobiologia 135:81–94
Lobón-Cerviá J, Utrilla C, Rincón P, Amezcua F (1997) Environmentally induced spatio‐temporal variations in the fecundity of brown trout Salmo trutta L.: trade‐offs between egg size and number. Freshw Biol 38:277–288
Maisse G, Bagliniere JL, Le Bail PY (1987) Dynamique de la population de Truite commune (Salmo trutta) d'un ruisseau breton (France): les géniteurs sédentaires. Hydrobiologia 148:123–130
Nelson GA (2019) fishmethods: Fishery Science Methods and Models. R package version 1.11-1. https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/fishmethods/
Nicola GG, Almodóvar A (2002) Reproductive traits of stream-dwelling brown trout Salmo trutta in contrasting neighbouring rivers of central Spain. Freshw Biol 47:1353–1365
Ogle DH (2017) FSA: Fisheries Stock Analysis. R package version 0.8.17. https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/FSA/
Ojanguren AF, Braña F (2003) Thermal dependence of embryonic growth and development in brown trout. J Fish Biol 62:580–590
Olsen EM, Vøllestad LA (2005) Small‐scale spatial variation in age and size at maturity of stream‐dwelling brown trout, Salmo trutta. Ecol Freshw Fish 14:202–208
Parra I, Almodóvar A, Nicola GG, Elvira B (2009) Latitudinal and altitudinal growth patterns of brown trout Salmo trutta at different spatial scales. J Fish Biol 74:2355–2373
R Core Team (2020). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria
Rasool N, Jan U (2013) Study on the fecundity of Salmo trutta fario (Brown trout) in Kashmir. J Biol Life Sci 4:181–193
Réalis-Doyelle E, Gisbert E, Alcaraz C, Teletchea F, Pasquet A (2018) Temperature affects growth allometry and development patterns in brown trout (Salmo trutta) fry: a multitrait approach. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 75:714–722
Ricker WE (1992) Back-calculation of fish lengths based on proportionality between scale and length increments. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 49:1018–1026
Ricker WE (1975) Computation and interpretation of biological statistics of fish populations. Bulletin of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada. Bulletin 191. Department of the Environment, Fisheries and Marine Service, Ottawa
Riedl C, Peter A (2013) Timing of brown trout spawning in Alpine rivers with special consideration of egg burial depth. Ecol Freshw Fish 22:384–397
Rocaspana R, Aparicio E, Palau-Ibars A, Guillem R, Alcaraz C (2019). Hydropeaking effects on movement patterns of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.). River Res Appl 35: 646–655
Rossi AR, Petrosino G, Milana V, Martinoli M, Rakaj A, Tancioni L (2019) Genetic identification of native populations of Mediterranean brown trout Salmo trutta L. complex (Osteichthyes: Salmonidae) in central Italy. Eur Zool J 86:424–431
Rovira A, Alcaraz C, Ibáñez C (2012) Spatial and temporal dynamics of suspended load at-a-cross-section: the lowermost Ebro River (Catalonia, Spain). Water Res 46:3671–3681
Rubin JF, Glimsäter C, Jarvi T (2005) Spawning characteristics of the anadromous brown trout in a small Swedish stream. J Fish Biol 66:107–121
Sanz N (2017) Phylogeographic history of brown trout. In: Lobón‐Cerviá J, Sanz N (eds) Brown trout: biology, ecology and management. John Wiley & Sons Inc., Hoboken
Splendiani A, Palmas F, Sabatini A, Caputo-Barucchi V (2019) The name of the trout: considerations on the taxonomic status of the Salmo trutta L., 1758 complex (Osteichthyes: Salmonidae) in Italy. Eur Zool J 86:432–442
Vøllestad LA, Olsen EM, Forseth T (2002) Growth‐rate variation in brown trout in small neighbouring streams: evidence for density‐dependence? J Fish Biol 61:1513–1527
Wootton RJ, Elvira B, Baker JA (2000) Life‐history evolution, biology and conservation of stream fish: introductory note. Ecol Freshw Fish 9:90–91
Wootton RJ (1998) The ecology of teleost fishes. Fish and Fisheries Series 24. Kluwer, Dordrecht
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the Biodiversity Conservation Plan of ENDESA through the project PIE 121043-00-FECSA. Carles Alcaraz also acknowledge support from CERCA Programme (Generalitat de Catalunya). We want to thank F Casals, JM Olmo and MJ Vargas for field assistance. All appropriate ethics and permissions required for the realization of this manuscript were obtained, previously, by the authors. The Departament de Medi Ambient i Habitatge de la Generalitat de Catalunya (current Departament d'Agricultura, Ramaderia, Pesca, Alimentació i Medi Natural) of the regional authorities of Catalonia provided authorization to conduct the research (SF/602).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
About this article
Cite this article
Aparicio, E., Rocaspana, R., Palau-Ibars, A. et al. Life history traits of Mediterranean brown trout (Salmo trutta complex) in Pyrenean headwater streams. Ichthyol Res 70, 101–109 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-022-00866-1
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-022-00866-1