Sexual maturity increases mobility and heterogeneity in individual space use in Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ) parr

• Published in: Journal of Fish Biology
• Main Authors: Bouchard, Colin, Lange, Frédéric, Gueraud, François, Rives, Jacques, Tentelier, Cédric
• Other Authors: Ecologie Comportementale et Biologie des Populations de Poissons (ECOBIOP), Université de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour (UPPA)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management Berkeley (ESPM), University of California Berkeley (UC Berkeley), University of California (UC)-University of California (UC), Institut de recherche de la Tour du Valat
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2020
• Subjects: alternative reproductive tactic; likely participation in reproduction; individual heterogeneity; space use tactic; telemetry; ontogenic niche shift; [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology; [SDE.MCG]Environmental Sciences/Global Changes; Atlantic salmon; Salmo salar
• Online Access: https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02872236; https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.14282

International audience We assessed the effects of sexual maturity on space use in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) parr as facultative early maturation enables us to work on individuals belonging to the same cohort. We monitored the space use of 40 1-year-old males in natura throughout a breeding season. First, mature individuals covered longer distances (absolute and upstream) and located within broader home ranges than immature parr. Second, sexual maturity also generated a higher interindividual variability in space use. Finally, mature individuals exhibited a higher probability of association with likely breeding sites on average. However, some mature individuals experienced a lower probability than immature individuals, suggesting that the space use of some mature individuals may not be optimal. Moreover, mature parr exploiting a broader home range or covering longer upstream distances had a higher probability of association with likely breeding sites. Covering longer upstream distances may therefore increase the reproductive success of mature parr, while involving higher energetic costs and a greater risk of predation