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Advances in the aquatic sciences
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Composition and abundance of copepods and ichthyoplankton in Taiwan Strait (western North Pacific) are influenced by seasonal monsoons

Chih-hao Hsieh A B , Chih-Shin Chen A and Tai-Sheng Chiu A C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Institute of Zoology, Department of Life Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan 106, ROC.

B Present address: Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California-San Diego, California, 92093-0218, USA.

C Corresponding author. Email: tschiu@ntu.edu.tw

Marine and Freshwater Research 56(2) 153-161 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF04058
Submitted: 28 March 2004  Accepted: 17 January 2005   Published: 12 April 2005

Abstract

Seasonal variation in hydrographic conditions in Taiwan Strait is strongly influenced by the monsoonal system. During northern winter, the China Coastal Current, pushed by the north-east (NE) monsoon, moves southwards into Taiwan Strait and during northern summer, the South China Sea Surface Current, driven by the south-west (SW) monsoon, invades the strait until the NE monsoon again prevails. As the SW monsoon wanes (in northern autumn), the Kuroshio Branch Current enters from the southern part of the strait, but stagnates in the middle because of interference by the China Coastal Current. As the NW monsoon wanes (in northern spring), the stagnation ceases and the SW monsoon begins. We characterised zooplankton (including copepods and ichthyoplankton) communities during a period when the SW monsoon was prevalent (in August), at the onset of the NE monsoon (in November) and as the NE monsoon waned (in March). Multivariate analyses of zooplankton composition and species abundances demonstrated that the structures of communities are closely related to oceanic variables (such as temperature, salinity and upwelling), which, in turn, are heavily influenced by the monsoons. The zooplankton faunas in Taiwan Strait are a mixture of local species and intruding species, the latter introduced from along the China coast during northern winter and from the South China Sea during northern summer. Our findings are fundamental to practical ecosystem management and an effective long-term monitoring programme.

Extra keywords: coastal current, indicator species, Kuroshio, species composition, upwelling.


Acknowledgments

We thank Dr S. Jan of the Institute of Hydrological Sciences, National Central University for providing insightful advices on circulation of Taiwan Strait. We also thank the crews of Ocean Research I & II for their help when sampling at sea. Identification of ichthyoplankton species was provided by Ms K. Z. Chang and Ms C. C. Chen in the Economic Fish Laboratory, Institute of Zoology, National Taiwan University. Reconfirmation of copepod species discussed with Dr C.-t. Shih. The images of SST are provided by the National Center for Ocean Research, National Taiwan University. This experiment was supported by National Science Council under grant No. NSC89-2611-M002-049-OP4, and complies with the current laws of the Republic of China.


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