Some ecological observations on fishes associated with drifting seaweed off Tohoku coast,Japan

Fishes associated with drifting seaweed were sampled in the Tohoku area, northwest Pacific, in late spring 1988, to analyse the community structure and ecological relationships of the dominant species.Seriola quinqueradiata Temminck et Schlegel was the dominant species and its escort was composed ofThamnaconus (Navodon)modestus, Sebastes inermis, Hyperoglyphe japonica andEnedrias nebulosus. E. nebulosus, which fed essentially on Gammarid crustaceans, was collected mainly in Sendai Bay; the other species, found in offshore water, were plankton feeders and did not exhibit any strong competition, indicating close cohabitation. The abundance of drifting seaweed in the Tohoku area peaked in May–June and decreased in July; they seemed to come from the nearest coast. JuvenileS. quinqueradiata (> 15 cm long) were collected with set nets in Sendai Bay during summer. They seemed to use drifting seaweed (along with the warm Kuroshio current) as a means of transportation during their migration from the southern spawning ground to northern Tohoku area. Drifting seaweed could be considered as a nursery, and the association of fishes with floating algae might have an influence on species recruitment.