Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Ahead of Print.
Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) are commercially and ecologically valuable, but management is complicated by their highly migratory lifestyle. Recent collections of bluefin tuna larvae in the Slope Sea off northeastern United States have opened questions about how this region contributes to population dynamics. We analyzed larvae collected in the Slope Sea and the Gulf of Mexico in 2016 to estimate larval abundance and growth rates and used a high-resolution regional ocean circulation model to estimate spawning locations and larval transport. We did not detect a regional difference in growth rates, but found that Slope Sea larvae were larger than Gulf of Mexico larvae prior to exogenous feeding. Slope Sea larvae generally backtracked to locations north of Cape Hatteras and would have been retained within the Slope Sea until the early juvenile stage. Overall, our results provide supporting evidence that the Slope Sea is a major spawning ground that is likely to be important for population dynamics. Further study of larvae and spawning adults in the region should be prioritized to support management decisions.

中文翻译：

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支持将斜坡海作为大西洋蓝鳍金枪鱼的主要产卵地：来自幼体丰度、生长速率和粒子追踪模拟的证据

加拿大渔业和水生科学杂志，印刷前。
大西洋蓝鳍金枪鱼 (Thunnus thynnus) 具有商业和生态价值，但由于其高度迁徙的生活方式，管理变得复杂。最近在美国东北部附近的斜坡海收集到的蓝鳍金枪鱼幼虫引发了关于该地区如何促进种群动态的问题。我们分析了 2016 年在斜坡海和墨西哥湾收集的幼虫，以估计幼虫丰度和生长速率，并使用高分辨率区域海洋环流模型来估计产卵地点和幼虫运输。我们没有发现生长速率的区域差异，但发现在外源喂养之前，坡海幼虫比墨西哥湾幼虫大。坡海幼虫通常会回到哈特拉斯角以北的位置，并且会一直保留在坡海中，直到幼体早期。总体而言，我们的结果提供了支持证据，表明坡海是一个主要的产卵地，可能对种群动态很重要。应优先对该地区的幼虫和产卵成虫进行进一步研究，以支持管理决策。