Newly constructed reservoirs and others in the construction or planning stage offer other alternatives for increasing the production of food fish. At present there is only limited knowledge available for use in making recommendations for reservoir management in Peru. The following four-step programme is recommended for developing a programme of reservoir management.
Comprehensive sampling of existing reservoirs to accumulate a background picture of the fishery. This should probably be confined to two or three reservoirs with the information and principles for management then applied to other similar reservoirs.
The possibility of introducing predator species of high food and sport value into reservoirs being constructed in the coastal areas should be investigated. Species such as the tucanare and paiche may be of value here.
Consideration should be given to establishing a pond research station below one of the water storage reservoirs in the coastal areas of northern Peru. If land is available below Tinajones reservoir near Chiclayo, this would be an excellent location for such a facility. Water from the reservoir could be used for aquaculture and then returned to the irrigation canals. Year-round water temperatures in the 24°C–30°C range make it possible to achieve high levels of production of fishes adapted to warm water such as the catfishes and tilapia. This project should not have priority over research of Amazon species since the Amazon programme is more necessary.
Regular stocking of rainbow trout in mountain lakes combined with annual or biannual harvest should be continued. Since the life expectancy of rainbow trout is usually only two to three years with some individuals surviving to five or six years, harvests should be designed to take advantage of the period of greatest productivity. This period will vary with average temperatures and will need to be established for each lake or group of similar lakes.
