scholarly journals Changes in Life History Traits of Small Pelagic Fish in the Western Mediterranean Sea

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Albo-Puigserver ◽  
Maria Grazia Pennino ◽  
Jose María Bellido ◽  
Ana Isabel Colmenero ◽  
Ana Giráldez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Seawater Temperature ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Pelagic Fish ◽  
Additive Models ◽  
Small Pelagic Fish ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea

Small pelagic fish (SPF) in the western Mediterranean Sea are key elements of the marine food web and are important in terms of biomass and fisheries catches. Significant declines in biomass, landings, and changes in the age/size structure of sardine Sardina pilchardus and anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus have been observed in recent decades, particularly in the northern area of the western Mediterranean Sea. To understand the different patterns observed in SPF populations, we analyzed key life history traits [total length at age, length at maturity, gonadosomatic index (GSI), and body condition (Kn)] of sardine and anchovy collected between 2003 and 2017, from different fishing harbors distributed along a latitudinal gradient from northern to southern Spain. We used Generalized Linear Models (GLM) to estimate the length at maturity and Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) to test the relationship with environmental variables (seawater temperature, water currents, and net primary productivity). The life history traits of both species presented seasonal, interannual and latitudinal differences with a clear decline in length at age, length at first maturity, and body condition, for both species in the northern part of the study area. In the southern part, on the contrary, life history traits did not present a clear temporal trend. The environmental conditions partially explained the long-term changes in life history traits, but the selected variables differed between areas, highlighting the importance of regional oceanographic conditions to understand the dynamics of small pelagic fish. The truncated length-at-age pattern for both species with the disappearance of the larger individuals of the population could have contributed to the poor condition of small pelagic fish populations in the northern part of the western Mediterranean Sea in recent years. In the south area, recent declines in body condition for sardine and anchovy were observed and could be a possible first sign for future population declines. This study highlights the importance of understanding the trade-off between the energy invested in reproduction, maintenance and growth at seasonal and interannual level to advance our knowledge on how environmental and human pressures influence population dynamics of small pelagic fish at local and regional scales.

scholarly journals Body reserves mediate trade-offs between life-history traits: new insights from small pelagic fish reproduction

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (10) ◽  
pp. 160202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Brosset ◽  
Josep Lloret ◽  
Marta Muñoz ◽  
Christian Fauvel ◽  
Elisabeth Van Beveren ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Maternal Effects ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Pelagic Fish ◽  
Small Pelagic Fish ◽  
Gulf Of Lions ◽  
Fish Size ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
The Cost

Limited resources in the environment prevent individuals from simultaneously maximizing all life-history traits, resulting in trade-offs. In particular, the cost of reproduction is well known to negatively affect energy investment in growth and maintenance. Here, we investigated these trade-offs during contrasting periods of high versus low fish size and body condition (before/after 2008) in the Gulf of Lions. Female reproductive allocation and performance in anchovy ( Engraulis encrasicolus ) and sardine ( Sardina pilchardus ) were examined based on morphometric historical data from the 1970s and from 2003 to 2015. Additionally, potential maternal effects on egg quantity and quality were examined in 2014/2015. After 2008, the gonadosomatic index increased for sardine and remained steady for anchovy, while a strong decline in mean length at first maturity indicated earlier maturation for both species. Regarding maternal effects, for both species egg quantity was positively linked to fish size but not to fish lipid reserves, while the egg quality was positively related to lipid reserves. Atresia prevalence and intensity were rather low regardless of fish condition and size. Finally, estimations of total annual numbers of eggs spawned indicated a sharp decrease for sardine since 2008 but a slight increase for anchovy during the last 5 years. This study revealed a biased allocation towards reproduction in small pelagic fish when confronted with a really low body condition. This highlights that fish can maintain high reproductive investment potentially at the cost of other traits which might explain the present disappearance of old and large individuals in the Gulf of Lions.

scholarly journals Life-history traits of the long-nosed skate Dipturus oxyrinchus, from the central western Mediterranean Sea

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bellodi Andrea ◽  
Porcu Cristina ◽  
Marongiu Martina ◽  
Mulas Antonello ◽  
Vittori Stefania ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea

scholarly journals SOS small pelagics: A safe operating space for small pelagic fish in the western Mediterranean Sea

