**The title, authors, and abstract for this completion
report are provided below. For a copy of
the completion report, please contact the GLFC via e-mail or via telephone at 734-662-3209**
Charles P. Madenjian2
2 U. S. Geological Survey
Great Lakes Science Center
1451 Green Road
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
January 2011
ABSTRACT:
We
evaluated the performance of the Wisconsin bioenergetics model for lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush)
fed ad libitum in laboratory tanks under regimes of low
activity and high activity. In addition,
we compared model performance under two different model algorithms: (i) balancing the
lake trout energy budget on day t
based on lake trout energy density on day t,
and (ii) balancing the lake trout
energy budget on day t based on lake
trout energy density on day t+1. Results indicated that the model
significantly underestimated consumption for both inactive and active lake
trout when model algorithm i was
used, and the degree of underestimation was similar for the two levels
of activity. In contrast, model
performance substantially improved using model algorithm ii, as no detectable bias was found in model predictions of
consumption for inactive fish, and only a slight degree of overestimation of
consumption was detected for active fish.
Apparently, the energy budget was more accurately balanced using model
algorithm ii than using model
algorithm i. Based on the results of this study, we
recommended that model algorithm ii
be used to estimate food consumption by fish in the field.