Resource‐use, body condition and parasite load metrics indicate contrasting health of stocked and native game fishes in Canadian prairie lakes

Abstract

This study evaluated the status of native and stocked fish species in 13 prairie lakes in central Canada over eight years (2007–14) using three metrics: resource‐use (benthic versus pelagic carbon via stable isotopes); body condition (relative weight index W r ); and parasite load (cestode gut enumerations). Analyses included game and non‐game fishes, like naturally occurring northern pike, Esox lucius L., and yellow perch, Perca flavescens Mitchill, but focused on stocked walleye, Sander vitreus (Mitchill) because it supports a robust recreational fishery. Walleye and northern pike were significantly more reliant on benthic carbon than yellow perch or forage fishes ( p r 2 = 0.93, p p

Bibliographic Information