The influence of spatially variable and connected recruitment on complex stock dynamics and its ecological and management implications

2019 ◽  
Vol 76 (6) ◽  
pp. 937-949 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisha Guan ◽  
Yong Chen ◽  
James A. Wilson ◽  
Timothy Waring ◽  
Lisa A. Kerr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Gulf Of Maine ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Substantial Reduction ◽  
Management Implications ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
The Individual

To evaluate the influence of spatially variable and connected recruitments at spawning component scale on complex stock dynamics, a typical agent-based complex stock was modeled based on the Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) stock in the Gulf of Maine. We simulated three scenarios with different degrees of connectivity (i.e., individual exchange) between the spatially variable recruitments of 36 spawning components within four subpopulations under the stock. Subsequently, the temporal trends were compared for different scenarios in age-1 recruitment, spawning stock biomass, and local depletion proportion of the overall complex stock and the individual subpopulations. Results show that increased recruitment connectivity from 0.1–0.2 to 0.6–0.8 between various components tends to increase the productivity and stability of a complex stock at local and global scales and reduce the proportion of depleted components due to overfishing. Moreover, depletions of less productive components may occur without a substantial reduction in the overall complex stock biomass and recruitment.

Re-evaluating Atlantic cod mortality including lobster bycatch: where could we be today?

2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (6) ◽  
pp. 1049-1058 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Boenish ◽  
Yong Chen
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Gulf Of Maine ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Homarus Americanus ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Stock Assessments ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
Assessment Bias ◽  
Related Mortality

Full accounting of fisheries mortality is one of the most tractable ways to improve stock assessments. However, it can be challenging to obtain in cases when missing catch comes from small-scale nontarget fisheries unrequired to report incidental catch. Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in the Gulf of Maine (GoM), USA, once served as a regionally important fishery, but has been serially depleted to <5% of historic spawning stock biomass. Recent management efforts to rebuild GoM cod have largely failed. We test the hypothesis that unaccounted bycatch of Atlantic cod in the Maine American lobster (Homarus americanus) fishery is a substantial missing piece in the GoM Atlantic cod assessment. We integrated multiple scenarios of hind-casted discards into the two accepted regional cod assessment models from 1982 to 2016. Incorporation of discards improved the assessment bias for both models (10%–15%), increased estimates of spawning stock biomass (4%), and decreased estimates of fishing mortality (9%). A novel evaluation of longitudinal model bias suggests that alternative modelling approaches or specifications may be warranted. We highlight the importance of accounting for all fishery-related mortality and the need for methods to deliver more comprehensive estimates from both target and nontarget fisheries.

Otolith growth and zone formation during first maturity and spawning of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua)

2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Irgens ◽  
Arild Folkvord ◽  
Håkon Otterå ◽  
Olav S. Kjesbu
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Barents Sea ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Somatic Growth ◽  
Otolith Growth ◽  
Zone Formation ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Tank Experiment ◽  
The Individual ◽  
First Maturity

Specific impacts of somatic growth, sexual maturation, and spawning events on otolith zone formation in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) were assessed in a 33-month tank experiment, using Barents Sea cod and Norwegian coastal cod. High and low feeding ration combinations were used to mimic environmental stressors in the field. For both stocks, apparent macrostructural “spawning zones” in otoliths are registered in statutory stock monitoring programs to estimate age at maturity, thus adding key information to stock biomass assessments. We found that substantial energy investments in reproduction caused reductions in otolith growth and altered proportional width between translucent and opaque zones. These effects, however, were only statistically significant among individuals with high reproductive investments, while otoliths from individuals with low investments did not differ from the otoliths for immatures. Reproduction may thus not necessarily induce spawning zones, and alternatively, spawning zones may not necessarily reflect reproduction. Altogether, this suggests that the individual energy level, as a premise for metabolic activity, plays a key role in the formation of such zones and thus is related to environmental conditions.

