© 2004 by ICES/CIEM International Council for the Exploration of the Sea/Conseil International pour l'Exploration de la Mer
Daily egg production of anchovy in European waters
a University of Patras, Department of Biology, Laboratory of Zoology 26500, Patra, Greece
b Departament de Recursos Marins Renovables, Institut de Ciències del Mar (CMIMA–CSIC) Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta, 37–49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
c Instituto Espanol de Oceanografia (IEO) Centro Oceanografico de Malaga, Puerto Pesquero s/n, 29640, Fuengirola, Malaga, Spain
d AZTIMAR–AZTI Marine Research Unit-Herrera kaia Portualdea z/g, 20110 Pasaia, Gipuzkoa, Basque Country, Spain
*Correspondence to S. Somarakis: tel: +30 2610 997521; fax: +30 2610 996100. e-mail: somarak{at}upatras.gr.
Since the late 1980s, the Daily Egg Production Method (DEPM) has been applied to several anchovy stocks in European waters. DEPM surveys in the Bay of Biscay were well standardized and focused on providing fisheries-independent information for stock assessment purposes. Those targeting Mediterranean stocks were largely experimental and often opportunistic, with the main aim of developing and testing the method, rather than providing estimates of spawning stock biomass (SSB) for stock assessment. Consequently, the DEPM has been applied once, twice, or a maximum of three times in certain Mediterranean areas with no among-area standardization. Different techniques for several aspects of the method have been used in the Mediterranean, and the parameters estimated vary greatly among stocks and year of application. Evidence is provided that variability in biological production among sub-basins and/or years, a characteristic of Mediterranean Sea, may directly affect anchovy egg production. The daily specific fecundity of anchovy stocks can vary greatly among years, areas, or seasons in response to changing environmental and trophic regimes. When the correlation between regression-derived estimates of daily egg production and associated estimates of daily specific fecundity for anchovy in the Mediterranean, the Bay of Biscay, and upwelling areas are compared, a significant isometric relationship emerges for the Mediterranean and the Bay of Biscay, implying density-dependent use of spawning habitat. In upwelling areas, estimates of daily egg production are relatively high for a narrow range of generally low daily specific fecundities. There is a strong linear relationship between anchovy SSB and spawning area in European waters that does not differ significantly between the Bay of Biscay and the Mediterranean Sea.
Keywords: anchovy, Bay of Biscay, Daily Egg Production Method, Engraulis encrasicolus, Mediterranean Sea
Received 9 March 2004; accepted 14 July 2004.
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