Spatially explicit estimates of length and biomass of Clupea harengus (Norwegian spring spawning herring) from acoustic and trawl surveys in the North-East Atlantic in May 2011

Acoustic estimates of herring and blue whiting abundance were obtained during the surveys using the Simrad ER60 scientific echosounder. The allocation of NASC-values to herring, blue whiting and other acoustic targets were based on the composition of the trawl catches and the appearance of echo recordings. To estimate the abundance, the allocated NASC -values were averaged for ICES-squares (0.5° latitude by 1° longitude). For each statistical square, the unit area density of fish (rA) in number per square nautical mile (N*nm-2) was calculated using standard equations (Foote et al., 1987; Toresen et al., 1998). To estimate the total abundance of fish, the unit area abundance for each statistical square was multiplied by the number of square nautical miles in each statistical square and then summed for all the statistical squares within defined subareas and over the total area. Biomass estimation was calculated by multiplying abundance in numbers by the average weight of the fish in each statistical square then summing all squares within defined subareas and over the total area. The Norwegian BEAM soft-ware (Totland and Godø 2001) was used to make estimates of total biomass.

Spatially explicit estimates of length and biomass of Clupea harengus (Norwegian spring spawning herring) from acoustic and trawl surveys in the North-East Atlantic in May 2007

Acoustic estimates of herring and blue whiting abundance were obtained during the surveys using the Simrad ER60 scientific echosounder. The allocation of NASC-values to herring, blue whiting and other acoustic targets were based on the composition of the trawl catches and the appearance of echo recordings. To estimate the abundance, the allocated NASC -values were averaged for ICES-squares (0.5° latitude by 1° longitude). For each statistical square, the unit area density of fish (rA) in number per square nautical mile (N*nm-2) was calculated using standard equations (Foote et al., 1987; Toresen et al., 1998). To estimate the total abundance of fish, the unit area abundance for each statistical square was multiplied by the number of square nautical miles in each statistical square and then summed for all the statistical squares within defined subareas and over the total area. Biomass estimation was calculated by multiplying abundance in numbers by the average weight of the fish in each statistical square then summing all squares within defined subareas and over the total area. The Norwegian BEAM soft-ware (Totland and Godø 2001) was used to make estimates of total biomass.

Spatially explicit estimates of stock size, structure and biomass of North Atlantic albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga) in the North Atlantic for the period 1987-2011, compiled from statistics about ICCAT fishery region L6

The development of the ecosystem approach and models for the management of ocean marine resources requires easy access to standard validated datasets of historical catch data for the main exploited species. They are used to measure the impact of biomass removal by fisheries and to evaluate the models skills, while the use of standard dataset facilitates models inter-comparison. North Atlantic albacore tuna is exploited all year round by longline and in summer and autumn by surface fisheries and fishery statistics compiled by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Catch and effort with geographical coordinates at monthly spatial resolution of 1° or 5° squares were extracted for this species with a careful definition of fisheries and data screening. In total, thirteen fisheries were defined for the period 1956-2010, with fishing gears longline, troll, mid-water trawl and bait fishing. However, the spatialized catch effort data available in ICCAT database represent a fraction of the entire total catch. Length frequencies of catch were also extracted according to the definition of fisheries above for the period 1956-2010 with a quarterly temporal resolution and spatial resolutions varying from 1°x 1° to 10°x 20°. The resolution used to measure the fish also varies with size-bins of 1, 2 or 5 cm (Fork Length). The screening of data allowed detecting inconsistencies with a relatively large number of samples larger than 150 cm while all studies on the growth of albacore suggest that fish rarely grow up over 130 cm. Therefore, a threshold value of 130 cm has been arbitrarily fixed and all length frequency data above this value removed from the original data set.

