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The effects of seasonal and interannual variability of oceanic structure in the western Pacific North Equatorial Current on larval transport of the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica
Author(s) -
Zenimoto K.,
Kitagawa T.,
Miyazaki S.,
Sasai Y.,
Sasaki H.,
Kimura S.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of fish biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.672
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1095-8649
pISSN - 0022-1112
DOI - 10.1111/j.1095-8649.2009.02295.x
Subject(s) - japonica , larva , biology , el niño southern oscillation , current (fluid) , japanese eel , oceanography , fishery , ecology , climatology , geology , botany
As the North Equatorial Current (NEC)–bifurcation is known to be related to El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events, the influence of the position of the NEC bifurcation on transport success of the larval Japanese eel Anguilla japonica was investigated. Using a Lagrangian modelling approach, larval transport was simulated and the relative influence of El Niño and La Niña events and the NEC‐bifurcation position on the success of particle transport analysed. The number of particles transported from the NEC to the Kuroshio tended to be lowest during El Niño years, and differences between La Niña and regular years were small. The transport success observed in simulations showed some relationships to annual A. japonica glass eel recruitment to Tanegashima Island over 1993 to 2001, but not in 2002. The study shows that particle tracking simulations can be used to improve knowledge of the oceanic migration of A. japonica but further studies are required, including comparisons with the effects on larval survival of fluctuations in temperature and food availability.