Current state of pikeperch populations in the Boginskoe and Dryvyaty lakes

The data of pikeperch commercial landings from the Dryvyaty and Boginskoe lakes in the last decades were analyzed. The growth, size and age of fish from the landings were studied. The usable stock of pikeperch in the lakes was determined. The biological analysis of studied fish was carried out using standard ichthyological techniques. It has been shown that last years the pikeperch become increasingly important in the commercial landings from the Dryvyaty and Boginskoe lakes. In 1990s-early 2000s its landings in Dryvyaty didn’t exceed 1-6 centners per year, and only a sporadic catch was in the Boginskoe lake. Last 10 years the annual pikeperch landings were between 11 and 73 centners in Dryvyaty, and up to 14 centners in Boginskoe lake. Its share in the landings increased even more sharply. The base of landings in Dryvyaty was composed of 5-years old specimens, with the 6-years old ones share also was high. The prevalent body length was 45–49 cm, and the observed landings structure seems to be reasonable because most of the specimens caught had already took part in spawning 1–2 times. Instead of it, the base of landings in Boginskoe was represented by 4- and 5-years old fish with prevalent length of 40–49 cm. That seems to be less reasonable because the part of 4-years specimens are being caught before their reproduction. Nowadays the pikeperch growth in both lakes is characterized as fast, but while the linear growth is nearly same in both lakes, the pikeperch from the Dryvyaty lake shows more rapid weight growth. The data obtained show the sufficient food supply for the pikeperch in bolt lakes and the possibility of its further number increase. The current estimated pikeperch usable stock in the Dryvyaty lake is 19,51 kg/ha, and in Boginskoe lake is 18,92 kg/ha that is significantly more that was in 1980s-1990s.

1. Chugunova, N.I. Rukovodstvo po izucheniyu vozrasta i rosta ryb (metodicheskoe posobie po ikhtiologii) [A guide to fishes age and growth studies]. Moscow, USSR NAS Publ., 1959, 165 p. (in Russian).

2. Pravdin I.F. Rukovodstvo po izucheniyu ryb [A guide for fish research]. Moscow, Food Industry, 1966, 376 p. (in Russian).

3. Baranov F.I. K voprosu o biologicheskikh osnovaniyakh rybnogo khozyaistva [On the question of fish industry biological basis]. Izvestiya otdela rybovodstva i nauchnopromyslovykh issledovanii = Proceedings of department of fish culture and fishing sciences research, 1918, vol. 1, no.1, pp. 84–128 (in Russian).

4. Tyurin P.V. Biologicheskie obosnovaniya koeffitsienta vylova i dopustimogo predela prilova tsennykh ryb [Biological reasonings of the catch index and allowable bycatch limit for the valuable fish species]. Trudy VNIRO = VNIRO Proceedings, 1967, №62, p. 26 (in Russian).

5. Fedorov V.A. Metodika otsenki rybnykh zapasov ozer Belarusi i opredelenie optimal’nogo koeffitsienta ikh promyslovogo ispol’zovaniya na osnove prirosta rybnogo stada [Method of Belarusian lakes fish amount assessment and determination of their commercial fishing use index based on the fish stock growth]. Voprosy Rybnogo Khozyaistva Belarusi = Belarus Fish Industry Problems, 1996, vol. 14, pp.179–195 (in Russian).

6. Shteinfel’d A.L., Kirilenko L.V. Kharakteristika ulovov sudaka v ozerakh Belorussii i perspektivy ikh uvelicheniya [Characteristic of pikeperch landings from lakes of Belarus and the prospects of their raise]. Voprosy Rybnogo Khozyaistva Belarusi = Belarus Fish Industry Problems, 1973, vol. 9, pp. 169–180 (in Russian).

7. Kirilenko L.V. Rybokhozyaistvennoe ispol’zovanie sudaka (Stizostedion lucioperca (L) ozer Belorussii. Diss. kand. biol. nauk [Fishery use of Belarusian lakes pikeperch (Stizostedion lucioperca (L). Cand. biol. sci. diss.]. Moscow, 1992. 272 p. (in Russian)

8. Kostousov V.G., Kirilenko L.V., Kopylova T.V., Onoshko I.I., Polyakova G.I. Sostoyanie zapasov leshcha i sudaka v osnovnykh rybopromyslovykh ozerakh Belarusi [State of bream and pikeperch stock in the main fishing lakes of Belarus]. Voprosy Rybnogo Khozyaistva Belarusi = Belarus Fish Industry Problems, 1996, vol.14, pp. 213–230 (In Russian).

9. Kirilenko L.V., Kostousov V.G. Sudak vodoemov Belarusi: biologiya i khozyaistvennoe znachenie [Pikeperch in Belarusian waters: biology and economic importance]. Minsk, 2005. 85 p. (in Russian).

10. Leshchenko A.V. Otsenka sostoyaniya lyubitel’skogo rybolovstva na Vileiskom vodokhranilishche i stepen’ ego vozdeistviya na ikhtiotsenoz vodoema [Recreational fishing state assessment on the Vileyskoe reservoir and degree of its influence on the waterbody ichthyocenosis]. Voprosy Rybnogo Khozyaistva Belarusi = Belarus Fish Industry Problems, 2004. — Вып. 20. — С.15–19. (in Russian)

11. Leshchenko A.V. Rezul’taty ucheta vylova ryby rybolovami-lyubitelyami iz vodoemov i vodotokov Natsional’nogo parka «Narochanskii» [Results of fish catch from the waterbodies and watercourses of Narochansky national park by recreational fishers’ assessment]. Voprosy Rybnogo Khozyaistva Belarusi = Belarus Fish Industry Problems, 2011, vol. 27, pp. 159–167 (in Russian).

12. Berg L.S. Ryby presnykh vod SSSR i sopredel’nykh stran. Ch. 3. [Freshwater fishes of USSR and adjacent countries. Part 3]. Moscow-Leningrad, NAS of USSR, 1949. 454 p. (in Russian).

13. Strel’nikov, A. Ozero Balkhash i ego ryby [The Balkhash lake and its fishes]. Rybovodstvo i rybolovstvo = Fish culture and fishing, 1978, vol. 3, pp. 6–8 (in Russian).

14. Kirilenko L.V. Sudak kak ob‘ekt rybovodstva v vodoemakh Belorussii [Pikeperch as the object of fish culture in the waterbodies of Belarus]. Tezisy dokladov XIX nauchnoi konferentsii po izucheniyu i osvoeniyu vodoemov Pribaltiki i Belorussii [Thes. proc. 19th sci. conf. on the Baltic region and Belarus waterbodies research and exploration]. Minsk, 1977, pp. 69–70 (in Russian).

15. Belyi N.D. Vesovoi rost i vzaimosvyaz’ dliny i vesa tela sudaka iz Dnepra [Weight growth and the relationship between body length and weight of pikeperch from Dnieper] // Zoologicheskii zhurnal = Zoological Journal, 1969, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 392–399 (in Russian).

16. Gyarulaitis A.B., Bubinas A.D. Ekologicheskaya izmenchivost’ sudaka vodoemov Litvy. 4. Rost i pitanie sudaka vodokhranilishcha Kaunasskoi GES [Ecological variability of Lithuanian waterbodies pikeperch. 4: Growth and nutrition of Kaunas hydroelectric power station reservoir pikeperch]. Trudy Akademii nauk Litovskoi SSR = Proceedings of Lithuanian SSR Academy of sciences, 1977, vol. 2 (78), pp. 69–77 (in Russian).

17. Belyi, N.D. O biologicheskikh gruppakh sudaka [On the pikeperch biological groups]. Voprosy ikhtiologii = Problems of ichthyology, 1965, vol. 5, no. 2 (35), pp. 279–289 (in Russian).

18. Tyurin, P.V. Biologicheskie obosnovaniya regulirovaniya rybolovstva na vnutrennikh vodoemakh [Biological substantiations of the fishing regulation in the inland waters]. Moscow: Food Industry Pub., 1963. 120 с. (in Russian).

19. Nikol’skii, G.V. Ekologiya ryb [Ecology of fishes]. Moscow, Higher School, 1974. 367 p. (in Russian).