Modelling and management options for salmonid sport fisheries: A case study from Patagonia, Argentina

• Published in: Fisheries Management and Ecology
• Main Authors: Rechencq, Magali, Vigliano, Pablo Horacio, Lippolt, Gustavo Enrique, Alonso, Marcelo Fabián, Macchi, Patricio Jorge, Alvear, Pablo Andres, Hougham, Virginia Noemí, Denegri, Maria Amalia, Blasetti, Guillermo, Juncos, Romina, Fernandez, Valeria, Lallement, Mailén Elizabeth, Juárez, Santiago Martín
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley Blackwell Publishing, Inc
• Subjects: BIOENERGETIC MODELS; DYNAMIC POOL; FISHERY; MANAGEMENT; PATAGONIAN SALMONIDS; YIELD PER RECRUIT; https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6; https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1; Patagonia; Argentina; Pablo; Atlantic salmon; Salmo salar
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11336/65286

Salmonid sport fishery management in Argentinian Patagonia is usually guided by stakeholder perceptions, which do not consider the biological and ecological constraints acting upon aquatic resources. An example of this are management policies for Traful Lake, where Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., was actively stocked during the last decade in an attempt to change the fish assemblage structure and to create a highly valuable sport fishery. This study assesses the likelihood of these policies achieving such assemblage structure changes through the study of affluent-stream suitability as spawning and breeding grounds, lake fish assemblage parameters, trophic diversity and possible competition due to diet overlap. This study also assesses alternative management practices through population simulations and bioenergetic modelling under diverse catch-size limit scenarios. This study concludes that it is not advisable to try to generate a unique and distinctive sport fishery by stocking Atlantic salmon in an already renowned fishery in Northern Patagonia. Instead, a more comprehensive framework for decision-making is suggested, involving short-term studies that go beyond the specific problem of the target species and incorporate the whole fish assemblage using diverse approaches and modelling strategies. Fil: Rechencq, Magali. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universidad Bariloche. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universitario Bariloche; Argentina Fil: Vigliano, Pablo Horacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universidad Bariloche. ...