Shrnutí

Popis

As petrale sole (Eopsetta jordani) is a valuable groundfish harvested in the California Current (CC), proper aging is important for its assessment and management. This study presents the first bomb radiocarbon reference chronology for the CC and petrale sole age validation. Break-and-burn and surface ages are negatively biased by approximately 1 year and 2-3 years, respectively. Compared to previous studies, the reference and validation curves are more variable and show a lag in the rate of radiocarbon increase during the informative years of bomb radiocarbon increase in marine systems. Upwelling in the CC produces a later onset and slower rate of increase in radiocarbon levels due to the introduction and mixing of radiocarbon-depleted deep waters with surface waters that interact with the atmosphere. The variable and lagged rate of radiocarbon increase in the petrale sole data may be due to a substantial portion of the first year of life spent in areas subject to variable upwelling, illustrating the importance of using reference curves for age validation that are region- and species-specific when possible. Otolith ages and bomb radiocarbon assays.