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Influence of Solar Ultraviolet Radiation on Early Life-history Stages of the Bluegill Sunfish, Lepomis macrochirus

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Abstract

We examined the effect of UVR on the success of early life history stages of Lepomis macrochirus in two lakes with contrasting underwater UVR environments. We tested the prediction that when exposed to similar amounts of UVR, bluegill embryos from lakes with high UVR environments have lower mortality than those from lakes with low UVR. We measured embryo survival in the two lakes by performing three experiments in which ambient UVR was manipulated. Embryos responded similarly to UVR exposure regardless of the lake of origin. However, UV-B in UVR transparent lakes is a potentially important factor in the success of early life history stages of the bluegill. A survey of the natural nesting depths in the two lakes revealed that the median depth at which bluegills construct their nests was greater in Lake Giles (high underwater UVR environment) than in Lake Lacawac (low underwater UVR environment).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, PA, 18015, U.S.A. (

    Carla Gutiérrez-Rodríguez & Craig E. Williamson

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  1. Carla Gutiérrez-Rodríguez
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  2. Craig E. Williamson
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Gutiérrez-Rodríguez, C., Williamson, C.E. Influence of Solar Ultraviolet Radiation on Early Life-history Stages of the Bluegill Sunfish, Lepomis macrochirus. Environmental Biology of Fishes 55, 307–319 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007550512032

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