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Body condition of predatory fishes linked to the availability of sandeels

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Abstract

Lesser sandeels Ammodytes marinus are eaten by a range of predatory fishes including commercially fished species, but are also exploited at large scale by industrial fisheries. Is availability of sandeels, as key prey source, linked to the body condition of predatory fishes? In the North Sea, the largest sandeel biomass is concentrated in the Dogger Bank region. Here we studied predator–sandeel interactions at two sites differing widely in sandeel abundance and local sandeel fishing effort. Surveys took place in 2004, 2005, and 2006, years when local sandeel densities observed at these sites were low, intermediate, and high, respectively. Five predator species––whiting, lesser weever, grey gurnard, plaice, and haddock––showed better body condition indices in either the years or study area (or both) characterised by higher local sandeel densities, when compared to sandeel-poorer conditions. Moreover, whiting, weever, and gurnard condition was better for those individuals actually observed to have eaten sandeels (based on stomach contents) than for those that had not. As body condition relates to growth, reproduction, and survival, predators in sandeel-rich conditions may be inferred to have a higher fitness. These links between sandeel availability, sandeel consumption, and predator condition hint that, if large-scale localised depletions of sandeels were to occur, negative indirect effects on predatory fish might become apparent, underlining the importance of considering the sandeel fishery in an ecosystem context.

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Acknowledgments

The sandeel surveys that formed the backbone for this study were supported by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of the UK (Defra project MF0323 ‘Multispecies Fisheries Management: A comprehensive impact assessment of the sandeel fishery along the English east coast’). Funding for the analysis and interpretation of the data was by the European Union (FP7 project FACTS ‘Forage Fish Interactions’) with matched funding by Defra project MF1112 ‘Pelagic Ocean Science: Ecology and Interconnectivity of Diverse Ocean Networks (Poseidon)’. We are grateful to the officers and crews of RVs Corystes and Cefas Endeavour for their excellent support during the surveys, and we acknowledge the dedication of all scientists during the fieldwork. The manuscript benefited from the constructive feedback received from Trevor Haynes and one anonymous referee.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, Pakefield Road, Lowestoft, NR33 0HT, UK

    Georg H. Engelhard, John K. Pinnegar, Jeroen van der Kooij, Ewen D. Bell, Steven Mackinson & David A. Righton

  2. University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK

    Julia L. Blanchard

Authors
  1. Georg H. Engelhard
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  2. Julia L. Blanchard
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  3. John K. Pinnegar
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  4. Jeroen van der Kooij
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  5. Ewen D. Bell
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  6. Steven Mackinson
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  7. David A. Righton
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Correspondence to Georg H. Engelhard.

Additional information

Communicated by C. Harrod.

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Engelhard, G.H., Blanchard, J.L., Pinnegar, J.K. et al. Body condition of predatory fishes linked to the availability of sandeels. Mar Biol 160, 299–308 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-012-2088-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-012-2088-1

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