scholarly journals Growth, temperature, and density relationships of North Sea cod (Gadus morhua)

2008 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 456-470 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Rindorf ◽  
Henrik Jensen ◽  
Corinna Schrum

This study presents an analysis of the relationship between ambient temperature, cod density, fishing mortality, prey fish biomass, and growth of North Sea cod (Gadus morhua) as estimated from survey catches during the period from 1983 to 2006. Growth of young cod was positively related to temperature; however, although temperature increased, distribution of 1-year-olds changed concurrently and no increase in length at age 1 occurred. Growth from age 1 to age 2 decreased as ambient biomass of sandeel and density of cod decreased, whereas growth of cod older than 2 years decreased with increasing density of cod and increased with increasing biomass of demersal fish prey. Though growth of juveniles was strongly positively correlated to ambient temperature, no indication of direct temperature limitation of growth of older North Sea cod was found.

2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (6) ◽  
pp. 961-968 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joe Horwood ◽  
Carl O'Brien ◽  
Chris Darby

AbstractRecovery of depleted marine, demersal, commercial fish stocks has proved elusive worldwide. As yet, just a few shared or highly migratory stocks have been restored. Here we review the current status of the depleted North Sea cod (Gadus morhua), the scientific advice to managers, and the recovery measures in place. Monitoring the progress of North Sea cod recovery is now hampered by considerable uncertainties in stock assessments associated with low stock size, variable survey indices, and inaccurate catch data. In addition, questions arise as to whether recovery targets are achievable in a changing natural environment. We show that current targets are achievable with fishing mortality rates that are compatible with international agreements even if recruitment levels remain at the current low levels. Furthermore, recent collations of data on international fishing effort have allowed estimation of the cuts in fishing mortality achieved by restrictions on North Sea effort. By the beginning of 2005, these restrictions are estimated to have reduced fishing mortality rates by about 37%. This is insufficient to ensure recovery of North Sea cod within the next decade.


2014 ◽  
Vol 71 (8) ◽  
pp. 2101-2113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorota K. Bastrikin ◽  
Alejandro Gallego ◽  
Colin P. Millar ◽  
Imants G. Priede ◽  
Emma G. Jones

Abstract Knowledge of settlement timing and duration, which has been identified as an important milestone for demersal fish, is critical to understanding population connectivity, relevant to the development of spatially—and temporally—resolved conservation measures, and recruitment variability, as important density-dependent dynamics may take place at this stage. To study the settlement ecology of cod haddock, and whiting, sampling was conducted over spring and summer 2004–2006 at the northern North Sea nursery area. Over 4000 0-group juveniles were collected. Settlement was associated with clear and progressive changes in the prey composition of these juveniles. The size of fish that could be considered settled was estimated as 49 (±3) mm for cod, 78 (±4) mm for haddock, and 85 (±6) mm for whiting. Clear differences in temporal settlement patterns were also apparent. Cod settled in a single pulse lasting about a month (mid-May to mid-June) and initially occupied shallower, inshore waters, whereas haddock settled in one pulse, lasting ∼2 weeks (second half of May), favouring deeper, farther offshore locations. Whiting settled much later in the season and over a more protracted period (early June to early August), and their depth preferences also changed over time and with increasing length.


2008 ◽  
Vol 65 (9) ◽  
pp. 1800-1813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Rindorf ◽  
Bo Sølgaard Andersen

This study presents an investigation of the relationship between stock size of North Sea cod ( Gadus morhua ) and catch rates in seven commercial fishing fleets. The shape of the relationship was estimated using a new model allowing both density-dependent changes in catchability and bias in the assessment biomass estimates. Catchability in fisheries targeting a mixed species composition either remained constant or decreased with decreasing stock size, whereas catchability in targeted cod fisheries increased with decreasing stock size. However, even in the cases where catchability increased, the change was insufficient to compensate for the decrease in stock size, and catch rates of all fleets decreased. Two factors that could lead to nonconstant catchability were investigated: (i) the presence of a decoupling between stock size and density in high-density areas and (ii) the presence of concurrent shifts in the spatial distribution of the cod stock and the cod fishery. No evidence of the former was found, but there was a northern shift in the spatial distribution of both effort and the cod stock.


2003 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Floeter ◽  
Axel Temming

The nature and significance of size preference for fish prey in the diet selection of North Sea cod (Gadus morhua L.) was analysed. The analysis combined information on size-specific abundance derived from bottom trawl surveys with prey size frequencies in cod stomachs from the International North Sea Stomach Database. To estimate the abundance of all potential fish prey in the sea, a length-based number spectrum was calculated, corrected for gear efficiency by the application of a species-specific correction factor, and weighted by local predator abundance to take the spatial–temporal overlap between cod and its prey into consideration. A prey size preference model for cod feeding on fish is presented. Results showed that the preferred predator-to-prey weight ratio is an exponentially increasing function of predator size and an exponentially decreasing function of the slope of the number spectrum. More than 75% of fish found in the stomachs of North Sea cod originated from the least preferred quartile of the prey size range, indicating that prey abundance is the main determinant of the diet composition.


