Short Report Difference in the hypoxia tolerance of the round crucian carp and largemouth bass: implications for physiological refugia in the macrophyte zone Hiroki Yamanaka1**, Yukihiro Kohmatsu2, and Masahide Yuma3 1 Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, 2-509-3 Hirano, Otsu, Shiga 520-2113, Japan 2 Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, 457-4 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8047, Japan 3 Department of Environmental Solution Technology, Faculty of Science & Technology, Ryukoku University, 1-5 Seta-Oe, Otsu, Shiga 520-2194, Japan * Present address: Research Institute for Humanity and Nature (RIHN), 457-4 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8047, Japan (e-mail:
[email protected]) Received: August 28, 2006 / Revised: November 28, 2006 / Accepted: December 1, 2006 Abstract The hypoxia tolerance of larval and juvenile round crucian carp, Carassius auratus gran- Ichthyological doculis, and largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides, was determined using respirometry to examine the potential of hypoxic areas in the macrophyte zone as physiological refugia for round crucian carp. Research The tolerance, which was measured as the critical oxygen concentration (Pc), was 1.32 mg O /l in the ©The Ichthyological Society of Japan 2007 2 round crucian carp and 1.93 mg O2/l in the largemouth bass. As the round crucian carp tolerated Ichthyol Res (2007) 54: 308–312 hypoxia better than the largemouth bass, hypoxic areas in the macrophyte zone might function as physiological refugia for round crucian carp. DOI 10.1007/s10228-006-0400-0 Key words Hypoxia tolerance · Critical oxygen concentration (Pc) · Physiological refugia · Carassius auratus grandoculis · Micropterus salmoides or many larval and juvenile fi shes, the macrophyte early life history (Miura, 1966; Yuma et al., 1998).