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Aquatic Biology is a gold Open Access journal and a multidisciplinary forum for research on the biology of organisms in marine, brackish and fresh waters. SEDAO (Sexuality and Early Development in Aquatic Organisms), an international journal that covered all aspects of reproduction and early development in marine, brackish and freshwater organisms, was incorporated into AB in late 2015.

Online: ISSN 1864-7790

Print: ISSN 1864-7782

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/ab

Impact Factor0.8 (JCR 2025 release)

Article Acceptance Rate35% (2024)

Average Time in Review157 days

Total Annual Downloads144.171 (2025)

Volume contents
Aquat Biol 10:283-290 (2010)

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00291

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Spatial variation in otolith elemental composition of the Pacific herring Clupea pallasii in northern Japan

ABSTRACT: In order to examine whether otolith elemental composition of Pacific herring Clupea pallasii reflected spatially specific differences in capture location, we analyzed the elemental compositions in the edge portion of each otolith, which corresponded to the period immediately prior to the capture, as an indicator of the geographic areas in which the outer otolith was deposited. We collected 7 fish groups from 5 coastal sites: Tomamae offshore, Ishikari Bay, Akkeshi Bay, Lake Furen and Miyako Bay along the Japanese coast. Six elemental ratios, Na/Ca, Mg/Ca, K/Ca, Cu/Ca, Sr/Ca and Ba/Ca, were measured in the edge areas of each otolith by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Significant differences were shown in all mean elemental ratios of otoliths among 4 sampling groups in the 2005 year class and among 3 sampling groups in the 2006 year class. The classification accuracy with the jackknife cross-validation using quadratic discriminant function analysis ranged from 80 to 98% and 78 to 100% in the 2005 and 2006 year classes, respectively. Our findings are comparable to those in previous studies and are further evidence that otolith chemistry is a potential tool for identifying the Pacific herring groups with different habitat-use histories and migration patterns.

KEYWORDS

Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) Otolith chemistry Pacific herring Population structure Movement

Kodai Yamane (Co-author)

  • International Coastal Research Center, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo, Akahama, Otsuchi, Iwate 028-1102, Japan

Kotaro Shirai (Co-author)

  • Department of Earth and Planetary Science, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan

Yoshitomo Nagakura (Co-author)

  • Miyako Station, National Center for Stock Enhancement, Fishery Research Agency, Sakiyama, Miyako, Iwate 027-0097, Japan

Motohito Yamaguchi (Co-author)

  • Central Fisheries, Research Institute, Hokkaido Research Organization, Hamanaka, Yoichi, Hokkaido 046-8555, Japan

Akio Takiya (Co-author)

  • Central Fisheries, Research Institute, Hokkaido Research Organization, Hamanaka, Yoichi, Hokkaido 046-8555, Japan

Takashi Horii (Co-author)

  • Kushiro Fisheries, Research Institute, Hokkaido Research Organization, Hama-cho, Kushiro, Hokkaido 085-0024, Japan

Nl. Tanaka (Co-author)

  • Abashiri Fisheries, Research Institute, Hokkaido Research Organization, Masuura, Abashiri, Hokkaido 099-3119, Japan

Sachinobu Yamane (Co-author)

  • International Coastal Research Center, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo, Akahama, Otsuchi, Iwate 028-1102, Japan

Takaomi Arai (Co-author)

  • International Coastal Research Center, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo, Akahama, Otsuchi, Iwate 028-1102, Japan

T. Otake (Co-author)

  • International Coastal Research Center, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo, Akahama, Otsuchi, Iwate 028-1102, Japan

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