Abundance patterns of early stages of the pacific sardine (sardinops sagax) during a cooling period in a coastal lagoon south of the California current

Abundance patterns of eggs and larvae of the Pacific sardine, Sardinops sagax (Jenyns, 1842), in Bahía Magdalena, Baja California Sur, were analysed during a cooling period south of the California Current from 2005 to 2009. The thermohaline characteristics and zooplankton abundance were good descriptors of the potential spawning habitat. Individual quotient analyses showed a predominance of eggs and larvae within a SST range of 16 to 18°C, at low salinities (33.9-34.1) and at low density gradient variability (0.009-0.029), associated with deeper waters (25-40 m) near the main entrance, where the transparency was intermediate (6-8 m) and zooplankton abundance was relatively high (>316 ml/1000 m³). Increments within different class intervals meant that neither dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), phosphates nor chlorophyll a predominated. The large interannual fluctuations in sardine spawning activity and preferential temperatures observed in historical and recent data suggest that two sardine stocks spawn in Bahia Magdalena: one stock spawned in the period 1981-1989 and one stock spawned in the period 1997-2009. The influence of cooling and warming periods as additional components of the regional environmental framework is analysed and discussed.