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Movement and assemblage of fish in an artificial wetland and canal in a paddy fields area, in eastern Japan

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Abstract

This study, carried out in a paddy fields area in eastern Japan, investigated the timing and patterns of fish movement and assemblage in an artificial wetland and canal. The number of Misgurnus anguillicaudatus and Lefua echigonia immigrating and emigrating between the wetland and the canal accounted for 80–90 % of all the sampled fish. M. anguillicaudatus, L. echigonia, Pseudorasbora parva and Rhynchocypris lagowskii were dominant in the wetland. Immigration of mature M. anguillicaudatus and L. echigonia was detected between late winter and spring. The standard length of the two loach species in the wetland was smaller than that in the canal. These results confirm that wetlands play a role in spawning and nursery for the two species of loaches. The standard length of P. parva in the wetland was smaller than in the canal. This suggests that the wetland was a more suitable spawning and nursery area for this fish species than the canal. L. echigonia used the wetland as a spawning and nursery area, but previous studies reported that the loach did not use paddy fields near the wetland. This could be because the paddy fields were irrigated between June and September and this period did not largely overlap with the fish spawning season. Therefore, we conclude that the conservation and restoration of wetlands, where water is present throughout the year, will contribute toward the preservation of the fish population in a paddy fields area.

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Acknowledgments

We greatly appreciate the help of the staff of the local city office. We thank students and graduate students of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, the local citizens’ group that manages the wetland and local farmers for their assistance with the field survey. Special thanks are also due to the staff members of Ecological Engineering Team, National Institute for Rural Engineering.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Declaration

The experiments comply with the current laws of Japan. The fish investigation was carried out with special capturing permission from the local government.

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  1. Kazuya Nishida

    Present address: National Research Institute of Far Sea Fisheries, Fisheries Research Agency, 2-12-4 Fukuura, Kanazawa, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 236-8648, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute for Rural Engineering, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science), 2-1-6, Kannondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8609, Japan

    Kazuya Nishida

  2. United Graduate School of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science), 3-5-8 Saiwaicyo, Fucyu, Tokyo, 183-8509, Japan

    Mitsuru Ohira

  3. Institute of Symbiotic Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 3-5-8 Saiwaicyo, Fucyu, Tokyo, 183-8509, Japan

    Yutaro Senga

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  1. Kazuya Nishida
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Correspondence to Kazuya Nishida.

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Nishida, K., Ohira, M. & Senga, Y. Movement and assemblage of fish in an artificial wetland and canal in a paddy fields area, in eastern Japan. Landscape Ecol Eng 10, 309–321 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11355-013-0226-7

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