Perspectives on elasmobranch life-history studies: a focus on age validation and relevance to fishery management.

Life-history (age, growth, age validation, reproduction and demography) studies of elasmobranchs date back to the middle of the last century with major early contributions made by British fishery scientists. As predicted by Holden in the early 1970s, many sharks and rays can be vulnerable to fishery mortality because they grow slowly, mature late in life, reproduce infrequently, have relatively low fecundities and can have relatively long life spans. As has now been found, however, not all species exhibit these traits. Also, ageing structures (neural arches and caudal thorns), other than vertebrae and spines, have since been evaluated. Various methods for validating age and growth estimates have been developed and tested on numerous species of elasmobranchs. These include tag-recapture analyses, oxytetracycline injections, centrum or spine edge and marginal increment analyses, and bomb radiocarbon dating of calcified structures. Application of these techniques has sometimes not only validated relatively slow growth and long life span estimates, but also has produced other results. A brief historical perspective on the applications and limitations of these techniques for elasmobranchs is provided, along with a discussion of selected species for which these techniques worked well, did not work at all or have produced variable and conflicting results. Because many fishery management techniques utilize age or stage-specific information, often through demographic analyses, accurate information on the life histories of fished populations, especially age validation, is extremely important for the fishery management of these cartilaginous fishes.

Stable-isotope analysis of a deep-sea benthic-fish assemblage: evidence of an enriched benthic food web.

In this study, fishes and invertebrates collected from the continental slope (1000 m) of the eastern North Pacific Ocean were analysed using stable-isotope analysis (SIA). Resulting trophic positions (T(P) ) were compared to known diets and habitats from the literature. Dual isotope plots indicated that most species groups (invertebrates and fishes) sorted as expected along the carbon and nitrogen axes, with less intraspecific variability than interspecific variability. Results also indicated an isotopically distinct benthic and pelagic food web, as the benthic food web was more enriched in both nitrogen and carbon isotopes. Trophic positions from SIA supported this finding, resulting in the assignment of fishes to different trophic positions from those expected based on published dietary information. These differences can be explained largely by the habitat of the prey and the percentage of the diet that was scavenged. A mixing model estimated dietary contributions of prey similar to those of the known diet of Bathyraja trachura from stomach-content analysis (SCA). Linear regressions indicated that trophic positions calculated from SIA and SCA, when plotted against B. trachura total length for 32 individuals, exhibited similar variation and patterns. Only the T(P) from SCA yielded significant results (stomach content: P < 0·05, stable isotope: P > 0·05).

Evidence of stability in a chondrichthyan population: case study of the spotted ratfish Hydrolagus colliei (Chondrichthyes: Chimaeridae).

Results presented here provide evidence of an exception to the generalization that all chondrichthyan populations are especially vulnerable to exploitation to the extent that they remain at low abundance for a protracted or indefinite duration even after exploitation rates are reduced. Delta log-normal generalized linear models (GLM) and cluster analysis of fishery-independent catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) data from 1977 to 2006 indicated the presence of at least two distinct stocks of spotted ratfish Hydrolagus colliei off the U.S. West Coast. CPUE of the continental slope and northern continental shelf and upper slope populations did not vary between 1977 and 1995 and increased from 1995 to 2006. On the basis of the timing of these changes, it is likely that both fishing and climate influenced these trends. Sex and size-specific differences in bathymetric distribution, along with the identification of nursery sites, indicate that fishery by-catch could have a significant effect on population growth. These aggregative behaviours, combined with low fecundity, indicate that H. colliei may be vulnerable to irreversible population depletion by fisheries mortality. Temporal abundance trends indicated, however, that their population size has increased significantly within the last decade, a demonstration of population stability. A literature review indicated that there is also evidence for population stability in other chondrichthyans. The paradigm that all chondrichthyan populations fail to rebuild in response to exploitation, therefore, may not be as broadly applicable as previously thought. Thus, it is not necessarily sufficient to make generalizations regarding the vulnerability of chondrichthyans across higher taxonomic scales.

Assessment of the dorsal fin spine for chimaeroid (Holocephali: Chimaeriformes) age estimation.

