Reservoir ecosystems support large pools of fish biomass

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 14; no. 1; p. 9428
• Main Authors: Parisek, Christine A, De Castro, Francine A, Colby, Jordan D, Leidy, George R, Sadro, Steve, Rypel, Andrew L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Nature Publishing Group 24.04.2024; Nature Publishing Group UK; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: Abundance; Animals; Aquatic ecosystems; Biodiversity; Biomass; Classification; Conservation; Conservation of Natural Resources - methods; Datasets; Ecosystem; Ecosystems; Environmental change; Fish; Fish conservation; Fisheries; Fishes; Fishing; Food security; Fresh Water; Freshwater; Freshwater ecosystems; Freshwater fish; Freshwater fisheries; Freshwater fishes; Humans; Inland water environment; National Reservoir Research Program; Reservoir and lake classification; Reservoir fisheries; Reservoirs; Secondary production; Sustainability; Trends; United States; United States; Freshwater fisheries; Environmental change; Reservoir and lake classification; National Reservoir Research Program; Food security; Sustainability
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-59730-z

Humans increasingly dominate Earth's natural freshwater ecosystems, but biomass production of modified ecosystems is rarely studied. We estimate potential fish total standing stock in USA reservoirs is 3.4 billion (B) kg, and approximate annual secondary production is 4.5 B kg y . We also observe varied and non-linear trends in reservoir fish biomass over time, thus previous assertions that reservoir fisheries decline over time are not universal. Reservoirs are globally relevant pools of freshwater fisheries, in part due to their immense limnetic footprint and spatial extent. This study further shows that reservoir ecosystems play major roles in food security and fisheries conservation. We encourage additional effort be expended to effectively manage reservoir environments for the good of humanity, biodiversity, and fish conservation.