It's Not Who You Eat, It's When You Eat Them: The Insidious Relationship Between Salmon and Anchovies

Join UCSC's Baldo Marinovich for a look at Chinook salmon, anchovy, and krill, and the important role they play in the ecological and economic in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem. Krill forms a critical component of the diets of both anchovy and juvenile Chinook salmon. The abundance of krill is highly predictive of salmon health and survival. Anchovy feed upon very young juvenile krill early in the year, and later-stage juvenile krill are a crucial prey resource for young Chinook salmon when they first enter the marine ecosystem. Oceanographic conditions strongly affect the availability of krill, and in combination with feeding by anchovy may negatively affect the health and survival of Chinook salmon later in the year.

Management of these species and associated fisheries usually rely on what scientists can see in the field over short periods of time, but fluctuations in coastal temperatures and periodic climate conditions over larger time frames such as El Niño, and Pacific Decadal Oscillations may complicate the models that biologists use to inform regulations. Future climate conditions may exceed what scientists have observed today, and a deeper understanding of the mechanisms behind the oceanography, and feeding of these important species will help scientists inform better management in our changing oceans.
Come join UCSC Research Biologist Baldo Marinovich as he dives in to the insidious relationship between salmon and anchovy.

Speaker: Baldo Marinovic, Ph.D. Research Biologist, Institute of Marine Sciences UC Santa Cruz