Recruitment of coastal fishes and oceanographic variability in central California

Recruitment of pelagic larval fishes to the nearshore environment is dependent on a suite of biological and physical processes operating at many spatial and temporal scales. Nearshore circulation processes associated with coastal upwelling are widely upheld as major determinants of year class strength for many rockfishes (Sebastes spp.), but the mechanism by which these processes drive recruitment is largely unknown. We used Standard Monitoring Units for the Recruitment of Fishes (SMURFs) to monitor recruitment of two rockfish complexes (Sebastes spp.) and cabezon (Scorpaenichthys marmoratus) from March to September of 2004 and 2005 at 3 sites along the central California coast. We examined the relationship between recruitment of these fishes and measurements of oceanographic variability associated with upwelling dynamics, including in situ water temperature, AVHRR sea surface temperature, the Bakun upwelling index, and an index of alongshore surface water transport. We found that rockfish comprising the KCGB complex (Sebastes atrovirens, Sebastes caurinus, Sebastes carnatus, Sebastes chrysomelas) recruit during early summer, while fishes of the BYO complex (Sebastes melanops, Sebastes flavidus, Sebastes serranoides), as well as cabezon recruit during late summer. Our results provide limited support for an association between the arrival of juvenile pelagic rockfish and cabezon to the nearshore environment and physical processes related to upwelling and relaxation. Beyond the limitations of our bimonthly sampling scheme, the lack of a clear pattern may be related to the near absence of upwelling–relaxation cycles along this stretch of coast during these two study periods. Moreover, the settlement and recruitment of nearshore fishes may be closely tied to processes occurring earlier in the larval stage.     

Paradigm shifts in community ecology: Open versus closed units,challenges and limits of connectivity studies

Due to the presence of the complex life cycles involving a benthic adult and a pelagic larval phase, the study of benthic community dynamics cannot ignore investigations of the processes occurring in the water column. Current investigations focus mainly on larval dispersal from an evolutionary and a biogeographic perspective, taking into account also population connectivity, conservation planning and coastal management. In the present paper we underline the need to improve knowledge of the main traits of marine invertebrate life cycles, highlighting the limits and challenges of current approaches. Firstly, we summarized the changing approaches within community studies, following the paradigm shifts found in recent marine ecological research, from supply‐side ecology to connectivity, and involving the concepts of open and closed populations. Secondly, we analysed the main larval traits influencing dispersal, paying particular attention to pelagic larval duration in light of the few available data for connectivity studies. The difficulty in estimating many of the main traits of larval ecology make numerical simulation fundamental for a better understanding of the relationship between propagule dispersal and seawater dynamics, both being highly variable. We conclude that some essential biological information is still lacking for the proper integration of the modeling approaches. Thus it is necessary to further investigate the life‐cycle traits and physiological and ecological characteristics of each species, an approach known as autecology or natural history. All too frequently modern ecologists ignore such reductionist approaches, although they are essential for a full understanding of processes, such as connectivity and metapopulation dynamics.     

The role of hydrodynamics in explaining variability in fish populations

A review of the physical processes present in coastal regions and their effect on pelagic stages of flatfish populations is presented. While quantitative understanding of processes affecting cross-shelf transport and exchange continues to be a fundamental problem shared by physical oceanographers and fisheries scientists studying the early life history of flatfish, advances in hydrodynamic and coupled physical-biological models have made it possible to begin to examine population-level implications of environmental processes. There is now a need to rank these processes in terms of their impact on recruit strength. Existing paradigms provide testable frameworks for explaining the role of physical variability in the observed population patterns, abundance and variability. Identifying explicit links between physical variability and recruitment could result in new approaches to fisheries management strategies.     

Temporal variability of three different macrofauna communities in the northern North Sea

In 1999, 2003 and 2007 macrofauna communities were sampled in three different areas (“Boxes”) of 10 × 10 nautical miles in the northern North Sea in order to study the temporal changes in community structure in relation to changes in temperature or changes in hydrography.     

菲律宾海北部四国海盆全新世沉积物源分析

对IODP333航次四国海盆北部地区C0011站位表层样品进行粒度和Sr-Nd同位素分析,并与前人发表的邻近海域同位素数据进行比较。经分离自生碳酸盐组分,四国海盆全新世沉积物呈现较好的陆源、火山源二端元组分特征。从地理位置看,四国海盆北部主要物质来源包括伊豆-小笠原海脊火山物质、日本列岛西南部的混合型沉积物以及由西向风或河流入海洋流输送而来的亚洲陆地沉积物,且日本列岛西南部对于该区域物质贡献最大。对四国海盆北部而言,与海盆中部沉积及日本海沉积相比,源自亚洲大陆的碎屑沉积物具有更多的贡献。沉积物中87Sr/86Sr与εNd、平均粒径的负相关关系反映了沉积物中陆源物质的相对贡献按时间顺序呈现增加、减小、增加、减少的多周期变化趋势。     

