Oceanic fronts in the Sargasso Sea control the early life and drift of Atlantic eels
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Oceanic fronts in the Sargasso Sea control the early life and drift of Atlantic eels. / Munk, Peter; Hansen, Michael M; Maes, Gregory E; Nielsen, Torkel Gissel; Castonguay, Martin; Riemann, Lasse; Sparholt, Henrik; Als, Thomas Damm; Aarestrup, Kim; Andersen, Nikolaj G; Bachler, Mirjam.
I: Proceedings: Biological Sciences, Bind 277, Nr. 1700, 07.12.2010, s. 3593-9.Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskrift › Tidsskriftartikel › Forskning › fagfællebedømt
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T1 - Oceanic fronts in the Sargasso Sea control the early life and drift of Atlantic eels
AU - Munk, Peter
AU - Hansen, Michael M
AU - Maes, Gregory E
AU - Nielsen, Torkel Gissel
AU - Castonguay, Martin
AU - Riemann, Lasse
AU - Sparholt, Henrik
AU - Als, Thomas Damm
AU - Aarestrup, Kim
AU - Andersen, Nikolaj G
AU - Bachler, Mirjam
PY - 2010/12/7
Y1 - 2010/12/7
N2 - Anguillid freshwater eels show remarkable life histories. In the Atlantic, the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) and American eel (Anguilla rostrata) undertake extensive migrations to spawn in the oceanic Sargasso Sea, and subsequently the offspring drift to foraging areas in Europe and North America, first as leaf-like leptocephali larvae that later metamorphose into glass eels. Since recruitment of European and American glass eels has declined drastically during past decades, there is a strong demand for further understanding of the early, oceanic phase of their life cycle. Consequently, during a field expedition to the eel spawning sites in the Sargasso Sea, we carried out a wide range of dedicated bio-physical studies across areas of eel larval distribution. Our findings suggest a key role of oceanic frontal processes, retaining eel larvae within a zone of enhanced feeding conditions and steering their drift. The majority of the more westerly distributed American eel larvae are likely to follow a westerly/northerly drift route entrained in the Antilles/Florida Currents. European eel larvae are generally believed to initially follow the same route, but their more easterly distribution close to the eastward flowing Subtropical Counter Current indicates that these larvae could follow a shorter, eastward route towards the Azores and Europe. The findings emphasize the significance of oceanic physical-biological linkages in the life-cycle completion of Atlantic eels.
AB - Anguillid freshwater eels show remarkable life histories. In the Atlantic, the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) and American eel (Anguilla rostrata) undertake extensive migrations to spawn in the oceanic Sargasso Sea, and subsequently the offspring drift to foraging areas in Europe and North America, first as leaf-like leptocephali larvae that later metamorphose into glass eels. Since recruitment of European and American glass eels has declined drastically during past decades, there is a strong demand for further understanding of the early, oceanic phase of their life cycle. Consequently, during a field expedition to the eel spawning sites in the Sargasso Sea, we carried out a wide range of dedicated bio-physical studies across areas of eel larval distribution. Our findings suggest a key role of oceanic frontal processes, retaining eel larvae within a zone of enhanced feeding conditions and steering their drift. The majority of the more westerly distributed American eel larvae are likely to follow a westerly/northerly drift route entrained in the Antilles/Florida Currents. European eel larvae are generally believed to initially follow the same route, but their more easterly distribution close to the eastward flowing Subtropical Counter Current indicates that these larvae could follow a shorter, eastward route towards the Azores and Europe. The findings emphasize the significance of oceanic physical-biological linkages in the life-cycle completion of Atlantic eels.
KW - Faculty of Science
U2 - 10.1098/rspb.2010.0900
DO - 10.1098/rspb.2010.0900
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 20573625
VL - 277
SP - 3593
EP - 3599
JO - Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
JF - Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
SN - 0962-8452
IS - 1700
ER -
ID: 32956861