The influence of age and cohort on the distribution of walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in the eastern Bering Sea

Abstract

The spatial distributions of marine fish populations are influenced by environmental conditions, intrinsic properties of the populations, and prior distribution. The influence of these factors may not be consistent across age classes. For this study, age composition estimates for walleye pollock ( Gadus chalcogrammus) collected on bottom-trawl surveys in the Bering Sea were used to estimate range correlation indices, population centers of gravity, and effective area occupied. Age-specific density maps suggested a circular ontogenic migration during the summer feeding season, with the youngest and oldest groups most broadly distributed. Range correlation analysis among age groups and year classes provided clear evidence of a population cohort effect in the spatial distribution of the population. Variance decomposition analysis indicated that the variance in the spatial distribution of age groups during summer was influenced by the initial distribution of that cohort as recruits. Model-based analyses showed that extrinsic temperature variables affected the youngest and oldest age classes the most, but provided no indication of age-related effects for intrinsic population factors. This study showed that both cohort and age-specific factors are important drivers of spatial distribution.