Aquatic plant densities and larval fish abundance in vegetated habitats on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway system

摘要

We examined the relations of larval fish abundance to different aquatic plant densities in a backwater cove of Aliceville Lake, a reservoir on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, located on the Alabama-Mississippi border. We tested the hypothesis that intermediate plant densities enhance larval fish density. Larval fish were sampled using modified Quatrefoil light traps. We also quantified percentage of aquatic plant coverage. Larval fish catch-per-unit-effort, larval fish species richness, and larval fish species diversity were higher at intermediate plant coverage than at lower or higher levels of plant coverage, emphasizing the importance of this intermediate level of plant coverage for early life stages of fish.