CB1 noted - ""Absolutely lower water temps will reduce oxygen consumption! 3 mg/l could be lethal in 70 degree water but survivable in 39 F.""
The colder the water is under the ice I think many species can survive in water with 1ppm dissolved oxygen due to very low metabolism in the cold water very little oxygen is needed. However we also have to consider the innate oxygen requirement of each species. Some species tolerate lower DO than others. YP, pike, and GSF are three examples of those that tolerate low DO. Trout and HSB do not tolerate real low DO, although the water temperature does affect the minimum that will cause stress and death.
One of the main features with this is the lack of knowledge about minimal DO requirements of fish species at low temps of 39F down 32F. It is biologically reasonable to me that a fish requires less DO at 33F versus 39F-40F. There is not a lot of literature about this for many of the pond dwelling species to my knowledge. As an extreme example, Yellow perch are known to move in to anoxic water to briefly feed on invertebrates in the sediments.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 03/22/14 09:56 AM. Reason: refinement
