Abstract
To examine the environmental factors controlling the inshore recruitment dynamics of Anguilla japonica in the Oyodo River, Miyazaki Prefecture, Kyushu, glass eel samplings were carried out using fyke nets during winter (November–March) of 1994–2014. The peak CPUEs (catch per unit effort) were observed between November and February, but differed from year to year. The yearly CPUE was extremely high in 2002, when the sea surface temperature (SST) in the offshore area of the Oyodo River was the lowest in winter of all the sampling years. The negative SST anomaly of less than − 0.5 °C was sustained in the offshore area during the recruitment season in 2002, which was caused by two combined factors; low air temperature and the Kuroshio path. The oceanographic data showed that the dominant path of the Kuroshio was displaced eastward at 31°N in 2002, which was different from the average Kuroshio path. The eastward displacement of the Kuroshio induced a cyclonic mesoscale eddy in the offshore area of the Oyodo River, resulting in the entrainment of the cold seawater into coastal waters from deep water. The oceanographic condition in relation to the continuous low SST could be favorable for local recruitment of glass eels.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Change history
11 August 2018
To examine the environmental factors controlling the inshore recruitment dynamics of Anguilla japonica in the Oyodo River, Miyazaki Prefecture, Kyushu, glass eel samplings were carried out using fyke nets during winter (November–March) of 1994–2014.
References
Aoki K, Onitsuka G, Shimizu M, Kuroda H, Matsuo H, Kitadai Y (2015) Interregional differences in mortality of aquacultured yellowtail Seriola quinqueradiata in relation to a Chattonella bloom in the Yatsushiro Sea, Japan, in 2010. Fish Sci 81:525–532
Chen YL, Chen HY (1991) Temperature selections of Anguilla japonica (L.) elvers, and their implications for migration. Aust J Mar Freshw Res 42:743–750
Chen YL, Chen HY, Tzeng WN (1994) Reappraisal of the importance of rainfall in affecting catches of Anguilla japonica elvers in Taiwan. Aust J Mar Freshw Res 45:185–190
Cheng PW, Tzeng WN (1996) Timing of metamorphosis and estuarine arrival across the dispersal range of the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 131:87–96
Chow S, Kurogi H, Mochioka N, Kaji S, Okazaki M, Tsukamoto K (2009) Discovery of mature freshwater eels in the open ocean. Fish Sci 75:257–259
Edeline E, Lambert P, Rigaud C, Elie P (2006) Effects of body condition and water temperature on Anguilla anguilla glass eel migratory behavior. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 331:217–225
Fukuda N, Kuroki M, Shioda A, Yamada Y, Okamura A, Aoyama J, Tsukamoto K (2009) Influence of water temperature and feeding regime on otolith growth in Anguilla japonica glass eels and elvers: does otolith growth cease at low temperatures? J Fish Biol 74:1915–1933
Fukuda N, Aoyama J, Yokouchi K, Tsukamoto K (2016) Periodicities of inshore migration and selective tidal stream transport of glass eels, Anguilla japonica, in Hamana Lake, Japan. Environ Biol Fish 99:309–323
Guo H, Zhang X, Zhang Y, Tang W, Wu J (2017) Effects of environmental variables on recruitment of Anguilla japonica glass eels in the Yangtze Estuary, China. Fish Sci 83:333–341
Han YS, Tzeng WN (2006) Use of the sex ratio as a means of resource assessment for the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica: a case study in the Kaoping River, Taiwan. Zoo Stud 45:255–263
Han YS, Sun YL, Liao YF, Liao IC, Shen KN, Tzeng WN (2008) Temporal analysis of population genetic composition in the overexploited Japanese eel Anguilla japonica. Mar Biol 155:613–621
Hwang SD, Lee TW, Choi IS, Hwang SW (2014) Environmental factors affecting the daily catch levels of Anguilla japonica glass eels in the Geum River estuary, South Korea. J Coast Res 30:954–960
Inaba S, Yamamoto S (1938) Glass eel and its aquaculture. Month Rep Fish Res Agen Shizuoka Pref 47:19–32 (in Japanese)
