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In sympatry, juvenile brown trout (Salmo trutta) usually occupy the shallow and most productive areas (littoral zone) of lakes, while juveniles of Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) are found in deeper, less productive parts. In contrast, when Arctic charr juveniles occur in allopatry, they often occupy shallow littoral areas as well. Habitat segregation has traditionally been interpreted as a trade-off between predation risk and energy gain, while the segregation of these two species has been explained by brown trout being more aggressive and competitively superior to Arctic charr. We hypothesize, however, that the marked habitat segregation between the two species may also be due to differences in predator avoidance. Accordingly, we conducted several laboratory tests, using Arctic charr and brown trout as potential predators. Live fish of the same species were offered as prey, either as small charr only, small trout only, or both small charr and small trout together. Artificial shelters were then introduced to examine the avoidance ability of prey fish against predatory fish. Our results showed that under these circumstances, access to shelters strongly decreased mortality in juvenile brown trout, but had no effect on juvenile Arctic charr mortality. Thus, the habitat segregation shown by sympatric juvenile Arctic charr and brown trout in lakes may be a consequence of interspecific differences in predator avoidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Warming temperatures resulting from climate change may alter the distribution and abundance of many freshwater fish species, especially those in northern latitudes. Owing to interspecific differences in temperature adaptations and tolerances, warming may lead to changes in the fish community as a result of shifts in the abundance of co‐existing species.We investigated how increased temperatures have potentially affected the abundance and catch composition of anadromous salmonids in northern Europe. We used national angling catch statistics over a period of several decades (1993–2018) as a proxy of relative annual abundance of adult Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), brown trout (Salmo trutta), and Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in water courses in Iceland and in northern Norway. These are the only locations in the world where the three species coexist naturally as anadromous forms, and where they are distributed across latitudinal gradients characterised by varying temperatures.Interpolated data on average annual air temperatures proximate to the study rivers increased 1–1.7°C in northern Norway and 1.0–1.5°C in Iceland during the 26‐year study period.While the overall total number of fish caught has remained relatively stable during the period of study, gradual climate warming has been accompanied by a marked change in the catch composition of the three species in both countries. Increased temperatures were related to a decreased proportion of Arctic charr and an increased proportion of brown trout, while no temperature effect was found for Atlantic salmon. Controlling for the difference between fluvial and lacustrine systems, brown trout has begun to replace Arctic charr in all regions, whereas the relative catch of Atlantic salmon has been stable.Interpretation of angling data can facilitate understanding of longer‐term trends in catch data and provide insights into possible underlying changes in fish species and alert managers to shifts in abundance that might be mitigated by management actions. However, care must be taken to avoid the confounding effects that changes in fisheries management measures, angler preferences, and effort might have on the metrics of relative change used to make inferences about long‐term trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tests the basic hypothesis that the removal of charr, Salvelinus alpinus ( L.), would cause an increase in both the growth and density of a sympatric trout population, Salmo trutta L. The charr population was characterised by slow-growing individuals, with a high proportion of mature fish, that is typical for so-called overpopulated populations. A total of 31,000 charr was removed from the lake in the period 1990-1992, and the density of younger trout (1+, 2+), but not older trout (3+, 4+), increased. The growth of older trout (3+, 4+) increased, but the evidence for similar growth increases of younger trout (1+, 2+) was limited. From 1989 to 1990, the proportion of trout increased from 30 to only 40% of the total catch, but from 1991 to 1994, it was significantly higher (60-80%) than that of charr. Total trout biomass increased to a maximum in 1992 and then decreased so that the biomass of 1994 was nearly similar to that of 1989, that is before the start of the charr removal. Back-calculated lengths of trout from otoliths showed that 2+ and 3+ trout caught in the pelagic were growing consistently faster over previous years than those caught in the littoral, while this was not the case for the 4+ fish. Therefore, the hypothesis was partially supported; the growth rate of trout increased (age groups 1+ to 4+), while the density of juvenile trout (1+, 2+), but not the older trout (3+, 4+), increased after the removal of charr. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]