2021 ◽  
Vol 756 ◽  
pp. 144002
Author(s):  
Francisco Ramírez ◽  
Maria Grazia Pennino ◽  
Marta Albo-Puigserver ◽  
Jeroen Steenbeek ◽  
Jose M. Bellido ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Pelagic Fish ◽  
Small Pelagic Fish ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Operating Space ◽  
Safe Operating

scholarly journals Bio-Ecological Features Update on Eleven Rare Cartilaginous Fish in the Central-Western Mediterranean Sea as a Contribution for Their Conservation

Life ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 871
Author(s):  
Antonello Mulas ◽  
Andrea Bellodi ◽  
Pierluigi Carbonara ◽  
Alessandro Cau ◽  
Martina Francesca Marongiu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Stomach Content Analysis ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Reproductive Period ◽  
Cartilaginous Fish ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Ecological Features ◽  
Key Species

Cartilaginous fish are commonly recognized as key species in marine ecosystems for their fundamental ecological role as top predators. Nevertheless, effective management plans for cartilaginous fish are still missing, due to the lack of knowledge on their abundance, distribution or even life-history. In this regard, this paper aims at providing new information on the life-history traits, such as age, maturity, reproductive period, in addition to diet characteristics of eleven rare cartilaginous fish inhabiting the Central-Western Mediterranean Sea belonging to the orders Chimaeriformes (Chimaera monstrosa), Hexanchiformes (Heptranchias perlo and Hexanchus griseus), Myliobatiformes (Aetomylaeus bovinus and Myliobatis aquila), Rajiformes (Dipturus nidarosiensis and Leucoraja circularis), Squaliformes (Centrophorus uyato, Dalatias licha and Oxynotus centrina) and Torpediniformes (Tetronarce nobiliana), useful for their assessment and for future management actions. Particularly, the present paper provides for the first time the age estimation of D. nidarosienis and L. circularis which were both found capable of becoming older than ten years. In addition, the present study updates the sizes of first maturity of C. uyato and D. licha, which appeared to be capable of reproducing earlier than what was previously hypothesized, representing very valuable information for a better understanding of these rare species populations status and, eventually, their conservation. On the basis of the stomach content analysis, it was possible to identify five different predator groups.

Interannual trophic behaviour of a pelagic fish predator in the western Mediterranean Sea

2021 ◽  
Vol 168 ◽  
pp. 105288
Author(s):  
Joan Giménez ◽  
Sílvia Puigarnau ◽  
Eric Morán ◽  
Antoni Lombarte ◽  
María José Gómez -Vives ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Pelagic Fish ◽  
Fish Predator ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea

scholarly journals Host- microbiome interactions in a changing sea: the gill microbiome of an invasive oyster under drastic changes in temperature

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yahala Rina-Dor ◽  
Yehuda Benayahu ◽  
Leah Reshef ◽  
Uri Gophna
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Seawater Temperature ◽  
Gill Tissue ◽  
Amplicon Sequencing ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Series Of Experiments ◽  
Health Deterioration

The gill tissue of bivalve mollusks hosts rich symbiotic microbial communities that may contribute to the host wellbeing. Spondylus spinosus is a Lessepsian invasive oyster to the eastern Mediterranean Sea that has become highly abundant, while constantly expending its range northwestward. Using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing we examined how temperature affects the gill microbiota of S. spinosus, and the oysters themselves, in a series of experiments: exposing the oysters to the current annual seawater temperature range; to the colder temperature of the western Mediterranean Sea; and to elevated temperature as predicted under global warming scenarios. The bacterial genus Endozoicomonas dominated the communities of the S. spinosus, mainly upon exposure to winter-like temperatures. Exposure to elevated seawater temperature resulted in a significant change in the bacterial communities, while the oysters maintained normal functioning, suggesting that the oyster may survive a seawater warming scenario. Exposure to colder winter temperature typical to the western Mediterranean Sea resulted in health deterioration of the oysters, emergence of opportunistic pathogens, and a decline in the relative abundance of Endozoicomonas, suggesting that S. spinosus might not survive in the cold western Mediterranean Sea. The findings indicate that gill bacteria are greatly affected by temperature, which could consequently restrict the range expansion of this and other invasive oysters.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document