Anticyclonic eddies aggregate pelagic predators in a subtropical gyre

Martin C. Arostegui (), Peter Gaube, Phoebe A. Woodworth-Jefcoats, Donald R. Kobayashi and Camrin D. Braun
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Martin C. Arostegui: University of Washington
Peter Gaube: University of Washington
Phoebe A. Woodworth-Jefcoats: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Donald R. Kobayashi: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Camrin D. Braun: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Nature, 2022, vol. 609, issue 7927, 535-540

Abstract: Abstract Ocean eddies are coherent, rotating features that can modulate pelagic ecosystems across many trophic levels. These mesoscale features, which are ubiquitous at mid-latitudes1, may increase productivity of nutrient-poor regions2,3, accumulate prey4 and modulate habitat conditions in the water column5. However, in nutrient-poor subtropical gyres—the largest marine biome—the role of eddies in modulating behaviour throughout the pelagic predator community remains unknown despite predictions for these gyres to expand6 and pelagic predators to become increasingly important for food security7. Using a large-scale fishery dataset in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, we show a pervasive pattern of increased pelagic predator catch inside anticyclonic eddies relative to cyclones and non-eddy areas. Our results indicate that increased mesopelagic prey abundance in anticyclone cores4,8 may be attracting diverse predators, forming ecological hotspots where these predators aggregate and exhibit increased abundance. In this energetically quiescent gyre, we expect that isolated mesoscale features (and the habitat conditions in them) exhibit primacy over peripheral submesoscale dynamics in structuring the foraging opportunities of pelagic predators. Our finding that eddies influence coupling of epi- to mesopelagic communities corroborates the growing evidence that deep scattering layer organisms are vital prey for a suite of commercially important predator species9 and, thus, provide valuable ecosystem services.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05162-6

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