Summer Fieldwork Throwback

You probably saw us this summer while you were fishing in Sæmundará, between Sauðárkrókur and Varmahlíð, wondering, "What are they doing here?" Here is the answer! We conducted an experiment to compare the space use of three juvenile salmonid species living in sympatry: Arctic charr, Atlantic salmon, and brown trout. Our goal was to determine if there are differences between and within the species in their feeding habits (at the bottom, in midwater, or at the surface), their habitat utilization (small or large territories, deep or shallow water), their aggressiveness (whether they attack each other), and sociality (proximity to others). The experiment ran from June 22nd to August 28th. We successfully monitored a total of 69 fish and mapped their habitat. The next step is to combine everything and see what results come up. 

Stay tuned for future updates!

Gabrielle Ladurée, Ph.D. student, Hólar University