Jacoby D, Gollock M (2014) Anguilla japonica. In: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, p 1. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/60344/0
Kimura S, Tsukamoto K, Sugimoto T (1994) A model for the larval migration of the Japanese eel: roles of the trade winds and salinity front. Mar Biol 119:185–190
Kuroda H, Shimizu M, Hirota Y, Ambe D, Akiyama H (2008) Surface current and vertical thermal structure on the continental slope in Tosa Bay. J Oceanogr 64:81–91
Kuroda H, Setou T, Kakehi S, Ito S, Taneda T, Azumaya T, Inagake D, Hiroe Y, Morinaga K, Okazaki M, Yokota T, Okunishi T, Aoki K, Shimizu Y, Hasegawa D, Watanabe T (2017) Recent advances in Japanese fisheries science in the Kuroshio–Oyashio region through development of the FRA-ROMS ocean forecast system: overview of the reproducibility of reanalysis products. Open J Mar Sci 7:62–90
Kurogi H, Okazaki M, Mochioka N, Jinbo T, Hashimoto H, Takahashi M, Tawa A, Aoyma J, Shinoda A, Tsukamoto K, Tanaka H, Gen K, Kazeto Y, Chow S (2011) First capture of post-spawning female of the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica at the southern West Mariana Ridge. Fish Sci 77:199–205
Kushnir Y (1994) Interdecadal variation in North Atlantic sea surface temperature and associated atmospheric conditions. J Clim 7:141–157
North EW, Schlag Z, Hood RR, Li M, Zhong L, Gross T, Kennedy VS (2008) Vertical swimming behavior influences the dispersal of simulated oyster larvae in a coupled particle-tracking and hydrodynamic model of Chesapeake Bay. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 359:99–115
Okazaki Y, Nakata H, Kimura S (2002) Effect of frontal eddies on the distribution and food availability of anchovy larvae in the Kuroshio Extension. Mar Fresh Res 53:403–410
Takashi T, Fujiwara T, Sumitomo T, Sakamoto W (2006) Prediction of slope water intrusion into the Kii Channel in summer. J Oceanogr 62:105–113
Tsukamoto K (2006) Spawning of eels near a seamount. Nature 439:929
Tsukamoto K, Aoyama J, Miller MJ (2009) The present status of the Japanese eel: resources and recent research. In: Casselman J, Cairns D (eds) Eels at the edge. American Fisheries Society Symposium, vol 58, pp 21–35
Tsukamoto K, Chow S, Otake T, Kurogi H, Mochioka N, Miller MJ, Aoyama J, Kimura S, Watanabe S, Yoshinaga T, Shinoda A, Kuroki M, Oya M, Watanabe T, Hata K, Ijiri S, Kazeto Y, Nomura K, Tanaka H (2011) Oceanic spawning ecology of freshwater eels in the western North Pacific. Nat Commun. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms1174
Tzeng WN (1985) Immigration timing and activity rhythms of the eel, Anguilla japonica, elvers in the estuary of northern Taiwan, with emphasis on environmental influences. Bull Jap Soc Fish Oceanogr 47:11–28
White EM, Knights B (1997) Environmental factors affecting migration of the European eel in the rivers Seven and Avon, England. J Fish Biol 50:1104–1116
Zenimoto K, Kitagawa T, Miyazaki S, Sasai Y, Sasaki H, Kimura S (2009) The effects of seasonal and interannual variability of oceanic structure in the western Pacific North Equatorial Current on larval transport of the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica. J Fish Biol 74:1878–1890
Acknowledgements
This research was partly commissioned by the Fisheries Agency of Japan and grants from the Japan Fisheries Research and Education Agency. We are grateful to the Japan Meteorological Agency and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Japan for providing the observational data. We used the supercomputer of the Japan Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Information Technology Center for analyses.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Aoki, K., Yamamoto, T., Fukuda, N. et al. Enhanced local recruitment of glass eel Anguilla japonica in Oyodo River, Miyazaki and offshore environmental conditions in 2002. Fish Sci 84, 777–785 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-018-1207-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-018-1207-4