6MF07 SeaCAT Data

We will conduct fieldwork to continue a study designed to compare age-0 pollock and their prey field between two separate pollock nursery regions in the western Gulf of Alaska. We will also investigate prey switching by arrowtooth flounder, which is of interest because high abundance of other small midwater fishes (e.g., capelin, eulachon) may relieve predation-related mortality of age-0 pollock. This work is needed to more rigorously evaluate food-related merits of two important pollock nurseries, and to begin to address the potential for prey switching to act as a density-dependent community stabilizing mechanism.