CAREER: Using Otolith Chemistry to Reveal the Life History of Antarctic Toothfish in the Ross Sea, Antarctica: Testing Fisheries and Climate Change Impacts on a Top Fish Predator

职业：利用耳石化学揭示南极洲罗斯海南极齿鱼的生活史：测试渔业和气候变化对顶级鱼类捕食者的影响

• 批准号: 2141555
• 负责人: Cassandra Brooks
• 金额: $ 80.1万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2022-05-01 至 2027-04-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2141555&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Using; Otolith; Chemistry; Reveal

The Ross Sea, Antarctica, is one of the last large intact marine ecosystems left in the world, yet is facing increasing pressure from commercial fisheries and environmental change. It is the most productive stretch of the Southern Ocean, supporting an array of marine life, including Antarctic toothfish – the region’s top fish predator. While a commercial fishery for toothfish continues to grow in the Ross Sea, fundamental knowledge gaps remain regarding toothfish ecology and the impacts of toothfish fishing on the broader Ross Sea ecosystem. Recognizing the global value of the Ross Sea, a large (2 million km2) marine protected area was adopted by the multi-national Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in 2016. This research will fill a critical gap in the knowledge of Antarctic toothfish and deepen understanding of biological-physical interactions for fish ecology, while contributing to knowledge of impacts of fishing and environmental change on the Ross Sea system. This work will further provide innovative tools for studying connectivity among geographically distinct fish populations and for synthesizing and assessing the efficacy of a large-scale marine protected area. In developing an integrated research and education program in engaged scholarship, this project seeks to train the next generation of scholars to engage across the science-policy-public interface, engage with Southern Ocean stakeholders throughout the research process, and to deepen the public’s appreciation of the Antarctic. A major research priority among Ross Sea scientists is to better understand the life history of the Antarctic toothfish and test the efficacy of the Ross Sea Marine Protected Area (MPA) in protecting against the impacts of overfishing and climate change. Like growth rings of a tree, fish ear bones, called otoliths, develop annual layers of calcium carbonate that incorporates elements from their environment. Otoliths offer information on the fish’s growth and the surrounding ocean conditions. Hypothesizing that much of the Antarctic toothfish life cycle is structured by ocean circulation, this research employs a multi-disciplinary approach combining age and growth work with otolith chemistry testing, while also utilizing GIS mapping. The project will measure life history parameters as well as trace elements and stable isotopes in otoliths in three distinct sets collected over the last four decades in the Ross Sea. The information will be used to quantify the transport pathways Antarctic toothfish use across their life history, and across time, in the Ross Sea. The project will assess if toothfish populations from the Ross Sea are connected more widely across the Antarctic. By comparing life history and otolith chemistry data across time, the researchers will assess change in life history parameters and spatial dynamics and seek to infer if these changes are driven by fishing or climate change. Spatially mapping of these data will allow an assessment of the efficacy of the Ross Sea MPA in protecting toothfish and where further protections might be needed.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

南极洲的罗斯海是世界上仅存的大型完整海洋生态系统之一，但它正面临着来自商业渔业和环境变化的越来越大的压力。这里是南大洋最富饶的海域，支持着一系列海洋生物，包括南极犬牙鱼——该地区的顶级鱼类捕食者。虽然罗斯海的齿鱼商业捕捞持续增长，但关于齿鱼生态学和齿鱼捕捞对罗斯海生态系统的影响的基本知识差距仍然存在。认识到罗斯海的全球价值，多国南极海洋生物资源保护委员会于2016年通过了一个面积达200万平方公里的大型海洋保护区。这项研究将填补南极齿鱼知识的重要空白，加深对鱼类生态生物-物理相互作用的理解，同时有助于了解捕捞和环境变化对罗斯海系统的影响。这项工作将进一步为研究地理上不同鱼类种群之间的连通性以及综合和评估大型海洋保护区的效力提供创新工具。该项目旨在培养下一代学者参与科学-政策-公共界面，在整个研究过程中与南大洋利益相关者接触，并加深公众对南极的认识。罗斯海科学家的一个主要研究重点是更好地了解南极齿鱼的生活史，并测试罗斯海海洋保护区（MPA）在防止过度捕捞和气候变化影响方面的功效。就像树木的年轮一样，被称为耳石的鱼耳骨每年都会形成一层碳酸钙，这些碳酸钙结合了它们所处环境的元素。耳石提供了鱼类生长和周围海洋环境的信息。假设南极犬牙鱼的大部分生命周期是由海洋环流构成的，本研究采用了多学科方法，将年龄和生长工作与耳石化学测试结合起来，同时还利用了GIS制图。该项目将测量过去四十年来在罗斯海收集的三组不同耳石中的生命史参数以及微量元素和稳定同位素。这些信息将被用来量化南极齿鱼在罗斯海的生活史和时间上的运输路径。该项目将评估罗斯海的齿鱼种群是否在整个南极更广泛地联系在一起。通过比较不同时期的生活史和耳石化学数据，研究人员将评估生活史参数和空间动态的变化，并试图推断这些变化是由捕鱼还是气候变化驱动的。这些数据的空间映射将有助于评估罗斯海海洋保护区在保护齿鱼方面的功效，以及哪些地方可能需要进一步的保护。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。