A review on the early life history and ecology of Japanese sea bass and implication for recruitment

Abstract

Recruitment in marine fishes is regulated largely by the demographic changes that occur during the early life stages; therefore, a thorough understanding of early life stages is essential for predicting recruitment variability in fishes. Japanese sea bass (JSB), Lateolabrax japonicus, is a coastal marine fish distributed in East Asian coastal waters, and is regarded as highly important for commercial and recreational fisheries, for marine and brackish water aquaculture as well as for stock enhancement. JSB is a typical estuarine dependent temperate fish, which spawns in shelf areas and coastal embayments and the larvae and juveniles are dispersed and transported into shallow nearshore habitats and estuaries where they spend the early life. In this paper, we provide insight into the early life history and ecology of JSB through a revision of the available information and using the data we obtained from a relatively longterm research. We review and discuss the distribution and habitat use, food and feeding, age and growth, mortality and recruitment of larval and juvenile JSB in coastal waters around Japan. We extend our discussions in all available dimensions: habitat-specific, ontogenetic, and spatio-temporal, and highlight the importance of nursery habitats. We also discuss the implications of early life history for recruitment of JSB as well as the possible effects of climate change. At the end, we point out potential areas for future research.

Recruitment in Japanese sea bass, Lateolabrax japonicas (Cuvier, 1828): effects of timing on spawning and larval quality and quantity

“…First, spawning occurs in winter (December–February) when the temperature drops consistently. While egg development and hatching require a temperature of >10°C (Makino et al., ), winter and spring temperatures frequently drop below 10°C (Islam et al., ). Second, spawning occurs in offshore waters and larvae must be transported to the shallow nearshore and estuarine nursery habitats located in distant (25–40 km) areas (Ohmi, ; Islam et al., ).…”

“…While egg development and hatching require a temperature of >10°C (Makino et al., ), winter and spring temperatures frequently drop below 10°C (Islam et al., ). Second, spawning occurs in offshore waters and larvae must be transported to the shallow nearshore and estuarine nursery habitats located in distant (25–40 km) areas (Ohmi, ; Islam et al., ). Third, the abundance of copepod zooplankton, which is the main food of JSB larvae (Islam et al., ), is the lowest in winter (Hirakawa et al., ; Onbe and Ikeda, ; Iguchi, ).…”

Importance of estuarine nursery areas for the adult population of the temperate seabass Lateolabrax japonicus, as revealed by otolith Sr:Ca ratios

“…() reported better feeding conditions and consequently good body conditions and growth rates of juvenile temperate seabass in the Yura River estuary compared to adjacent coastal areas. High prey densities and/or good feeding conditions of juvenile seabass have also been reported for several other estuaries (Iwamoto et al ., ; Islam et al ., ). High prey densities can support high numbers of juveniles per area in nurseries.…”

“…The temperate seabass spawn in the offshore area of Tango Bay, and larvae hatch and migrate or are transported from open waters to coastal areas (Islam et al ., ). After the onshore transport, early juveniles at the size of c .…”

“…eelgrass beds (Hatanaka and Sekino, 1962a), sandy beaches (Fuji et al, 2010), tidal flats (Hibino et al, 2002) and estuaries (Matsumiya et al, 1982;Fuji et al, 2010;Iwamoto et al, 2010). Recently, the importance of estuaries as nursery areas for temperate seabass has been emphasised by several previous studies (Fuji et al, 2010(Fuji et al, , 2011(Fuji et al, , 2013Iwamoto et al, 2010;Islam et al, 2011). Evaluating the relative contribution of estuaries to adult populations is noteworthy to assess estuarine nursery values.…”