Spatially explicit estimates of stock size, structure and biomass of North Atlantic albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga) in the North Atlantic for the period 1967-1986, compiled from statistics about ICCAT fishery region L5

The development of the ecosystem approach and models for the management of ocean marine resources requires easy access to standard validated datasets of historical catch data for the main exploited species. They are used to measure the impact of biomass removal by fisheries and to evaluate the models skills, while the use of standard dataset facilitates models inter-comparison. North Atlantic albacore tuna is exploited all year round by longline and in summer and autumn by surface fisheries and fishery statistics compiled by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Catch and effort with geographical coordinates at monthly spatial resolution of 1° or 5° squares were extracted for this species with a careful definition of fisheries and data screening. In total, thirteen fisheries were defined for the period 1956-2010, with fishing gears longline, troll, mid-water trawl and bait fishing. However, the spatialized catch effort data available in ICCAT database represent a fraction of the entire total catch. Length frequencies of catch were also extracted according to the definition of fisheries above for the period 1956-2010 with a quarterly temporal resolution and spatial resolutions varying from 1°x 1° to 10°x 20°. The resolution used to measure the fish also varies with size-bins of 1, 2 or 5 cm (Fork Length). The screening of data allowed detecting inconsistencies with a relatively large number of samples larger than 150 cm while all studies on the growth of albacore suggest that fish rarely grow up over 130 cm. Therefore, a threshold value of 130 cm has been arbitrarily fixed and all length frequency data above this value removed from the original data set.

Spatially explicit estimates of stock size, structure and biomass of North Atlantic albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga) in the North Atlantic for the period 1974-1979, compiled from statistics about ICCAT fishery region L8

The development of the ecosystem approach and models for the management of ocean marine resources requires easy access to standard validated datasets of historical catch data for the main exploited species. They are used to measure the impact of biomass removal by fisheries and to evaluate the models skills, while the use of standard dataset facilitates models inter-comparison. North Atlantic albacore tuna is exploited all year round by longline and in summer and autumn by surface fisheries and fishery statistics compiled by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Catch and effort with geographical coordinates at monthly spatial resolution of 1° or 5° squares were extracted for this species with a careful definition of fisheries and data screening. In total, thirteen fisheries were defined for the period 1956-2010, with fishing gears longline, troll, mid-water trawl and bait fishing. However, the spatialized catch effort data available in ICCAT database represent a fraction of the entire total catch. Length frequencies of catch were also extracted according to the definition of fisheries above for the period 1956-2010 with a quarterly temporal resolution and spatial resolutions varying from 1°x 1° to 10°x 20°. The resolution used to measure the fish also varies with size-bins of 1, 2 or 5 cm (Fork Length). The screening of data allowed detecting inconsistencies with a relatively large number of samples larger than 150 cm while all studies on the growth of albacore suggest that fish rarely grow up over 130 cm. Therefore, a threshold value of 130 cm has been arbitrarily fixed and all length frequency data above this value removed from the original data set.

Spatially explicit estimates of stock size, structure and biomass of North Atlantic albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga) in the North Atlantic for the period 1967-1986, compiled from statistics about ICCAT fishery region L4

The development of the ecosystem approach and models for the management of ocean marine resources requires easy access to standard validated datasets of historical catch data for the main exploited species. They are used to measure the impact of biomass removal by fisheries and to evaluate the models skills, while the use of standard dataset facilitates models inter-comparison. North Atlantic albacore tuna is exploited all year round by longline and in summer and autumn by surface fisheries and fishery statistics compiled by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Catch and effort with geographical coordinates at monthly spatial resolution of 1° or 5° squares were extracted for this species with a careful definition of fisheries and data screening. In total, thirteen fisheries were defined for the period 1956-2010, with fishing gears longline, troll, mid-water trawl and bait fishing. However, the spatialized catch effort data available in ICCAT database represent a fraction of the entire total catch. Length frequencies of catch were also extracted according to the definition of fisheries above for the period 1956-2010 with a quarterly temporal resolution and spatial resolutions varying from 1°x 1° to 10°x 20°. The resolution used to measure the fish also varies with size-bins of 1, 2 or 5 cm (Fork Length). The screening of data allowed detecting inconsistencies with a relatively large number of samples larger than 150 cm while all studies on the growth of albacore suggest that fish rarely grow up over 130 cm. Therefore, a threshold value of 130 cm has been arbitrarily fixed and all length frequency data above this value removed from the original data set.

