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Isotopic Correlation (δ 18 O versus δ 13 C) of Otoliths in Identification of Groundfish Stocks
Author(s) -
Gao Yongwen,
Dettman David L.,
Piner Kevin R.,
Wallace Farron R.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
transactions of the american fisheries society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.696
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1548-8659
pISSN - 0002-8487
DOI - 10.1577/t09-057.1
Subject(s) - groundfish , sebastes , fishery , halibut , rockfish , gadus , merluccius , hake , biology , scorpaenidae , oceanography , fisheries management , fish <actinopterygii> , fishing , geology
The management of many marine fish stocks suffers from a lack of genetic data or insignificant genetic differentiations, particularly for the commercially important groundfish along the U.S. Pacific coast. In this study, we investigated a large number of otoliths of various groundfish species from the coasts of Washington and Oregon and analyzed them for stable oxygen ( 18 O/ 16 O, or δ 18 O) and carbon isotope ratios ( 13 C/ 12 C, or δ 13 C). The isotopic results and correlation of δ 18 O versus δ 13 C of Pacific hake Merluccius productus , sablefish Anoplopoma fimbria , Pacific halibut Hippoglossus stenolepis , and Pacific cod Gadus macrocephalus indicated that most of the groundfish we examined had two or more spawning stocks or subpopulations; the only tested species that might belong to a single coastwide stock was yelloweye rockfish Sebastes ruberrimus . Compared with genetic methods of stock identification, the isotopic signatures of otoliths have distinct advantages in determining (1) a time series to separate the different life stages of marine fish and (2) the oceanographic and environmental conditions to which fish are exposed. Thus, stable isotopic signatures in otoliths appear to be an alternative for marine fish stocks when there is little genetic differentiation between populations or no genetic data are available.