Factors influencing the survival of the lemon sole (Parophrys vetulus) in Hecate Strait, British Columbia

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Evidence of fluctuations in the strengths of lemon sole year-classes in Hecate Strait has been obtained from analysis of the age composition of the adult stock during a ten year period. These fluctuations are correlated inversely with sea surface temperatures at the time in the life-cycle when the young are in the pelagic stage. Explanation of this relationship is based on evidence that the young are transported by a northward moving current, from a spawning ground somewhere in southern Hecate Strait to a restricted nursery area lying along the northeastern shores of the Queen Charlotte Islands.From the results of laboratory experiments on the effect of temperature on the rate of growth of lemon sole embryos, it is concluded that small annual differences in sea temperature produce marked differences in the duration of the pelagic stage. Hence, in years when temperatures are below average, the larvae are carried for a longer period by the northward moving currents. It is maintained that this results in a greater deposition of young on the nursery ground.

This publication has 6 references indexed in Scilit: