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Commercial and Subsistence Fishes Projects

fish diagramAcoustic Surveys

  • Lead: Chris Wilson
  • Learn more about the role of acoustic surveys in the Bering Sea, Summer 2010

We will estimate midwater walleye pollock (age 1+) abundance in the eastern Bering Sea through acoustic-trawl surveys conducted by NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center.

Collection of observations of physical oceanography, fish prey fields, and marine mammal and seabirds for related Bering Sea Project work will also take place during these summer cruises.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

Surface Trawl Survey Acoustics

  • Lead: John K. Horne
  • Co-PIs: Ed Farley, Sandra Parker-Stetter

We will quantify forage fish (e. g. , juvenile pollock, capelin, herring, and myctophids) distribution on the Bering Sea shelf, and examine how oceanography and climate forcing may influence forage fish distribution, abundance, and ultimately effect apex predator distribution and abundance. We will add acoustics and midwater trawling to document density distribution of forage species, and will map forage species distribution and compare distributions and abundances among survey years.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

Pollock and Cod Distribution

  • Lead: Lorenzo Ciannelli
  • Co-PIs: Kevin Bailey, Steve Barbeaux, Ann Hollowed
  • Learn more about potential shifts of pollock distribution in the Bering Sea, 2008

We will conduct a retrospective analysis of ichthyoplankton catches of pollock, cod, and arrowtooth flounder and wintertime fisheries data to create species spawning distribution models.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

Functional Foraging Response

  • Leads: Kerin Aydin and Ed Farley

We will provide biological and physical data on the food habits of groundfish relative to predator and prey fields. We will use this information to evaluate whether competition for common prey or predator avoidance influences the spatial and temporal distribution of forage fish. Understanding these processes will provide the information needed to build computer models to assess the potential impact of climate change on forage fish movement and seasonal distribution.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

Forage Distribution and Ocean Conditions

  • Lead: Anne Hollowed
  • Co-PIs: Kerim Aydin, Steve Barbeaux, Ned Cokelet, Alex DeRobertis, Stan Kotwicki, Patrick Ressler, Phyllis Stabeno, Chris Wilson
  • "First look" at winter oceanographic conditions in the Bering Sea, January-March 2008
  • "First Look" at CTD data for the Bering Sea, 2008

We will provide biological and physical data from a commercial fishing vessel, acoustic surveys and bottom trawl surveys. We will use this information to identify the processes influencing the spatial and temporal distribution of forage fish, their predators and competitors relative to ocean habitat conditions and to evaluate hypotheses regarding the potential impact of climate change on forage fish movement and seasonal distribution.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

Surface Trawl Survey

  • Lead: Ed Farley

The Alaska Fisheries Science Center conducts annual surface (epi-pelagic) trawl surveys to monitor the condition of the eastern Bering Sea continental shelf epi-pelagic fish community. This survey is funded with in-kind money and will support BEST-BSIERP by providing biological and environmental survey data to other PIs in the program.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

Bottom Trawl Survey

  • Lead: Robert Lauth

The NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center conducts annual bottom (benthic) trawl surveys to monitor the condition of the eastern Bering Sea continental shelf epi-benthos. This survey is funded with in-kind money and will support BEST-BSIERP by providing biological and environmental survey data to other PIs in the program.

See Statements of Work and Work Plans

See also Patch Dynamics

2010 Eastern Bering Sea Continental Shelf Bottom Trawl Survey

Bering Sea Project investigator Bob Lauth reports that researchers from NOAA's Alaska Fisheries Science Center finished the 29th in a series of standardized annual bottom trawl surveys of the eastern Bering Sea (EBS) continental shelf. This year the F/V Alaska Knight and F/V Aldebaran were chartered from 2 June to 4 August to bottom trawl the standard survey area consisting of 376 stations covering an area of 144,493 square nautical miles.

Survey results are used in the management of groundfish (including pollock) and crab, and in researching ecological and physical factors affecting groundfish and crab distribution and abundance.

temperatures in the eastern bering sea

Temperature summary for 2010

A data logger was attached to the trawl to obtain temperature information for the survey area (left). See larger image

The 2010 bottom temperatures ranged from –1.6° to 6.4°C and the plotted bottom temperatures in the figure show that a well defined cold pool (< 2°C) occupied most of the mid-shelf at depths between 50 and 100 m.

Warmer bottom temperatures occurred in the inner shelf south of Nunivak Island and along the outer shelf. The mean bottom water temperature of the entire shelf for the survey period (1.4°C) was slightly higher than the previous summer (1.2°C), but still well below the long-term mean for 1982 to 2009 (2.4°C).