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Population genetic structure after 125 years of stocking in sea trout (Salmo trutta L.)

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Abstract

Stocking can be an effective management and conservation tool, but it also carries the danger of eroding natural population structure, introducing non-native strains and reducing genetic diversity. Sea trout, the anadromous form of the brown trout (Salmo trutta), is a highly targeted species that is often managed by stocking. Here, we assess the present-day population genetic structure of sea trout in a backdrop of 125 years of stocking in Northern Germany. The study area is characterized by short distances between the Baltic and North Sea river watersheds, historic use of fish from both watersheds for stocking, and the creation of a potential migration corridor between the Baltic and North Sea with the opening of the Kiel Canal 120 years ago. A survey of 24 river systems with 180 SNPs indicates that moderate but highly significant population genetic structure has persisted both within and between the Baltic and North Sea. This genetic structure is characterized by (i) heterogeneous patterns of admixture between the Baltic and North Sea that do not correlate with distance from the Kiel Canal and are therefore likely due to historic stocking practises, (ii) genetic isolation by distance in the Baltic Sea at a spatial scale of < 200 km that is consistent with the homing behaviour of sea trout, and (iii) at least one genetically distinct Baltic Sea river system. In light of these results, we recommend keeping fish of North Sea and Baltic Sea origin separate for stocking, and restricting Baltic Sea translocations to neighbouring river systems.

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Acknowledgements

CP was funded by the Federal-Fishing Fund “Fischereiabgabe” of Schleswig-Holstein, the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) and GEOMAR through the Ministry of Energy, Agriculture, the Environment and Rural Areas of Schleswig-Holstein in the frame of the projects “Sea Trout Literature Study, ParrQuant, VariParr & SMARRT (30/SH305E)”. We thank all people involved in the electrofishing campaigns conducted for tissue sampling, especially Tim Kuchenbecker, Jens Wein, Sebastian Albrecht, Enno Prigge and the staff of the Fish Hatchery Altmühlendorf. We also acknowledge the respective local Water and Soil Organizations for permissions and access to their rivers and the Angling Clubs for their help during field samplings.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Evolutionary Ecology of Marine Fishes, Düsternbrooker Weg 20, 24105, Kiel, Germany

    Christoph Petereit, Jan Dierking, Thorsten Reusch & Oscar Puebla

  2. DTU-Aqua National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, Vejlsøvej 39, 8600, Silkeborg, Denmark

    Dorte Bekkevold

  3. NLWKN – Lower Saxony Water Management, Coastal Defence and Nature Conservation Agency, 21337, Lüneburg, Germany

    Sascha Nickel

  4. Institute of Fisheries, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern State Research Center for Agriculture and Fisheries, 18069, Rostock, Germany

    Harry Hantke

  5. Fish Hatchery Altmühlendorf, Inland and Pond Fisheries Association Schleswig-Holstein, 24768, Rendsburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

    Albrecht Hahn

  6. Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Kiel, Christian-Albrechts-Platz 4, 24118, Kiel, Germany

    Thorsten Reusch & Oscar Puebla

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  1. Christoph Petereit
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Petereit, C., Bekkevold, D., Nickel, S. et al. Population genetic structure after 125 years of stocking in sea trout (Salmo trutta L.). Conserv Genet 19, 1123–1136 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-018-1083-6

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