Seasonal Variation in Species Composition of Ichthyoplankton in Northern Jinhae Bay, Korea

Abstract

Fish eggs and larvae were collected in July and November of 2013 and January and May of 2014 to determine sea sonal variation in the species composition of ichtyoplankton. Samples were classified based on morphological char acteristics. Fish eggs were identified as belonging to five taxa; the most dominant species of fish eggs was Engraulis japonicus (62.05%) followed by Sardinops melanostictus (21.02%) and Leiognathus nuchalis (13.71%). These three species accounted for 96.8% of the total number of fish eggs collected. Larvae of 17 species in six families, and six orders were collected. The most dominant species of fish larvae was E. japonicus (51.79%), followed by L. nuchalis (12.59%) and Omobranchus elegans (12.08%). These three species accounted for 76.46% of the total number of larvae collected. Jinhae Bay was identified as a major spawning and nursery ground for fish species inhabiting in the south coast of Korea, such as E. japonicus, L. nuchalis, S. melanostictus, and Omobranchus elegans. Therefore, management of marine fish resources in the South Sea should necessarily include the ecological management of Jinhae Bay.