scholarly journals Does increased information about reproductive potential result in better prediction of recruitment?

2011 ◽  
Vol 68 (8) ◽  
pp. 1361-1368 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Joanne Morgan ◽  
Alfonso Perez-Rodriguez ◽  
Fran Saborido-Rey

The relationship between stock size and recruitment is an essential element in the understanding of the productivity of a population. However, predicting the number of recruits produced by a population has proven to be a difficult challenge. This may in part be a result of poor estimation of reproductive potential (RP). We determined if including increased information on reproductive biology in indices of RP results in better predictions of recruitment. We investigated some of the conditions that lead to better (or worse) recruitment prediction when more biologically complex indices of RP are used. Data from four populations in the Northwest Atlantic were examined: southern Grand Bank (NAFO Division 3NO) cod ( Gadus morhua ), Flemish Cap (NAFO Division 3M) cod, Newfoundland (NAFO Division 3LNO) American plaice ( Hippoglossoides platessoides ), and Greenland halibut ( Reinhardtius hippoglossoides ) (NAFO Subarea 2 + Division 3KLMNO). Stock–recruit models paired with complex indices of RP gave a better estimate of recruitment in slightly more than half of the tests conducted. When there were larger trends in the reproductive biology (maturity at age, sex ratio and egg production), more complex indices of RP were more likely to provide a better estimate of recruitment.

1998 ◽  
Vol 55 (7) ◽  
pp. 1766-1783 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Tara Marshall ◽  
Olav Sigurd Kjesbu ◽  
Nathalia A Yaragina ◽  
Per Solemdal ◽  
Øyvind Ulltang

The assumption that spawner biomass is directly proportional to total egg production by fish stocks underlies most spawner-recruit relationships. Despite its importance, this assumption is largely untested. Data describing the reproductive potential of Northeast Arctic (NEA) Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) were used to test the proportionality assumption for a period showing strong variation in condition and abundance of spawners. At the individual scale, relative fecundity varied with length and condition. This decreases the likelihood that the proportionality assumption is valid. At the stock level, total egg production was estimated (1985-1996) using acoustic estimates of total abundance and demographic information from trawl sampling in combination with year-specific fecundity-length relationships. For NEA cod, spawner biomass estimated by virtual population analysis (VPA) was not proportional to total egg production. Compared with VPA-based estimates of spawner biomass, total egg production is an improved index of recruitment potential because (i) the magnitude of variation observed in total egg production was closer to that observed in recruitment and (ii) the relationship between recruitment at age 1 and total egg production approaches the origin. The results suggest that further progress in explaining recruitment variation will be achieved using more sensitive measures of the true reproductive potential of the stock.


1997 ◽  
Vol 54 (8) ◽  
pp. 1813-1821 ◽  
Author(s):  
M L Vis ◽  
S M Carr ◽  
W R Bowering ◽  
W S Davidson

Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) have become of great importance to the Canadian fishery since the moratorium on northern cod (Gadus morhua), and an understanding of stock relationships among populations at the northern and southern extremes of their commercial range is crucial for proper management. We compared mitochondrial DNA sequence variation among fish taken from thoughout the Northwest Atlantic (Flemish Pass, the Grand Banks, Davis Strait, and Northwest Greenland) with samples from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Iceland, and Norway. Within a 401 base pair portion of the cytochrome b gene, 22 genotypes were identified. Three of these occur at frequencies >10% and in the same relative abundances in all samples (except the Gulf of St.Lawrence). Genotype proportions do not differ significantly among samples, and genetic subdivision among samples (measured by the coancestry coefficient theta ) is nil. Genetic distances among samples are not related to geographic distribution: pairwise differences between the Gulf sample and other western Atlantic samples exceed those for trans-Atlantic comparisons. These data suggest that there is sufficient mixing of Greenland halibut, not only within the NAFO regulatory area, but among sites in the North Atlantic generally, to prevent the development or maintenance of genetically independent stocks.


2002 ◽  
Vol 59 (12) ◽  
pp. 1908-1920 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerd Kraus ◽  
Jonna Tomkiewicz ◽  
Friedrich W Köster

Observed fluctuations in relative fecundity of Eastern Baltic cod (Gadus morhua L.) were related to food availability during the main feeding period and were used to develop a predictive model that explained 72% of the interannual variations in fecundity. Time series of sex ratios, maturity ogives, and relative fecundity were combined with mean weights-at-age and stock sizes from an analytical multispecies model to estimate the potential egg production (PEP). Relationships between PEP and independent estimates of realized daily and seasonal egg production from egg surveys were highly significant. The difference between estimates of potential and realized seasonal egg production was of a magnitude corresponding to the expected loss of eggs as a result of atresia, fertilization failure, and early egg mortality. The removal of interannual variability in sex ratio, maturity, and fecundity on estimates of PEP deteriorated the relationships in all three cases. PEP proved to be superior to spawning stock biomass as measure of the reproductive potential in a stock-recruitment relationship of Eastern Baltic cod. PEP in combination with the reproductive volume explained 61% of the variation in year-class strength at age 2.


