A Classification of Louisiana Lakes Based on Historical Rotenone Data

Fish standing crop data from rotenone surveys of 43 Louisiana lakes from 1969 to 1989 were analyzed in an effort to classify them for fisheries management purposes. Total fish, largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), and >30-cm largemouth bass standing crops averaged 207.7, 11.8, and 7.7 kg/ha, respectively. Results from these rotenone surveys were compared to those of similar studies in the 1950s when Louisiana lakes were placed into habitat categories. Standing crops were compared to various water-quality parameters; they were positively correlated to chlorophyll-a levels. Standing crops of fish were affected by the location of the lake within land resource areas in Louisiana. Higher fish biomass occurred more often in lakes associated with the fertile soils of the Southern Mississippi Valley Alluvium than with the Southern Coastal Plain region of the state.

Publication date
Starting page
140
Ending page
452
ID
20805