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Basin-scale distribution pattern and biomass estimation of Japanese anchovy Engraulis japonicus in the western North Pacific

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Abstract

The distribution pattern and biomass of the Japanese anchovy Engraulis japonicus in the offshore region of the western North Pacific (north of 35°N and west of 170°E) were studied using a quantitative echosounder. This is the first attempt at such a study in this region. Data were collected in summer from 2004 to 2007. The biomass was estimated using data collected at 38 kHz. Species compositions in the backscatterings from pelagic fish were assigned based on the results of trawl hauls taking account of sea surface temperature (SST). Japanese anchovy tended to be high density to the west of 153°E and were distributed in an SST range of 9–24 °C. Although the temporal and spatial coverage of the survey differed each year, at least 1.5–3.4 million tons of Japanese anchovy were present in the survey area between 2004 and 2007. To take account of the spatial coverage of the survey each year, the most reliable biomass estimate for this region in the time period was 3.4 million tons (coefficient of variation 0.22).

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Acknowledgments

The authors express their thanks to the crews and the researchers who dedicated themselves to collecting data in the field. We would like to express our special thanks to Ms. Tomoko Hasegawa who supported the handling of huge numbers of data sets. Comments from two anonymous reviewers and the editor greatly improved the manuscript. The results in this paper constitute part of a project, “Marine fisheries stock assessment and evaluation for Japanese waters (fiscal year from 2005 to 2009)”, conducted by the Fisheries Agency of Japan and the Fisheries Research Agency of Japan. This survey was supported by the Fisheries Agency of Japan, the Fisheries Research Agency of Japan, and the Institute of Cetacean Research. We thank these institutions for their support.

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  1. Hiroto Murase

    Present address: National Research Institute of Far Seas Fisheries, 2-12-4 Fukuura, Kanazawa, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 236-8648, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Institute of Cetacean Research, 4-5 Toyomi-cho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0055, Japan

    Hiroto Murase

  2. National Research Institute of Fisheries Science, 2-12-4 Fukuura, Kanazawa, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 236-8648, Japan

    Atsushi Kawabata, Hiroshi Kubota & Yoshioki Oozeki

  3. Hachinohe Station, Tohoku National Fisheries Research Institute, 25-259 Shimo-mekurakubo, Hachinohe, Aomori, 031-0841, Japan

    Masayasu Nakagami

  4. Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, 4-5-7 Konan, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-8477, Japan

    Kazuo Amakasu

  5. National Research Institute of Fisheries Engineering, 7620-7 Hasaki, Kamisu, Ibaraki, 314-0408, Japan

    Koki Abe

  6. Field Science Center for the Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, 3-1-1 Minato, Hakodate, Hokkaido, 041-8611, Japan

    Kazushi Miyashita

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  1. Hiroto Murase
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Correspondence to Hiroto Murase.

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Murase, H., Kawabata, A., Kubota, H. et al. Basin-scale distribution pattern and biomass estimation of Japanese anchovy Engraulis japonicus in the western North Pacific. Fish Sci 78, 761–773 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-012-0508-2

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