History of the Fish Fauna of Lake Pavin: A Population Heavily Influenced by Man?

Abstract

Over the last 20 years, changes in agricultural practices on the surrounding plateaus have driven rapid change in the trophic status of the lake, with knock-on effects on the evolution of its fish population. The original fish stock, badly known, was strongly influenced by numbers of different species introduction in the nineteenth century by Rico and Lecoq. The introduction of Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus) was particularly successful and this species became the iconic fish of the lake. In contrast to major scientific studies at Lake Pavin for more than 100 years, fish populations have been the subject of very few studies, most of which have focused on specific segments of the population. However, the fish population and stock have been tracked under numerous programs targeted on the Arctic char population, which holds strong economic and symbolic value. Since 2003, the lake and its groundwater inputs have been regularly monitored for their physico-chemical and biological indicators in implementation of the European Water Framework Directive. These surveys show a strong and pervasive anthropic influences which should foster active lake conservation measures and more in-depth studies of fish populations in a lake with such a rich, and at times mysterious piscicultural history?