Spatially explicit estimates of length and biomass of Micromesistius poutassou (Blue Whiting) from acoustic and trawl surveys in the North-East Atlantic in May 2012

Acoustic estimates of herring and blue whiting abundance were obtained during the surveys using the Simrad ER60 scientific echosounder. The allocation of NASC-values to herring, blue whiting and other acoustic targets were based on the composition of the trawl catches and the appearance of echo recordings. To estimate the abundance, the allocated NASC -values were averaged for ICES-squares (0.5° latitude by 1° longitude). For each statistical square, the unit area density of fish (rA) in number per square nautical mile (N*nm-2) was calculated using standard equations (Foote et al., 1987; Toresen et al., 1998). To estimate the total abundance of fish, the unit area abundance for each statistical square was multiplied by the number of square nautical miles in each statistical square and then summed for all the statistical squares within defined subareas and over the total area. Biomass estimation was calculated by multiplying abundance in numbers by the average weight of the fish in each statistical square then summing all squares within defined subareas and over the total area. The Norwegian BEAM soft-ware (Totland and Godø 2001) was used to make estimates of total biomass.

Micromesistius poutassou (blue whiting) abundance and biomass data in Bay of Biscay estimated from acoustic surveys (2000-2012)

Acoustic and pelagic trawl data were collected during various pelagic surveys carried out by IFREMER in May between 2000 and 2012 (except 2001), on the eastern continental shelf of the Bay of Biscay (Pelgas series). The acoustic data were collected with a Simrad EK60 echosounder operating at 38 kHz (beam angle at -3 dB: 7°, pulse length set to 1.024 ms). The echosounder transducer was mounted on the vessel keel, at 6 m below the sea surface. The sampling design were parallel transects spaced 12 nm apart which were orientated perpendicular to the coast line from 20 m to about 200 m bottom depth. The nominal sailing speed was 10 knots and 3 knots on average during fishing operations. The scrutinising (species identification) of acoustic data was done by first characterising acoustic schools by type and then linking these types with the species composition of specific trawl hauls. The data set contains nautical area backscattering values, biomass and abundance estimates for blue whiting for one nautical mile long transect lines. Further information on the survey design, scrutinising and biomass estimation can be found in Doray et al. 2012.

Modelled spatial and seasonal distribution of Blue Whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) larvae in the North-East Atlantic (1951 to 2005)

Blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou, http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=126439) is a small mesopelagic planktivorous gadoid found throughout the North-East Atlantic. This data contains the results of a model-based analysis of larvae captured by the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) during the period 1951-2005. The observations are analysed using Generalised Additive Models (GAMs) of the the spatial, seasonal and interannual variation in the occurrence of larvae. The best fitting model is chosen using the Aikaike Information Criteria (AIC). The probability of occurrence in the continous plankton recorder is then normalised and converted to a probability distribution function in space (UTM projection Zone 28) and season (day of year). The best fitting model splits the distribution into two separate spawning grounds north and south of a dividing line at 53 N. The probability distribution is therefore normalised in these two regions (ie the space-time integral over each of the two regions is 1). The modelled outputs are on a UTM Zone 28 grid: however, for convenience, the latitude ("lat") and longitude ("lon") of each of these grid points are also included as a variable in the NetCDF file. The assignment of each grid point to either the Northern or Southern component (defined here as north/south of 53 N), is also included as a further variable ("component"). Finally, the day of year ("doy") is stored as the number of days elapsed from and included January 1 (ie doy=1 on January 1) - the year is thereafter divided into 180 grid points.

Survey bottom trawl data of Micromesistius poutassou (blue whiting) in Bay of Biscay and Celtic Sea from the EVHOE time series (1997-2011)

Data were collected during various groundfish surveys carried out by IFREMER from October to December between 1997 and 2011, on the eastern continental shelf of the Bay of Biscay and in the Celtic Sea (EVHOE series). The sampling design was stratified according to latitude and depth. A 36/47 GOV trawl was used with a 20 mm mesh codend liner. Haul duration was 30 minutes at a towing speed of 4 knots. Fishing was restricted to daylight hours. Catch weights and catch numbers were recorded for all species and body size measured. The weights and numbers per haul were transformed into abundances per km**2 by considering the swept area of a standard haul (0.069 km**2).

