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Spawning ground of Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) is located near the West Mariana Ridge seamount. The species travels through the North Equatorial Current (NEC) and then enters the Kuroshio Current (KC) on the migration toward East Asian growth habitats. Therefore, El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events serve as the potentially important drivers of interannual variability across the equatorial Pacific. Because the NEC bifurcation and salinity profiles are related to ENSO events, we investigated the influence of locations of the NEC bifurcation and salinity front on the success of larval entry to the KC by numerically modeling particle transport in ocean currents from 1972 to 2013 and possible effects on the size of glass eels at continental recruitment and, via otolithometry on the duration of larval migration. Circulation and hydrography used for particle tracking were obtained from the results of the Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate (MIROC) high-resolution forecasting experiment. Our results demonstrated that during El Niño years, (1) the southward movement of the salinity front might cause the larvae to experience slower currents and (2) the northward movement of the NEC bifurcation might broaden the separation between their spawning ground and NEC bifurcation, thus prolonging the time needed for the larvae to enter the KC from their spawning ground, because of which the duration of entrainment in the water column and body size increase when eels reach estuarine waters. In addition, this might cause more water to flow into the Mindanao Current (MC), leading to a decline in the rate at which larvae get entrained into the KC.

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Mooring and hydrographic surveys were conducted in Tango Bay, a microtidal region of freshwater influence (ROFI) in the Sea of Japan, in order to clarify the circulation pattern in the bay and its driving forces. Monthly mean velocity records at four stations revealed an inflow and outflow at the eastern and northern openings of the bay, respectively, indicating an anticyclonic circulation across the bay mouth. The circulation was significantly intensified in winter, in accordance with the prevailing NW wind component of the winter monsoon. The anticyclonic circulation at the bay mouth was connected to an estuarine circulation that was evident near the mouth of the Yura River at the bay head. Surface salinity just offshore of the river mouth was closely related to the Yura River discharge, whereas in lower layers the offshore water had a stronger influence on salinity. Prior to a seasonal increase in the Yura River discharge, summer salinity decreased markedly through the water column in Tango Bay, possibly reflecting intrusion of the Changjiang Diluted Water transported by the Tsushima Warm Current. In contrast with the traditional assumption that estuarine circulation is controlled mainly by river discharge and tidal forcing, the circulation in Tango Bay is strongly influenced by seasonal wind and the Tsushima Warm Current. The narrow shelf may be responsible for the strong influence of the Tsushima Warm Current on circulation and water exchange processes in Tango Bay.