Bottom-Up Ecosystem Trophic Dynamics Determine Fish Production in the Northeast Pacific

We addressed the question of bottom-up versus top-down control of marine ecosystem trophic interactions by using annual fish catch data and satellite-derived (SeaWiFS) chlorophyll a measurements for the continental margin of western North America. Findings reveal a marked alongshore variation in retained primary production that is highly correlated with the alongshore variation in resident fish yield. The highest productivity occurs off the coasts of Washington and southern British Columbia. Zooplankton data for coastal British Columbia confirm strong bottom-up trophic linkages between phytoplankton, zooplankton, and resident fish, extending to regional areas as small as 10,000 square kilometers.

[1]  E. Pian,et al.  An Asymmetric Energetic Type Ic Supernova Viewed Off-Axis, and a Link to Gamma Ray Bursts , 2005, Science.

[2]  W. Gregg,et al.  Global and regional evaluation of the SeaWiFS chlorophyll data set , 2004 .

[3]  Anthony J. Richardson,et al.  Climate Impact on Plankton Ecosystems in the Northeast Atlantic , 2004, Science.

[4]  N. Bond,et al.  Meteorology and oceanography of the northern Gulf of Alaska , 2004 .

[5]  Nathan J. Mantua,et al.  Tracking environmental processes in the coastal zone for understanding and predicting Oregon coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) marine survival , 2003 .

[6]  Marten Scheffer,et al.  Effects of fish on plankton dynamics: a theoretical analysis , 2000 .

[7]  K. Ruddick,et al.  Atmospheric correction of SeaWiFS imagery for turbid coastal and inland waters. , 2000, Applied optics.

[8]  D. Cayan,et al.  Climate-Ocean Variability and Ecosystem Response in the Northeast Pacific , 1998, Science.

[9]  C. Dorman,et al.  Buoy observations of the atmosphere along the west coast of the United States , 1995 .

[10]  S. Tassan.  Local algorithms using SeaWiFS data for the retrieval of phytoplankton, pigments, suspended sediment, and yellow substance in coastal waters. , 1994, Applied optics.

[11]  D. M. Ware,et al.  Variations in diet, daily ration, and feeding periodicity of pacific hake (Merluccius productus) and spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias) off the lower west coast of Vancouver Island , 1991 .

[12]  Adriana Huyer,et al.  The nature of the cold filaments in the California Current system , 1991 .

[13]  R. Iverson,et al.  Control of marine fish production , 1990 .

[14]  T. Royer.  Coastal fresh water discharge in the northeast Pacific , 1982 .

[15]  A. Hall.  Applied Optics. , 2022, Science.