Covariation in climate, zooplankton biomass and mackerel recruitment in the southern Gulf of St Lawrence

Abstract

Between 1982 and 1991, an annual survey of stage I egg production of Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus) was conducted in June/early July in the southern Gulf of St Lawrence. We investigated the relationship between interannual variability in biomass of zooplankton, determined from the archived survey plankton samples, and mackerel recruitment, estimated from the proportion of three‐year‐olds in the catch of the commercial fishery. Zooplankton biomass varied by a factor of 2.5, primarily owing to fluctuations in the >1000 μm size fraction. The index of mackerel recruitment fluctuated by a factor of ≈20 and was positively related (linear regression: P < 0.05; n = 10) to variations in the zooplankton biomass. Both mackerel recruitment and zooplankton biomass were negatively related (linear regression: P < 0.05) to RIVSUM, a measure of freshwater discharge from the St Lawrence River system and an index of variability in the region's climate. Three hypotheses are put forward to explain these observations: (1) there is a strong link between interannual variation in abundance of copepod females, which produce prey for mackerel larvae, and larval survival; the exceptional recruitment and subsequent year class resulted from an exceptional production of Calanus finmarchicus nauplii; (2) years of high zooplankton biomass provide better feeding conditions and consequently higher survival of mackerel juveniles; and (3) mackerel recruitment and zooplankton biomass are independently under the control of an underlying physical process, without strong trophic linkage. The first hypothesis is supported by a study of copepod species composition and female abundance conducted for four of the survey years. At the present time, none of these hypotheses can be ruled out.