Density, biomass and community structure of demersal fishes off the Pacific coast of northeastern Japan

Abstract

Demersal fish communities were studied on the lower continental shelf and the upper continental slope along the Pacific coast of northeastern Japan. Species composition, number and weight of each species were examined based on otter trawl samples at 45 stations. Mean density and biomass of demersal fishes were 131 ha ‐1 and 21 kg ha ‐1 , respectively. The ten most abundant species comprised of about 95% of total number and weight of overall catch indicating simple species composition. Gadiform fishes Theragra chalcogramma, Gadus macrocephalus and Physiculus maximowiczi were the most important species by number, weight and frequency of occurrences, and three main community types represented by the three key species were recognized. Theragra-dominant community showed higher density and biomass, and lower diversity than Physiculus-dominant community did. Species diversity of demersal fish community was negatively correlated to density and biomass. Density and biomass of demersal fish community were high on the uppermost slope, and the high abundance resulted from low-diversity communities dominated by T. chalcogramma and G. macrocephalus.