Compilation of maximum ingestion and maximum clearance rate data for marine pelagic organisms

The metabolic rate of organisms may either be viewed as a basic property from which other vital rates and many ecological patterns emerge and that follows a universal allometric mass scaling law; or it may be considered a property of the organism that emerges as a result of the organism's adaptation to the environment, with consequently less universal mass scaling properties. Data on body mass, maximum ingestion and clearance rates, respiration rates and maximum growth rates of animals living in the ocean epipelagic were compiled from the literature, mainly from original papers but also from previous compilations by other authors. Data were read from tables or digitized from graphs. Only measurements made on individuals of know size, or groups of individuals of similar and known size were included. We show that clearance and respiration rates have life-form-dependent allometries that have similar scaling but different elevations, such that the mass-specific rates converge on a rather narrow size-independent range. In contrast, ingestion and growth rates follow a near-universal taxa-independent ~3/4 mass scaling power law. We argue that the declining mass-specific clearance rates with size within taxa is related to the inherent decrease in feeding efficiency of any particular feeding mode. The transitions between feeding mode and simultaneous transitions in clearance and respiration rates may then represent adaptations to the food environment and be the result of the optimization of tradeoffs that allow sufficient feeding and growth rates to balance mortality.

Data compilation of dinoflagellates growth rate, grazing rate and gross gowth efficiency from field and labratory experiments

The present data compilation includes dinoflagellates growth rate, grazing rate and gross growth efficiency determined either in the field or in laboratory experiments. From the existing literature, we synthesized all data that we could find on dinoflagellates. Some sources might be missing but none were purposefully ignored. We did not include autotrophic dinoflagellates in the database, but mixotrophic organisms may have been included. This is due to the large uncertainty about which taxa are mixotrophic, heterotrophic or symbiont bearing. Field data on microzooplankton grazing are mostly comprised of grazing rate using the dilution technique with a 24h incubation period. Laboratory grazing and growth data are focused on pelagic ciliates and heterotrophic dinoflagellates. The experiment measured grazing or growth as a function of prey concentration or at saturating prey concentration (maximal grazing rate). When considering every single data point available (each measured rate for a defined predator-prey pair and a certain prey concentration) there is a total of 801 data points for the dinoflagellates, counting experiments that measured growth and grazing simultaneously as 1 data point.

Stomach content records for pelagic fish (herring, mackerel, blue whiting, albacore and bluefin tuna) in the northeast Atlantic

Fish stomach content records extracted from the DAPSTOM 4.5 database (held at the UK Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science - CEFAS). Data collated as part of the EU Euro-Basin project and specifically concerning herring (Clupea harengus), mackerel (Scomber scombrus), blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou), albacore (Thunnus alalunga) and bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus). The data set consist of 20720 records - collected throughout the northeast Atlantic, between 1906 and 2011 - mostly during routine fisheries monitoring research cruises.

Data compilation of ciliates growth rate, grazing rate and gross gowth efficiency from field and labratory experiments

The present data compilation includes ciliates growth rate, grazing rate and gross growth efficiency determined either in the field or in laboratory experiments. From the existing literature, we synthesized all data that we could find on cilliate. Some sources might be missing but none were purposefully ignored. Field data on microzooplankton grazing are mostly comprised of grazing rate using the dilution technique with a 24h incubation period. Laboratory grazing and growth data are focused on pelagic ciliates and heterotrophic dinoflagellates. The experiment measured grazing or growth as a function of prey concentration or at saturating prey concentration (maximal grazing rate). When considering every single data point available (each measured rate for a defined predator-prey pair and a certain prey concentration) there is a total of 1485 data points for the ciliates, counting experiments that measured growth and grazing simultaneously as 1 data point.