Fine-scale horizontal distributions of multiple species of larval tuna off the Nansei Islands, Japan

Tawa, Atsushi; Kodama, Taketoshi; Sakuma, Kay; Ishihara, Taiki; Ohshimo, Seiji

doi:10.3354/meps13216

Cited by 20 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…While the productivity in the East China Sea fuel a community of piscivorous plankton, including bloom‐forming jellyfish like Nemopilema nomurai (Zhang et al 2012; Sun et al 2015), the relatively low productivity within and east of the Kuroshio Current supports few predators. Thus, oceanographic signatures from the Kuroshio Current may be identified by the Pacific bluefin tuna as the limit of an offshore, oligotrophic, and low‐predator spawning ground (Tawa et al 2020). A second spawning ground is found in the more productive Sea of Japan.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spawning site distribution of a bluefin tuna reduces jellyfish predation on early life stages

Ottmann

Fiksen

Martín

et al. 2021

Limnology & Oceanography

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Bluefin tunas across the world migrate long distances to spawn in particularly warm and oligotrophic areas constrained by oceanographic fronts. The low abundance of predators in these areas increases survival chances of their early life stages, but its importance for choice of spawning habitat is unknown. Here, we use estimated clearance rates and data on spatial distributions of Atlantic bluefin tuna larvae Thunnus thynnus and metaephyrae of the jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca to quantify predation at a major spawning ground in the Mediterranean Sea. We found that high densities of P. noctiluca can rapidly deplete tuna eggs and preflexion larvae, but their patchy distribution and low spatial and temporal overlap results in overall low predation. The specific distribution of the spawning sites suggests that bluefin tunas may use local oceanography as cues to spawn outside areas with high predator densities.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spawning site distribution of a bluefin tuna reduces jellyfish predation on early life stages

Ottmann

Fiksen

Martín

et al. 2021

Limnology & Oceanography

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“…Low trophic production in the Kuroshio is one of the most important factors affecting fishery resources in Japan and other Pan-Pacific countries. The Kuroshio area is the spawning and nursery ground for many types of small pelagic fishes, for example, sardines (Sardinops melanostictus) and anchovies (Engraulis japonicus), during the spring (Ohshimo et al, 2019) and migratory tuna species, for example, the Pacific bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis), yellowfin tuna (T. albacares), and skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), during the summer (Tanaka et al, 2019;Tawa et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial and Seasonal Variations of Stable Isotope Ratios of Particulate Organic Carbon and Nitrogen in the Surface Water of the Kuroshio

et al. 2021

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Bioavailable nitrogen and carbon amount are increasing in the ocean. Their stable isotope ratios are good indicators for understanding what happens in the sea. We measured the nitrogen and carbon stable isotope ratio of organic particles which is mainly consisted of living phytoplankton but also consisted of zooplankton, bacteria, and so on in the Kuroshio, flowing in the southern part of Japan. The Kuroshio is one of the key areas not only for fisheries in East Asia countries, but also for Pan-Pacific countries, but we do not know the supply source of nitrogen and carbon which is essential for living resources. Our main finding is that nitrogen sources are different between areas and seasons. That is, deep-sea water is an important source of nitrogen between Japan and the Kuroshio throughout the seasons, but nitrogen fixation by plankton and rain is an important source in the offshore area during summer. KODAMA ET AL.

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“…Anyway, in the GOM, their condition of visual predators might also limit their vertical expansion. Horizontal habitat segregation in scombrid larvae has already been documented in the Pacific [8], in the GOM [23] and in the MED [51]. It is to be expected that the same segregation can occur in the vertical distribution of taxa if the environmental conditions are within the taxa specific limits.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

“…Juvenile and adult tuna species dominate in particular areas worldwide and separate niches across their vertical distribution when coexisting [6,7]. Early in their life cycle, a variety of tuna species coexist in most spawning grounds worldwide with particular species dominating in the different areas [8][9][10][11]. Temperature arises as a key variable explaining the presence of tuna larvae in all areas [12][13][14][15][16][17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Influence of the Seasonal Thermocline on the Vertical Distribution of Larval Fish Assemblages Associated with Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Spawning Grounds

Álvarez

Rasmuson

Gerard

et al. 2021

Oceans

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Temperature is often an important variable influencing the vertical position of fish larvae in the water column. The same species may show different vertical distributions in areas with a strong near-surface seasonal thermocline compared to isothermal near-surface regions. In areas with a strong surface thermocline, tuna larvae show a significant preference for the near-surface warmer layers. Little is known regarding larval tuna vertical distribution in isothermal waters and on the vertical distribution of the associated larval fish assemblages. We conducted vertical stratified sampling using the same methodology and fishing device (MOCNESS) in the two major spawning areas of Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT): western Mediterranean Sea (MED), characterized by a surface thermocline, and the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) which lacks thermal stratification. Tuna larvae occupied the upper 30 m in both areas, but the average larval depth distribution was consistently deeper in the GOM. In the MED, vertical distribution of larval fish assemblages was explained by temperature, and species such as BFT, Thunnus alalunga, and Ceratoscopelus maderensis, among others, coexist above the thermocline and are separated from species such as Cyclothone braueri and Hygophum spp. (found below the thermocline). In the GOM, the environmental correlates of the vertical distribution of the larvae were salinity and fluorescence. Mesopelagic taxa such as Ceratoscopelus spp. and Cyclothone spp., among others, had a shallower average distribution than Lampanyctus spp., Hygophum spp., and Myctophum spp.

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Fine-scale horizontal distributions of multiple species of larval tuna off the Nansei Islands, Japan

Cited by 20 publications

References 48 publications

Spawning site distribution of a bluefin tuna reduces jellyfish predation on early life stages

Spawning site distribution of a bluefin tuna reduces jellyfish predation on early life stages

Spatial and Seasonal Variations of Stable Isotope Ratios of Particulate Organic Carbon and Nitrogen in the Surface Water of the Kuroshio

Influence of the Seasonal Thermocline on the Vertical Distribution of Larval Fish Assemblages Associated with Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Spawning Grounds

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