Identifying blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) stock structure in the Northeast Atlantic by otolith shape analysis

• Main Authors: Mahe, Kélig, Oudard, Clémence, Mille, Tiphaine, Keating, James P, Gonçalves, Patricia, Clausen, Lotte Worsøe, Petursdottir, Gróa, Rasmussen, Helle, Meland, Elna, Mullins, Eugene, Pinnegar, John K, Hoines, Åge, Trenkel, Verena M
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: NRC Research Press (a division of Canadian Science Publishing) 2015
• Subjects: Northeast Atlantic
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/72441; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/cjfas-2015-0332

Information on stock identification and spatial stock structure provide a basis for understanding fish population dynamics and improving fisheries management. In this study otolith shape analysis was used to study the stock structure of blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) in the northeast Atlantic using 1693 samples from mature fish collected between 37°N and 75°N and 20°W and 25°E. The results indicated two stocks located north and south of ICES Divisions VIa and VIb (54°5 to 60°5 N, 4° to 11°W). The central area corresponds to the spawning area west of Scotland. Sampling year effects and misclassification in the linear discriminant analysis suggested exchanges between the northern and southern stocks. The results corroborate previous studies indicating a structuring of the blue whiting stock into two stocks, with some degree of mixing in the central overlap area. The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author.