2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (5) ◽  
pp. 980-994 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Tara Marshall ◽  
Coby L Needle ◽  
Anders Thorsen ◽  
Olav Sigurd Kjesbu ◽  
Nathalia A Yaragina

Stock–recruit relationships that use spawning stock biomass (SSB) to represent reproductive potential assume that the proportion of SSB composed of females and the relative fecundity (number of eggs produced per unit mass) are both constant over time. To test these two assumptions, female-only spawner biomass (FSB) and total egg production (TEP) were estimated for the Northeast Arctic stock of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) over a 56-year time period. The proportion of females (FSB/SSB) varied between 24% and 68%, and the variation was systematic with length such that SSB became more female-biased as the mean length of spawners increased. Relative fecundity of the stock (TEP/SSB) varied between 115 and 355 eggs·g–1 and was significantly, positively correlated with mean length of spawners. Both FSB and TEP gave a different interpretation of the recruitment response to reductions in stock size (overcompensatory) compared with that obtained using SSB (either compensatory or depensatory). There was no difference between SSB and FSB in the assessment of stock status; however, in recent years (1980–2001) TEP fell below the threshold level at which recruitment becomes impaired more frequently than did SSB. This suggests that using SSB as a measure of stock reproductive potential could lead to overly optimistic assessments of stock status.


1999 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 347-355 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Tara Marshall ◽  
Kenneth T Frank

The relationship between recruitment and spawner biomass assumes that estimates of spawner biomass are proportional to total egg production by the stock. The validity of this assumption is in question for long-lived gadoid stocks; however, estimating total egg production independently of spawner biomass is seldom feasible. An alternative approach is to examine correlations between recruitment and variables likely to be proxies for total egg production by the stock. This indirect approach was used for haddock on the Scotian Shelf. Indices of growth (mean length at age-4) and condition (weight at 50 cm) were used as proxies for the reproductive potential of individual spawners. Both variables were positively correlated with recruitment over a 3-decade period (1964-1995). During the same time period, there was no relationship between recruitment and spawner biomass estimated by Virtual Population Analysis (VPA). This is further evidence that VPA-based spawner biomass is a poor index of the true reproductive potential of the stock. The results highlight the need to develop more accurate/precise measures of total egg production for use in recruitment research.


2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Joanne Morgan ◽  
John Brattey

Abstract Variation in maturity-at-age, sex ratio, and potential egg production (through changes in length at age) were examined for northern cod (NAFO Division 2J + 3KL), southern Grand Bank cod (3NO), and southern Newfoundland cod (3Ps). All showed significant interannual variability in each stock. Estimates of reproductive potential were produced by sequentially incorporating estimates of proportion mature at age, sex ratio at age, and potential egg production. The estimates of reproductive potential produced by each method were broadly similar, but there were important differences. This leads to differing perceptions of stock productivity, as measured by relative rate of recruitment of a stock and in the spawning stock produced per recruit. These differing perceptions can have a major impact on expectations for the recovery of depleted stocks and the sustainability of various levels of fishing. Efforts should be made to improve estimates of reproductive potential by further exploring the impacts of changes in the spawning characteristics of populations, and by collecting such basic information as fecundity data.


Author(s):  
S. V. Shevchenko ◽  
Yu. V. Plugatar

The paper presents the results of study the reproductive biology of a number of higher plants and shows the features of the formation of their generative structures, pollination, fertilization and seed formation. It has been established that the studied species have a high reproductive potential, they are characterized by the conjugacy in the development of male and female gametophyte and gametogenesis, the relationship and relevance of the development of flower elements and pollinating insects, etc. It is indicated that the limiting factors of high productive reproduction and reproduction of the studied plants are anomalies of the processes of formation of generative structures that occur during critical periods under the influence of extreme environmental factors, weak exchange of genetic information due to discontinuity of the area and small number of cenopopulations, as well as human impact. It is shown that the current state of natural cenopopulations of the studied rare species of the Crimean flora necessitates the development and strict observance of scientifically based measures for their protection.


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