Abstract
The different factors that influence the prevalent decline in fish stocks are currently subject to urgent and intense scrutiny. Here we combine the use of remote-sensing satellite data with a long-term data set of haddock recruitment off the eastern continental shelf of Nova Scotia, Canada, to show that the survival of the larval fish depends on the timing of the local spring bloom of phytoplankton. This link has been suspected for more than 100 years, but its verification has had to wait for technology with sufficient spatial and temporal resolution.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hjort, J. Rapp. Conserv. Explor. Mer 20, 1–228 (1914).
Cushing, D. H. in Sea Fisheries Research (ed. Harden Jones, F. R.) 399–412 (Elek Science, London, 1974).
Cushing, D. H. Adv. Mar. Biol. 26, 249–294 (1990).
Sverdrup, H. U. J. Conseil Perm. Int. Explor. Mer 18, 287–295 (1953).
Platt, T. & Sathyendranath, S. Int. Coun. Explor. Sea CM O:3 (1996).
Kane, J. Mar. Ecol. Progr. Ser. 16, 9–20 (1984).
Mohn, R. K. & Simon, J. E. CSAS Res. Doc. 2002/102 (2002).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing financial interests.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Platt, T., Fuentes-Yaco, C. & Frank, K. Spring algal bloom and larval fish survival. Nature 423, 398–399 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/423398b
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/423398b
This article is cited by
-
Long-term warming and human-induced plankton shifts at a coastal Eastern Mediterranean site
Scientific Reports (2023)
-
Ocean Biology Studied from Space
Surveys in Geophysics (2023)
-
A review of the ecosystem services provided by the marine forage fish
Hydrobiologia (2023)
-
Nesting sites and parental care in the giant blue damselfish, Microspathodon dorsalis
Environmental Biology of Fishes (2023)
-
Zooplankton size-structure dynamics of a lowland tropical floodplain lake
Aquatic Sciences (2023)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.