Lago Maggiore: Effects of Exploitation and Introductions on the Salmonid Community
Lake trout (Salmo trutta) is the only salmonid belonging to the original fish fauna of Lago Maggiore (north Italy): the coregonine "lavarello" (Coregonus sp.) was introduced into it in 1891, char (Salvelinus alpinus) in 1910, and the coregonine "bondella" (Coregonus monophthalmus...
| Published in: | Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
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Canadian Science Publishing
1972
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| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f72-122 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/f72-122 |
| Summary: | Lake trout (Salmo trutta) is the only salmonid belonging to the original fish fauna of Lago Maggiore (north Italy): the coregonine "lavarello" (Coregonus sp.) was introduced into it in 1891, char (Salvelinus alpinus) in 1910, and the coregonine "bondella" (Coregonus monophthalmus) in 1950. This last introduction heavily affected the preexisting population of fish, bringing about the almost complete disappearance of both "lavarello" and char. The increase of human population within the watershed, as well as the modified pattern of its distribution, seem to have played a major role in speeding up the trophic evolution of Lago Maggiore during recent years. However, as far as fish is concerned, it is very difficult to distinguish changes really due to eutrophication from those attributable to other human interventions, such as introductions of exotics, destruction of spawning grounds in the main tributaries, alterations in shore structure, and very heavy fishing pressure on pelagic as opposed to littoral fish. |
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