AB 21:57-65 (2014)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00571

ABSTRACT: Changing environmental conditions may affect the swimming performance of fish by affecting energy sources through changes in temperature and concentration of dissolved oxygen (DO). It has become increasingly important to investigate the effect of temperature and DO on the swimming performance of fish species as hypoxia in aquatic environments worldwide is increasing due to the effects of anthropogenic global warming. To test how different swimming modes respond to thermal and DO changes, 3 measures of swimming performance were tested: critical swimming speed (U_crit), constant acceleration speed (U_cat), and maximum speed during a fast-start (U_fast). The changes in these 3 aspects of swimming performance in juvenile crucian carp Carassius carassius were quantified at 2 different temperatures (10 and 20°C) and 3 different DO concentrations (2.5, 5, and 9 mg l^-1). U_cat was ca. 110 to 156% of U_crit, whereas U_fast was ca. 394 to 472% of U_crit, depending on the experimental conditions. Temperature had a significant effect on all 3 measures of swimming performance, whereas DO had significant effects only on U_cat and U_crit (U_crit but not U_cat decreased in the 2.5 mg l^-1 DO group). The active metabolic rate (MO_2active) under the different experimental conditions suggested that the decrease in U_crit at a lower temperature and DO level could be partially explained by a decrease in oxygen uptake capacity. These results indicate that all 3 swimming measurements should be used when addressing how temperature affects swimming performance.

KEY WORDS: Aerobic and anaerobic locomotion · Constant acceleration speed · Critical swimming speed · Crucian carp · Environmental condition · Fast-start swimming performance · Swimming performance

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Cite this article as: Penghan LY, Cao ZD, Fu SJ (2014) Effect of temperature and dissolved oxygen on swimming performance in crucian carp. Aquat Biol 21:57-65. https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00571 Export citation Share:    Facebook - - linkedIn