Previous attempts to age chimaeroids have not rigorously tested assumptions of dorsal fin spine growth dynamics. Here, novel imaging and data-analysis techniques revealed that the dorsal fin spine of the spotted ratfish Hydrolagus colliei is an unreliable structure for age estimation. Variation among individuals in the relationship between spine width and distance from the spine tip indicated that the technique of transverse sectioning may impart imprecision and bias to age estimates. The number of growth-band pairs observed by light microscopy in the inner dentine layer was not a good predictor of body size. Mineral density gradients, indicative of growth zones, were absent in the dorsal fin spine of H. colliei, decreasing the likelihood that the bands observed by light microscopy represent a record of growth with consistent periodicity. These results indicate that the hypothesis of aseasonal growth remains plausible and it should not be assumed that chimaeroid age is quantifiable by standard techniques.

Age determination and validation studies of marine fishes: do deep-dwellers live longer?

Age determination and validation studies on deep-water marine fishes indicate they are difficult to age and often long-lived. Techniques for the determination of age in individual fish includes growth-zone analysis of vertebral centra, fin rays and spines, other skeletal structures, and otoliths (there are three sets of otoliths in most bony fish semicircular canals, each of which is made of calcium carbonate). Most have regular increments deposited as the fish (and its semicircular canals) grows. The most commonly used otolith for age determination is the largest one called the sagitta. Age validation techniques include: (1) tag-recapture, often combined with oxytetracycline injection and analysis in growth-zones of bone upon recapture; (2) analysis of growth-zones over time; and (3) radiometric approaches utilizing a known radioactive decay series as an independent chronometer in otoliths from bony fishes. We briefly summarize previous studies using these three validation approaches and present results from several of our radiometric studies on deep-water, bony fishes recently subjected to expanding fisheries. Radiometric age validation results are presented for four species of scorpaenid fishes (the bank, Sebastes rufus, and bocaccio, S. paucispinis, rockfishes, and two thornyhead species, Sebastolobus altivelis and S. alascanus). In addition, our analysis of scorpaenids indicates that longevity increases exponentially with maximum depth of occurrence. The reason that the deep-water forms of scorpaenid fishes are long-lived is uncertain. Their longevity, however, may be related to altered physiological processes relative to environmental parameters like low temperature, high pressures, low light levels, low oxygen, and poor food resources.

The deep-sea as a final global sink of semivolatile persistent organic pollutants? Part I: PCBs in surface and deep-sea dwelling fish of the north and south Atlantic and the Monterey Bay Canyon (California).

The understanding of the global environmental multiphase distribution of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) as a result of the physico-chemical properties of the respective compounds is well established. We have analysed the results of a vertical transport of POPs from upper water layers (0-200 m) to the deepwater region (> 800 m) in terms of the contamination of the biophase in both water layers. The contents of persistent organochlorine compounds like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in fish living in the upper water layers of the North Atlantic and the South Atlantic, and at the continental shelf of California (Marine Sanctuary Monterey Bay and its deep-sea Canyon) are compared to the levels in deep-sea or bottom dwelling fish within the same geographic area. The deep-sea biota show significantly higher burdens as compared to surface-living species of the same region. There are also indications for recycling processes of POPs--in this case the PCBs--in the biophase of the abyss as well. It can be concluded that the bio- and geo phase of the deep-sea may act similarly as the upper horizons of forest and grasslands on the continents as an ultimate global sink for POPs in the marine environment.

The deep-sea as a final global sink of semivolatile persistent organic pollutants? Part II: Organochlorine pesticides in surface and deep-sea dwelling fish of the north and south Atlantic and the Monterey Bay Canyon (California).

The understanding of the global environmental multiphase distribution of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) as a result of the physico-chemical properties of the respective compounds is well established. We have analysed the results of a vertical transport of POPs from surface water to deepwater in terms of the contamination of the biota living in the respective environmental compartments. Samples were taken from the North and the South Atlantic and from the uprising water region of the continental shelf of California (Marine Sanctuary Monterey Bay and its Canyon). The contents of persistent organochlorine pesticides (DDTs, chlordanes, toxaphenes, HCHs, and HCB) in surface-living fish are compared to those in deepwater fish of the same geographic area. The deepwater biota show significantly higher burdens as compared to surface-living species of the same region. There are also indications for recycling processes of POPs of the class of organochlorine pesticides in the biophase of the abyss as well. It can be concluded that the bio- and geophase of the deep-sea may act as an ultimate global sink for persistent semivolatile contaminants in the marine environment like the soil on the continents.