Variability of copepod abundance and growth in the southern Benguela upwelling system and implications for the spawning of the Cape anchovy
In the southern Benguela upwelling system, anchovy spawn serially between September and February each year. It has been suggested that this energy-intensive reproductive strategy requires continual ingestion of copepods, which dominate the diet of anchovy at this time. This thesis investigates the spatial and temporal variability of copepod abundance and growth, and their impact upon the spawning of anchovy. Sampling was conducted monthly between August-March 1993/94 and 1994/95 .. It is noteworthy that the primary spawning ground of anchovy, the western Agulhas Bank, had a significantly smaller biomass of copepods than the adjacent West Coast region. In terms of the growth rates of copepods, the effect of food-limitation on fecundity and somatic growth outweighed that of temperature.
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