The influence of temperature on the distribution of monkfish (Lophius americanus V.)

The influence of water temperature on monkfish (Lophius americanus V.) distribution from 1968-2008 was investigated using data collected during fishery-independent bottom trawl surveys conducted during autumn and spring by the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center in U.S. continental shelf regions of the Northwest Atlantic. We used centers of monkfish occurrence (abundance-weighted mean latitude, longitude, depth, catch-temperature) to examine seasonal relationships between same-year and 5-year running average bottom temperatures (°C) and abundance. Relationships between same-year and 5-year average water temperatures and centers of occurrence for monkfish revealed northward shifts in occupied latitude in spring, shifts to deeper depths in spring, and increases in catch-temperature during both autumn and spring over the survey period. These results suggest that monkfish may shift their distribution northward and into deeper waters in response to increasing water temperatures.