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Body size mediated effects of multiple abiotic stressors on the growth and social behaviour of an estuarine fish, Australian Bass (Macquaria novemaculeata)

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Abstract

Anthropogenic climate change is expected to result in dramatic shifts in the abiotic conditions within estuaries, including an elevation of temperature and salinity levels. Even so, few studies have addressed the impacts of multiple abiotic stressors on the behaviour and life history of key estuarine species, such as those of biological and commercial importance. Here we used a cross-factored experimental design to tease apart the effects of temperature and salinity on intraspecific aggression and growth rates of a native estuarine fish species, the Australian bass (Macquaria novemaculeata). Juvenile bass were exposed to one of four treatment conditions: 1) baseline temperature and salinity, 2) elevated temperature, 3) elevated salinity, and 4) elevated temperature and salinity. Elevated salinity increased rates of aggression, and elevated temperature decreased rates of growth, although the effects of both factors were mediated by the body size of individual bass. These results therefore highlight complex and variable effects of abiotic stressors and body size, emphasising the importance of considering individual-level attributes when evaluating the impacts of climate change on estuarine fishes.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank our colleagues, Andy Davis and Adam Munn for their helpful comments on the manuscript. We thank Susan Rhind, Elizabeth Price, Corrine de Mestre and Julie Wright for their technical support and assistance with running the aquarium facilities at the Ecological Research Centre, University of Wollongong. This project was conducted in concordance with animal ethics approval from the UOW Animal Ethics Committee (#13/21). This project was supported by funding from the Institute of Conservation Biology & Environmental Management, School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong.

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  1. Centre of Sustainable Environmental Solutions, School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia

    Kaitlyn M. O’Mara & Marian Y. L. Wong

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  1. Kaitlyn M. O’Mara
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  2. Marian Y. L. Wong
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Correspondence to Marian Y. L. Wong.

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O’Mara, K.M., Wong, M.Y.L. Body size mediated effects of multiple abiotic stressors on the growth and social behaviour of an estuarine fish, Australian Bass (Macquaria novemaculeata). Environ Biol Fish 99, 95–104 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-015-0458-5

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