Long-term mean biomass and dominant fish species in the bottom and near-bottom biotopes of Peter the Great Bay

Abstract

Biomass and species composition of demersal fish in the bottom biotopes of Peter the Great Bay (Japan Sea) are considered on the data of 2428 trawl catches in 36 surveys conducted by Pacific Res. Inst. of Fisheries and Oceanography (TINRO) in 1978–2009. The most common 20 species are ranked, as the basis of ichthyocenoses, by areas of the bay. The long-term mean total biomass of fish in the bay is estimated as 75,500 t. Arabesque greenling Pleurogrammus azonus, japanese flounder Pseudopleuronectes yokohamae and saffron cod Eleginus gracilis are distinguished by the highest mean biomass. Mean density of fish distribution varied from 6.2 to 19.4 t/km2. It was the highest in the middle Ussuri Bay (13.95 t/km2; mean fish biomass in the area 18,230 t) and in the estuarine areas. Besides, the data on long-term mean biomass of benthos collected in the same trawl surveys and zooplankton sampled in 117 plankton surveys in 1988–2013 are presented.