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Research article - Peer-reviewed, 2022

Unexpected fish and squid in the central Arctic deep scattering layer

Snoeijs-Leijonmalm, Pauline; Flores, Hauke; Sakinan, Serdar; Hildebrandt, Nicole; Svenson, Anders; Castellani, Giulia; Vane, Kim; Mark, Felix C.; Heuze, Celine; Tippenhauer, Sandra; Niehoff, Barbara; Hjelm, Joakim; Sundberg, Jonas Hentati; Schaafsma, Fokje L.; Engelmann, Ronny

Abstract

The retreating ice cover of the Central Arctic Ocean (CAO) fuels speculations on future fisheries. However, very little is known about the existence of harvestable fish stocks in this 3.3 million-square kilometer ecosystem around the North Pole. Crossing the Eurasian Basin, we documented an uninterrupted 3170-kilometer-long deep scattering layer (DSL) with zooplankton and small fish in the Atlantic water layer at 100- to 500-meter depth. Diel vertical migration of this central Arctic DSL was lacking most of the year when daily light variation was absent. Unexpectedly, the DSL also contained low abundances of Atlantic cod, along with lanternfish, armhook squid, and Arctic endemic ice cod. The Atlantic cod originated from Norwegian spawning grounds and had lived in Arctic water temperature for up to 6 years.The potential fish abundance was far below commercially sustainable levels and is expected to remain so because of the low productivity of the CAO.

Published in

Science Advances
2022, volume: 8, number: 7, article number: eabj7536
Publisher: AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE

Authors' information

Snoeijs-Leijonmalm, Pauline
Stockholm University
Flores, Hauke
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Sakinan, Serdar
Wageningen Marine Research
Hildebrandt, Nicole
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Svenson, Anders
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Aquatic Resources
Castellani, Giulia
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Vane, Kim
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Mark, Felix C.
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Heuze, Celine
University of Gothenburg
Tippenhauer, Sandra
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
Niehoff, Barbara
Alfred Wegener Institute
Hjelm, Joakim
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Aquatic Resources
Hentati Sundberg, Jonas
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Aquatic Resources
Schaafsma, Fokje
Wageningen Marine Research
Engelmann, Ronny
Leibniz Institut fur Tropospharenforschung (TROPOS)

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG14 Life below water

UKÄ Subject classification

Climate Research
Fish and Aquacultural Science

Publication Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abj7536

URI (permanent link to this page)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/116496