2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (7) ◽  
pp. 1483-1491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence T. Kell ◽  
Graham M. Pilling ◽  
Carl M. O'Brien

Abstract Robustness of both short-term stock biomass recovery and longer-term sustainable management strategies to different plausible climatic change scenarios were evaluated for North Sea cod (Gadus morhua), where climate was assumed to impact growth and recruitment. In the short term, climate change had little effect on stock recovery, which depends instead upon reducing fishing effort to allow existing year classes to survive to maturity. In the longer term, climate change has greater effects on stock status, but higher yields and biomass can be expected if fishing mortality is reduced. Incorporating environmental covariates in stock assessment predictions will not achieve sustainable resource use. The implications of climate change for biological reference points depend upon the mechanism through which temperature acts on recruitment, i.e. on juvenile survival or carrying capacity. It is not possible to distinguish between these processes with stock assessment data sets alone. However, this study indicates that reference points based on fishing mortality appear more robust to uncertainty than those based on biomass. Ideally, simpler management procedures are required that meet pre-agreed management objectives and are robust to uncertainty about the true dynamics.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianhui Gao ◽  
Mengxue Lu ◽  
Yinzhen Sun ◽  
Jingyao Wang ◽  
Zhen An ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The effect of ambient temperature on allergic rhinitis (AR) remains unclear. Accordingly, this study aimed to explore the relationship between ambient temperature and the risk of AR outpatients in Xinxiang, China. Method Daily data of outpatients for AR, meteorological conditions, and ambient air pollution in Xinxiang, China were collected from 2015 to 2018. The lag-exposure-response relationship between daily mean temperature and the number of hospital outpatient visits for AR was analyzed by distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM). Humidity, long-time trends, day of the week, public holidays, and air pollutants including sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were controlled as covariates simultaneously. Results A total of 14,965 AR outpatient records were collected. The relationship between ambient temperature and AR outpatients was generally M-shaped. There was a higher risk of AR outpatient when the temperature was 1.6–9.3 °C, at a lag of 0–7 days. Additionally, the positive association became significant when the temperature rose to 23.5–28.5 °C, at lag 0–3 days. The effects were strongest at the 25th (7 °C) percentile, at lag of 0–7 days (RR: 1.32, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 1.05–1.67), and at the 75th (25 °C) percentile at a lag of 0–3 days (RR: 1.15, 95% CI: 1.02–1.29), respectively. Furthermore, men were more sensitive to temperature changes than women, and the younger groups appeared to be more influenced. Conclusions Both mild cold and mild hot temperatures may significantly increase the risk of AR outpatients in Xinxiang, China. These findings could have important public health implications for the occurrence and prevention of AR.


1994 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.H. Mann ◽  
K.F. Drinkwater

Evidence is reviewed, linking physical oceanographic processes in the marine environment to changes in fish and shellfish stocks in the Northwest Atlantic. A case history study of the cod (Gadus morhua) stock of the northern Grand Banks and Labrador Shelf indicates a long slow amelioration of the environment between about 1945 and 1965, followed by a deterioration in the period 1965–1992. The most important environmental factors for the cod stocks appear to have been salinity and temperature. The trends can be traced back to climatic factors involving the Icelandic Low and the Azores–Bermuda High. When the atmospheric pressure difference in winter tended to be high, there was a progressive increase in the area of sea ice off Labrador and in the volume of cold water at depth. These factors have been shown to affect temperature and salinity conditions on the Grand Banks in spring and summer and are associated with poor growth and recruitment in the cod stocks. A similar case study of lobster (Homarus americanus) stocks indicates that temperature and river discharge are important environmental correlates, but neither can be shown to fully account for the recent trends in the stocks. Evidence is reviewed to show that physical environmental processes also influence recruitment and distribution of stocks of haddock, capelin, and squid. Some of the problems with correlational analysis are also discussed. It is recognized that factors other than the environment are influencing the stocks. Fishing mortality (detailed consideration of which is not included in this review) has clearly been important. Interactions between environmental factors and fishing mortality are probably of major importance.Key words: ocean environment, fish production, recruitment, northern cod, American lobster.


1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 407-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masanori Takahashi ◽  
Tetsuo Iwami

The stomach contents of demersal fish in late January 1982 were analysed. Samples were taken at 100, 300 and 500 m depth south of Elephant Island, Bransfield Strait and north of Livingston Island, and at 800 m to the east of Smith Island. Fifty four taxa of fish belonging to 11 families were collected. The diets of 2101 fish representing 38 taxa were examined. These were classified into three categories, fish feeders, krill feeders and benthos feeders. Fish prey species fed on krill and/or benthos. Krill was a major dietary component for 32 (84.2%) out of 38 taxa. Gobionotothen gibberifrons was distributed at all 10 stations (100–800 m in depth) and its diet comprised krill and benthos. The present findings verify the importance of krill in the Antarctic marine ecosystem and indicate that krill is consumed by benthic fish at greater depths than previously reported.


2007 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 304-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan-Jaap Poos ◽  
Adriaan D Rijnsdorp

A temporarily closed area established to protect spawning Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in the North Sea allowed us to study the response of the Dutch beam trawl fleet exploiting common sole (Solea solea) and plaice (Pleuronectes platessa). A number of vessels left the North Sea 1 month earlier than the normal seasonal pattern. The vessels that continued fishing in the North Sea were concentrated in the remaining open areas. In the first week after the closure, the catch rate decreased by 14%, coinciding with an increase in crowding of 28%. Area specialisation affected the response of individual vessels because vessels without prior experience in the open areas showed a larger decline in catch rate compared with vessels that previously fished in these open areas and were more likely to stop fishing during the closed period. The decrease in catch rate in response to the increase in competitor density allowed us to estimate the strength of the interference competition.


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