Gear-independent patterns of variation in catch of juvenile Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in coastal habitats

1998 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 1430-1442 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A Methven ◽  
David C Schneider
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Cohort Size ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Patterns ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
Coastal Habitats ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
Depth Gradients ◽  
Spatial Depth

Habitat and size of juvenile Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) change substantially during the first 3 years after settlement, and hence, cohort size cannot be followed using a single gear. We investigated whether catch could be calibrated across gear types by deploying pairs of gears repeatedly in the same habitat. As expected, size selectivity differed substantially among gears. Trawls and seines generally collected individuals <200 mm. Gillnets and jiggers collected individuals >150 mm. Size modes, corresponding to age-classes, were common to catches of most gears. Highest catches were taken by trawls and seines. Gillnet catches were orders of magnitude lower. Standardized catches could not be calibrated across pairs of gears deployed in the same habitat at approximately the same time. However, it was possible to identify spatial depth gradients and diel changes in catch that were independent of gear. Consistent spatial and temporal patterns across gears were interpreted as characteristic of fish populations, not just of gears. Density in coastal habitats was higher at night and was higher at 4-7 m than at greater depths. These results, in conjunction with other studies, establish that coastal depths of 4-7 m represent the centre, and not the edge, of the distribution of age 0 cod in Newfoundland during autumn. Hence nursery areas during the early 1990s, a time of historically low spawning stock biomass, must be identified as the coastal zone, not offshore.

Potential effects of maternal factors on spawning stock–recruitment relationships under varying fishing pressure

1999 ◽  
Vol 56 (10) ◽  
pp. 1882-1890 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth Scott ◽  
Gudrun Marteinsdottir ◽  
Peter Wright
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Reproductive Output ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Reproductive Potential ◽  
Fishing Pressure ◽  
Age Composition ◽  
Standard Population ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
Stock Recruitment

The use of spawning stock biomass as a direct measure of reproductive potential may not be valid because of age- or size-specific differences in fecundity and the effect of maternal size and condition on offspring viability. In this study, we examine the potential significance of these effects using modelled Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) populations. We quantify how changes in the age composition of the spawning stock, due to a range of fishing pressures and under different stock-recruitment relationships, could influence the reproductive output. Quantitative comparisons were made between a "standard" population where all age-classes only suffer natural instantaneous mortality (M = 0.2) and populations that suffer increasing levels of fishing pressure (F = 0.0-1.0). The results of the modelling exercise suggests that if the effects of the loss of more fecund older/larger individuals in the population are not considered, the number of potential recruits produced by populations under higher levels of fishing mortality could be overestimated by as much as 60%. When age/size-related maternal effects on egg viability are also considered, the amount of potential recruits can be overestimated by a further 10% in the heavily exploited populations.

Salinity and Recruitment of Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua) in the Newfoundland Region

1993 ◽  
Vol 50 (8) ◽  
pp. 1599-1609 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ransom A. Myers ◽  
Kenneth F. Drinkwater ◽  
Nicholas J. Barrowman ◽  
James W. Baird
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Population Analysis ◽  
Grand Banks ◽  
The North ◽  
Virtual Population ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
Recruitment Time

Recruitment predictions for Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in the North Atlantic, based upon a previously published regression with salinity, are found to be well correlated with recent recruitment estimates from both virtual population analysis and those derived from research surveys. The addition of spawning stock biomass in the regression significantly increased the percentage of the variance accounted for in the recruitment time series. A similar relationship between recruitment and salinity was found for two nearby stocks (southern Grand Banks and St. Pierre Bank). Oceanographic and food chain mechanisms that might be responsible for a link between salinity and recruitment are discussed.

scholarly journals Cod recruitment is strongly affected by climate when stock biomass is low

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith M. Brander
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Environmental Variability ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Pooled Analysis ◽  
The North ◽  
Stock Biomass ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
The North Atlantic

Abstract Stocks of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) have been declining over much of the North Atlantic for the past 30 years, owing to a combination of overfishing and adverse changes in their environment. In a previous study, environmental effects were introduced as an extra parameter in the stock-recruit relationship, where they act as a multiplier, independent of the level of spawning-stock biomass (SSB). Using a non-parametric pooled analysis of all cod stocks on the European Shelf south of 62°N, it is shown here that environmental variability (as represented by the North Atlantic Oscillation) only has a significant effect on recruitment when the spawning stock is low. This has implications for fisheries management strategies, and for rates of stock recovery, which will be very dependent on environmental conditions.

