Sudbury lake research links fish size and forest health

A researcher with the University of Cambridge is studying the relationship between the size of fish and the health of a surrounding forest.

The research was done through on a Sudbury Lake throughLaurentian University's Vale Living with Lakes Centre.

Lead researcher, Dr. Andrew Tanentzap, looked at studies on aquatic food chains in Daisy Lake and focused on the link between healthy forests in Boreal ecosystems and the viability of fish stocks.

The research found fish were better nourished in areas where forest debris washed into the lake.

We found fish with almost 70 per cent of their biomass made from carbon that came from trees and leaves, instead of aquatic food chain sources, he said.

Tanentzapsaid perch is the dominant fish in Daisy Lake.

In the first year of their life, theyre really dependent on their near-shore environment, he said.

So what happens is they grow in that first year of their life. They begin to reflect the quality of that near shore environment in which theyre living in.

He noted "the young fish in lake areas with scant forest cover were smaller, and thus less likely to breed and survive. Those in areas with abundant forest cover were definitely a more robust population.

The article was recently published in the Nature Communications journal.