Code and Data from Nutrient loading effects on fish habitat quality: Trade-offs between enhanced production and hypoxia in Lake Erie, North America

<p>Context:</p>

<p>The project "Nutrient loading effects on fish habitat quality: Trade-offs between enhanced production and hypoxia in Lake Erie, North America" aimed to understand the habitat quality trade-offs associated with increases in phosphorus in Lake Erie, a system with a history of anthropogenic nutrient loading.</p>

<p>Methods:</p>

<p>We used output from a water quality model and developed a bioenergetics growth rate potential (GRP) model to assess how habitat quality changed for 6 species and life stages across a range of phosphorus loading scenarios and across 19 different meteorological years.</p>

<p>Outcome:</p>

<p>Increases in phosphorus loading increased invertebrate prey biomass, but also increased the duration and extent of the mid-summer hypoxic zone. In general, phosphorus loading caused overall habitat quality to decline and only increased peak habitat quality (i.e., spatio-temporal locations where temperature and prey abundance were already above average), but responses were species- and life-stage specific. We additionally found that the negative effects of low oxygen on fish habitat quality appeared more severe if the prospect that increased hypoxia was accompanied by altered prey densities was not accounted for. Despite modeled responses to altered phosphorus loads, habitat quality responded more strongly to variation in annual meteorological conditions.</p>

<p>Application:</p>

<p>Our results provide further indication for why nutrient abatement programs may not lead to obvious, rapid positive habitat quality responses, as short-term meteorological effects may overwhelm effects related to nutrient reduction and changes in prey densities may partially offset the benefits of decreased hypoxic conditions.</p>

<p>Within these files:</p>

<p>These files include the metadata, supplemental material, model code, and output data for the study "Nutrient loading effects on fish habitat quality: Trade-offs between enhanced production and hypoxia in Lake Erie, North America". The metadata provides a description of the code and data files, including descriptions of the organization of the model files and definitions of variables in the data files. The supplemental material is Appendix S1 described in the main text. The model code includes the .pro files (only usable in IDL<span new="" roman="" style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:" times="">®) as well as .txt versions of the same files. Within the code files are further descriptions of the purpose of the code and how the model generally works as well as additional comments to allow the user to follow the code. The data </span>include the .csv file output data used to create all the associated figures and tables in the publication.</p>

<p> </p>