Aquatic Productivity and the Evolution of Diadromous Fish Migration

Diadromous migration, in which some fish species migrate from freshwater and feed in the ocean (anadromous species) and others migrate from the ocean and feed in freshwater (catadromous), has long been perplexing. However, when the distribution of diadromous species is examined with respect to globa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1988-03, Vol.239 (4845), p.1291-1293
Main Authors: Gross, Mart R., Coleman, Ronald M., McDowall, Robert M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agnatha. Pisces
Anadromous fishes
Animal and plant ecology
Animal migration behavior
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Aquatic resources
Autoecology
Biochemistry
Biological and medical sciences
Brackish
Catadromous fishes
Environmental aspects
Fish
Fishes
Food availability
Fresh water
Freshwater
Freshwater fishes
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Ichthyological research
Ichthyology
Marine
Marine fishes
Memoranda of understanding
Migration
Migratory fishes
Observations
Oceans
Pisces
Productivity
Vertebrata
Water resources
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Summary:Diadromous migration, in which some fish species migrate from freshwater and feed in the ocean (anadromous species) and others migrate from the ocean and feed in freshwater (catadromous), has long been perplexing. However, when the distribution of diadromous species is examined with respect to global patterns in aquatic productivity, this apparent paradox is resolved. The contrasting directions of migration can largely be explained by the relative availability of food resources in ocean and freshwater habitats. Oceans are more productive than freshwaters in temperate latitudes, and anadromous species predominate. In contrast, catadromous species generally occur in tropical latitudes where freshwater productivity exceeds that of the ocean.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.239.4845.1291