Description: Recruitment patterns of Baltic Sea sprat (Sprattus sprattus) were correlated to time series of (i) month- and depth-specific temperature conditions and (ii) larval drift patterns inferred from long-term Lagrangian particle simulations. From the latter, we derived an index that likely reflected the variable degree of annual larval transport from the central, deep spawning basins to the shallow coastal areas of the Baltic Sea. The drift index was significantly (P 〈 0.001) correlated to sprat recruitment success and explained, together with sprat spawning stock biomass, 82% of the overall variability between 1979 and 2003. Years of strong larval displacement towards southern and eastern Baltic coasts corresponded to relative recruitment failure, while years of retention within the deep basins were associated with relative recruitment success. The strongest correlation between temperature and recruitment occurred during August in surface waters, explaining 73% of the overall variability. Together, the two approaches advocate that new year classes of Baltic sprat are predominantly composed of individuals born late in the season and are determined in strength mainly by processes acting during the late larval and early juvenile stages. However, prior to be included in recruitment predictions, the biological mechanisms underlying these strong correlations may need to be better resolved

Description: Otolith microstructure analysis and hydrodynamic modelling were combined to study growth patterns in young-of-the-year (YoY) sprat, Sprattus sprattus, which were sampled in October 2002 in the central Baltic Sea. The observed ‘window of survival’, approximated by the distribution of back-calculated days of first feeding (DFF), was narrow compared to the extended spawning season of sprat in the Baltic Sea (mean± SD = 22 June ± 14.1 days) and indicated that only individuals born in summer survived until October 2002. Within the group of survivors, individuals born later in the season exhibited faster larval, but more rapidly decreasing juvenile growth rates than earlier born conspecifics. Back-calculated larval growth rates of survivors (0.48–0.69 mm day−1) were notably higher than those previously reported for average larval sprat populations, suggesting that the YoY population was predominantly comprised of individuals which grew faster during the larval stage. Daily mean temperatures, experienced across the entire YoY population, were derived from Lagrangian particle simulations and correlated with (1) detrended otolith growth and (2) back-calculated, daily somatic growth rates of survivors. The results showed that abrupt changes in ambient temperature can be detected in the seasonal pattern of otolith growth, and that higher temperatures led to significantly faster growth throughout the entire age range of YoY sprat.

Description: Eggs and larvae of Baltic sprat Sprattus sprattus L. were collected during 14 cruises covering the spawning season in 2002 in Bornholm Basin. Main egg and larval production was in April, with a second small peak in June 2002. The in situ larval abundance was corrected for transport processes by hydrodynamic model runs. Corrected larval abundance estimates were compared to initial larval production to derive an index of larval mortality. This index suggested a much higher survival of summer- over spring-born sprat larvae, with pronounced differences in survival for larvae 〉11 mm. Independent evidence for this survival pattern was gained by measured RNA:DNA ratios in sprat larvae hatched from April to July 2002 and was linked to temporal variability in potential prey abundance. We found higher mean but less variable RNA:DNA ratios in spring- than in summer-born larvae, indicating a strong selection for fast growth in April and May but a less selective environment in June and July. Zooplankton data revealed high naupliar concentrations of Acartia spp. (a key dietary component of sprat) in April and May, but very low concentrations of larger prey items such as copepodites or adults. In contrast, abundance of larger prey increased considerably in June and July. The results suggest that larger sprat (〉11 mm) in April and May 2002 may have been food limited and, therefore, had lower rates of survival, supporting the underlying hypothesis of size-specific, temporally limited ‘windows of survival’ linked to the availability of suitable prey.

Description: The usual absence of ephyrae and late appearance of medusae of the Scyphozoa Aurelia aurita and Cyanea capillata in the Bornholm Basin (BB; central Baltic Sea) indicate that these species are not strobilating in the region and their presence depends on advection. To study their potential origin we compared drift from historically known strobilation areas derived from a circulation model with spatial distributions observed during 19 cruises in the BB during 2002 and 2003. The model results are in good accordance with the field observations. According to the model results inter-annual differences in the timing of first appearance and life stage at appearance of A. aurita were clearly related to differences in the hydrodynamic regime during the investigation periods. During the stagnation regime in 2002 young medusae occurred first in June in the BB. In contrast, in 2003 fast transport due to several inflow events advected ephyrae released between January and March in the western Baltic already in April to the BB. Although the Gullmar Fjord (western Sweden) is the nearest known strobilation area for C. capillata, the model did not support advection from there in numbers explaining the occurrence of this species in the BB in 2002 and 2003. If the model works adequately in this regions we have to assume that the Gullmar Fjord is not a main source region of C. capillata in the BB, but other strobilation areas in the Kattegat or the North Sea appear more important. Our results imply that advection and inflow events are critical for the occurrence and distribution of early stages of jellyfish in the central Baltic Sea. They demonstrate the potential of circulation models as tools to study the effect of long-range transport on the spatial composition of these organisms.