Search

Euphausiids are crustaceans with a complex life cycle that play a significant role in the trophic pathways of the highly productive Humboldt Upwelling System. We studied the effect of upwelling and climate variability on the austral spring distribution and abundance of krill life stages using 8 years of physical and biological sampling off northern Chile. During the study period, conditions shifted from negative to positive temperature anomalies and climate indices. Consequently, large interannual variability associated with the El Niño Southern Oscillation and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation was observed in all life stages, with lower abundances during their positive phases. The distribution patterns and the statistical associations with environmental variables show that the effect of upwelling varies ontogenetically. Eggs, nauplii, calyptopis, and furcilia larvae had higher abundances offshore, suggesting they are transported offshore through the Ekman layer. Juveniles and adults avoid advection via their deeper distribution and vertical migrations, and although they were present in the entire study area, abundances were higher to the south associated with lower salinity. This is the first study evaluating the impacts of climate variability on krill life stages and finds a direct effect of these low-frequency oscillations on krill reproduction and abundance in the HUS.

Coastal upwelling and other oceanographic processes, exert influences on phenotypic traits of early life stages of marine fishes. However, it remains to elucidate the environmental effects on the morphology of fish larvae. Using geometric morphometrics and otolith microstructure of a temperate rocky reef fish, the labrisomid blenny Auchenionchus crinitus (Labrisomidae), we studied the larval growth, mortality and morphospace of four consecutive cohorts, hatched between austral winter and summer off central Chile. We hypothesize that coastal environmental conditions will influence early life traits of this cryptobenthic fish. The winter cohort, which inhabited colder and well-mixed nearshore waters, grew more slowly and had a more hydrodynamic head shape, while the summer cohort, which lived in warmer and stratified waters, grew faster, but had a more robust shape. Cohorts expressed less ontogenetic allometry as seasons progressed, suggesting that the seasonal increment in water temperature reduces the shape changes with size during larval development. Also, slower- and faster-growing larvae showed large variation from the consensus shape, e.g. had the largest shape disparity. Nonetheless, all cohorts showed similar mortality rates during the first month of life. Finally, increases in zonal wind stress (i.e. sea breeze) and decreases in the sea temperatures (i.e. upwelling events) increased the growth rates of older (> 15 days old) larvae. Therefore, for this cryptobenthic species, differences in growth rate and body shape are related to the seasonal increase in water temperature, and local-scale meteorological conditions.

The patterns of abundance, composition, biomass and vertical migration of zooplankton in short-time scales ( 10 of total dry weight (mg m −3 ) of zooplankton biomass was moderate but significant in both locations. Biomass estimated from biological samples was higher in the mixed station and determined by euphausiids. Copepods were the most abundant group in both stations. Acoustic methods were a useful technique to understand the detailed patterns of migratory strategies of zooplankton and to help estimate zooplankton biomass and abundance in the inner waters of southern Chile.

The influence of oceanographic features and moon phases on ichthyoplankton assemblages in a temperate nearshore rocky reef off El Quisco Bay, central Chile, was assessed during austral spring–summer 2015–2016 using Bongo nets. Wind direction was predominantly south-west, and ocean temperature increased gradually during the study period, fluctuating between 11.6°C and 17.7°C. A relatively cold period (from late September to early December, 12.42 ± 0.64°C) was distinguished from a relatively warmer phase (from mid-December to February, 13.56 ± 1.08°C). Nearshore ichthyoplankton was composed of 13,700 individuals, belonging to 43 taxa. Larval Strangomera bentincki (Clupeidae) were collected in high numbers between late September and late October with peaks during full moon and first quarter (maximum = 734 ind. 100 m−3); larval Engraulis ringens (Engraulidae) was most abundant between late October and late December 2015, with peaks during the third quarter and full moon. Principal Component Analysis o...

Early life traits (ELT) of the sand-burrowing cryptic marine fishSindoscopus australis(family Dactyloscopidae) were compared between cohorts hatched during winter and spring 2013, in nearshore rocky reefs off central Chile. Pelagic larvae were similarly abundant during both periods, but larger larvae were collected during austral spring. The sagittal otolith microstructure and size analyses also indicated that size-at-hatch was larger (4.7 mm) for the winter cohort, but winter larvae experienced slower growth rates (0.145 mm day−1± 0.008). Conversely, larvae from the spring cohort hatched at smaller sizes (2.9 mm), but they grew faster (0.182 mm day−1± 0.008). Hatching periods were coupled with the lunar cycle; in winter, hatching events were related to neap tides (first and third quarter moon), increasing chances of self-recruitment. Meanwhile, during spring, hatching occurred during spring tides, particularly over the new moon, decreasing chances of larval mortality by predation. Otolith traits used to test asymmetry among cohorts showed inconsistent results. Only sagittal perimeter presented fluctuating asymmetry, showing higher variance for the winter cohort. We conclude that this burrowing species displays different reproductive tactics at a seasonal scale.

Nearshore ichthyoplankton assemblages are constantly influenced by the dynamics of coastal environments (i.e. daily thermal gradients and coastal currents), as well as by regional environmental forcing, such as upwelling events. The aims of this study were to describe larval and postlarval fish assemblages on a short-time scale and relate their intra- and interannual fluctuations to local (