Evaluating the relationship between spatial heterogeneity and temporal variability of larval fish assemblages in a coastal marine ecosystem (Haizhou Bay,China)

In coastal marine ecosystems, spatial patterns of larval fish assemblages (LFAs) tend to exhibit geographic stability because of relatively stable spawning site selection and predictable oceanographic phenomena such as eddies. To evaluate the relationship between spatial heterogeneity and temporal variability of LFAs, we conducted a high spatiotemporal resolution ichthyoplankton survey from April to July in 2013 in the shallow waters (<20 m) of Haizhou Bay, China. Our analysis indicated three distinct assemblages, which were stable geographically but exhibited a gradual and directional change of species composition and abundance over our study period. Sea surface temperature was the most important environmental co‐variate for determining temporal variability of LFAs, likely owing to temperature effects of species composition and spawning period selection of adult fish, along with known temperature‐dependent survival rates of larval fish. Study of LFA spatiotemporal dynamics is essential for improved understanding of adult fish spawning behavior, and has potential to inform design and implementation of conservation and management measures (e.g. marine protected areas) in coastal systems.     

中国多金属结核开辟区仔稚鱼的分布特征

利用 1 997年～ 1 999年“大洋一号”调查船在中国多金属结核开辟区用邦哥网所采集的样品 ,对仔稚鱼的种类组成、密度的平面分布和年间变化及其与环境因子的关系进行了研究。结果表明 :中国开辟区共有 2 2科 6 1种仔稚鱼 ,其中大洋性发光鱼类灯笼鱼科的种类最多 ,达1 7种 ,约占总种类数的 2 8% ,其次是钻光鱼科 (6种 )、金枪鱼科 (6种 )和拟白鲑科 (5种 ) ,分别约占总种类数的 1 0 %、 1 0 %和 8%。东、西两区的种类组成有较大的差异 ,共有种仅为 1 7种 ,东区种类数 (48种 )明显多于西区种类数 (3 0种 )。仔稚鱼的密度有明显的空间和时间变化 ,东区仔稚鱼的密度高于西区 ,东区 1 999年仔稚鱼的密度约为 1 997年的 5倍 ,西区 1 999年仔稚鱼的密度约为 1 998年的 3倍。仔稚鱼密度的年间变化可能与 El Nino事件有关     

Bioenergetics of parental investment in two polychaete species with contrasting reproductive strategies: The planktotrophic Boccardia chilensis and the poecilogonic Boccardia wellingtonensis (Spionidae)

The level of parental investment for larval nutrition may determine the life cycle in marine invertebrate species laying egg masses or capsules, where the food available for enclosed individuals would determine time and developmental stage of hatching. Most species show a unique type of larval development. However, few species are poecilogonous and combine more than one development type. Poecilogony, although scarcely studied, allows comparing different patterns of parental reproductive investment, without the phylogenetic effect of the species ancestral modes of development (phylogenetic inertia), to help to understand the factors determining life strategy evolution in marine invertebrates. The poecilogonous polychaete worm Boccardia wellingtonensis encapsulates and incubates its offspring, which then hatches as either planktotrophic larvae or benthic juveniles; while Boccardia chilensis shows a non-poecilogonous reproductive type, producing only planktotrophic larvae. In this work, we estimated the bioenergetic and biochemical composition of brooding and non-brooding females of B. wellingtonensis and B. chilensis to compare the costs of reproduction in these two species. Results showed that glucose, protein, lipid, and energy content were significantly higher in non-brooding than in brooding females of B. wellingtonensis; but also contained significantly more glucose, protein, and lipid than females of B. chilensis (in absolute and relative dry weight values). The poecilogonous species showed higher energy content previous to laying offspring. Our results support the idea that the evolution of a certain reproductive and life history traits in marine invertebrates is related to adaptations in the female's reproductive investment.     

Recruitment to the macrobenthos of Macomona liliana (bivalvia: Tellinidae) in Manukau Harbour,New Zealand

The population biology of the wedge shell Macomona liliana (Iredale, 1915) was studied at six sites on intertidal sandflats in Manukau Harbour over 2 years. Differences were found in the densities of bivalves between sites, and at each site large seasonal fluctuations in densities were also observed. Within‐site density fluctuations were mainly the result of changes in the numbers of juveniles (< 5 mm long). Length‐frequency distributions were dominated by a single mode associated with new recruits. The only major inter‐site difference was the scarcity of large bivalves at one site. Recruitment to the macrobenthos occurred over an extended period (summer to late winter or spring), but with markedly different levels of recruitment in the two successive years. Length‐frequency plots indicated that growth in the first year was 2–3 mm. The possible involvement of hydrodynamics, inter‐ and intraspecific interactions, and pollution on recruitment, and the importance of mortality and migration to post‐settlement survival are discussed.