Midway evaluation in Biology - Lieke Ponsioen

Title of thesis: The fishy mysteries of Thingvallavatn: unravelling salmonid habitat utilisation using acoustic telemetry, remote sensing, and machine learning. 

Student: Lieke Ponsioen

Doctoral committee: 

Dr. Kalina Hristova Kapralova, Research specialist at the Institute for Experimental Pathology at Keldur, University of Iceland

Dr. Benjamin David Hennig, Professor at the Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland

Dr. Guðbjörg Ásta Ólafsdóttir, Director of the University of Iceland Research Centre in Westfjords ,

Dr. Helmut Wolfram Neukirchen, Professor at the Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Iceland

Dr. Gustav Hellström, Associate Professor at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

Abstract

Thingvallavatn, the largest lake in Iceland harbours two salmonid species, Arctic charr and brown trout. The availability of different ecological niches, coupled with the relatively low species richness of the lake, makes it an ideal system to address fundamental ecological questions on habitat utilisation.

However, assessing behaviour of fish in the lake is technically challenging, thus little is known about how behaviours of individuals related to habitat choice, foraging tactics, intra- and interspecific interactions vary on different timescales. Acoustic telemetry is ideal to fill this knowledge gap. The main objective of this project is to address important ecological questions on salmonid habitat choice.

More specifically, we aim to investigate 1) how Arctic charr and brown trout utilise the lake throughout the year; 2) the swimming behaviour and activity of the two salmonid species in relation the seasonality and 3) the fine-scale dynamics of Arctic charr and brown trout during spawning.

This project will provide better insights into the behaviour and ecology of the two salmonid species in Thingvallavatn and create a transdisciplinary approach, whose methodology and outcomes will be valuable not only for research and conservation of lake Thingvallavatn and its inhabitants, but also transferable to other freshwater systems worldwide.