An spatially explicit individual based model for of striped bass population dynamics in the San Francisco Bay and Delta

A GIS-based individual based model (IBM) is developed for stripped bass population dynamics in the San Francisco Bay-Delta. The model is designed to simulate all fish life-stages and is aimed to predict the long-term trends in the population as influenced by various environmental factors. The spatial dynamics of the fish population is simulated using a biased Levy Flight run and tumble model. This model is biased to account for the influences of food availability, favorable habitats on the motion behavior of striped bass. The flow velocity is accounted as a factor influencing the fish movement at early life stages. Also bioenergetic equation is incorporated into the model to simulate the growth and and the contaminant body burden is accounted for using a mass-balance approach. The model is capable of simulating movement, growth, contaminant uptake and mortality of a large population of individual fish in the Bay-Delta. The model is planned to be used to study the effect of various environmental factors such as the flow rate in the system, water diversions, pumping rates, food dynamics and contaminants on the long-term population trends of the striped bass and to provide an insight into the impact of various management strategies.