Patterns of larval-stage connectivity of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) within the Gulf of Maine in relation to current structure and a proposed fisheries closure

2016 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Churchill ◽  
J. P. Kritzer ◽  
M. J. Dean ◽  
J. H. Grabowski ◽  
G. D. Sherwood
Keyword(s):  
Larval Stage ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Gulf Of Maine ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Larval Transport ◽  
Spatially Explicit ◽  
Closed Area ◽  
Spawning Stock ◽  
Juvenile Habitat

The decline of the Atlantic cod, Gadus morhua, stock in the Gulf of Maine to a historically low biomass has been coupled with a severe contraction in spatial range. The stock is now largely concentrated in the western Gulf of Maine. This erosion of spatial stock structure may be a factor-inhibiting recovery of Gulf of Maine cod. However, recent efforts to rebuild anadromous forage fish in the coastal Maine region coupled with the proposed creation of a new Eastern Maine Closed Area (EMCA), sited where localized depletion of the cod stock has been especially severe, might enable reestablishment of lost spatial structure of Gulf of Maine cod. We carried out larval transport modeling to examine the potential benefit of recovered cod spawning in the EMCA through supplying larvae to suitable juvenile settlement areas in the Gulf of Maine coastal zone and in the Cashes Ledge Closed Area (CLCA) in the central Gulf of Maine. The results indicate that an appreciable fraction of the larvae spawned in the EMCA are retained, to an age of settlement capability, in the coastal Maine region. Spawning in the EMCA may thus be a contributor of juveniles to a local, eastern Gulf of Maine, cod sub-stock. The results further indicate that spawning in the EMCA may supply a substantial subsidy of larvae to suitable juvenile habitat in the western Gulf of Maine and the CLCA. Protection of spawning stock in the EMCA may thus provide demographic benefits for the wider Gulf of Maine cod stock. Patterns of larval-stage connectivity between various potential spawning regions (including the EMCA) and areas of suitable juvenile habitat exhibit considerable interannual variability, which is predominantly linked to variability in the large-scale Gulf of Maine circulation. This result underscores the value of spatially explicit management as a means of fostering the recovery of the Gulf of Maine cod stock.

scholarly journals Temporal trends in probabilistic maturation reaction norms and growth of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) on the Icelandic shelf

2009 ◽  
Vol 66 (10) ◽  
pp. 1719-1733 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heidi Pardoe ◽  
Anssi Vainikka ◽  
Gudmundur Thórdarson ◽  
Gudrun Marteinsdóttir ◽  
Mikko Heino
Keyword(s):  
Gadus Morhua ◽  
Atlantic Cod ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Reaction Norm ◽  
Genetic Change ◽  
Regional Survey ◽  
Fish Stocks ◽  
Abundance Estimates ◽  
Intensive Fishing

Decreasing temporal trends in probabilistic maturation reaction norm (PMRN) midpoints, symptomatic of earlier maturation despite environmentally induced variation in growth, have been observed in many exploited fish stocks. Here, we studied the growth and maturation trends of female and male Icelandic cod ( Gadus morhua ) by estimating PMRN midpoints for cohorts 1964–1999 and found evidence that a shift towards maturation at smaller sizes and younger ages has occurred independently of changes in growth, condition, and temperature. Weighting the data with regional survey abundance estimates to account for spatial heterogeneity in maturity status and sampling intensity did not qualitatively affect the temporal trends. Length-at-age also decreased through the study period, which, through simulations, could be attributed to the energetic costs of earlier maturity at maturing age groups but not at younger ages. These findings support the hypothesis that such changes in maturation schedules are not caused by environmental factors alone but could also reflect a genetic change, potentially in response to intensive fishing.

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