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Underlying causes of habitat-associated differences in size of age-0 walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) in the Gulf of Alaska

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Abstract

Age-0 walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) caught in September in the Gulf of Alaska display habitat-associated differences in standard length (SL). Age-0 fish collected in the region around Sutwik Island and 375 km farther downstream near the Shumagin Islands most likely originate from the Shelikof Strait spawning aggregation. However, age-0 fish resulting from the same spawning aggregation differ in mean size up to 20 mm between areas by September. We examined the otoliths of the larval and age-0 stages of walleye pollock from these two areas in 2000 and 2001 to determine whether growth rate, hatch date, and/or temperature influenced fish size. Circulation models were used to determine whether transport of larvae from an upstream spawning group into the study areas could have occurred. Mean in situ temperature during sampling periods was not defined as a significant factor in altering growth rates. Overlapping hatch date distributions of the larval and age-0 fish in the Shumagin Island area confirmed that the fish were from the Shelikof Strait spawning group. Comparison of hatch date distributions in the upstream Sutwik Island area revealed larger/older larvae from an upstream spawning group mixed with larvae from the Shelikof Strait spawning group. Our results suggest that the offset of 20 mm SL between the groups of age-0 pollock was the result of a combination of enhanced survivorship of early-hatched larvae in the Sutwik area and the introduction and retention of the progeny of another spawning group originating upstream of Shelikof Strait.

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Notes

  1. Reference to trade names does not imply endorsement by the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA.

  2. Midwater Assessment and Conservation Engineering, Alaska Fisheries Science Center.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to thank Dave Kachel and Peggy Sullivan for their input in the interpretation of the SEACAT and CTD data. Miriam Doyle, Matt Wilson, Ann Matarese, and Jeff Napp provided valuable review comments on an earlier version of the manuscript. Statistical advice was provided by Kathy Mier. We also wish to thank the crew of the NOAA ship Miller Freeman for their generous assistance with specimen collection. This research is contribution FOCI 0762-RAAP-0 to NOAA’s Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations. Reference to trade names does not imply endorsement by NMFS-NOAA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Alaska Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA, 98115, USA

    A. Dougherty, K. Bailey & T. Vance

  2. Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean, University of Washington, Box 357941, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA

    W. Cheng

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  1. A. Dougherty
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  2. K. Bailey
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  3. T. Vance
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  4. W. Cheng
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Correspondence to A. Dougherty.

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Communicated by M. A. Peck.

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Dougherty, A., Bailey, K., Vance, T. et al. Underlying causes of habitat-associated differences in size of age-0 walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) in the Gulf of Alaska. Mar Biol 159, 1733–1744 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-012-1961-2

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