Production and Consumption of Krill in the Gulf of St. Lawrence: Toward an Ecosystem-Based Stock Assessment

In Canada, interest in a potential new krill source focusses on the evaluation of biochemical composition of northern and arctic krill for nutraceutical, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. Our prime objective is to examine the ecological resilience of the krill stocks in the St. Lawrence system prior to human exploitation. Krill stocks must continue to represent a reliable food base for higher trophic predators depending largely on this resource, a prerequisite before allowing any human exploitation. Therefore, the role of krill as a forage species must also be evaluated. A combined effort of university and government researchers and an industrial partner will provide new understanding of biological processes and population dynamics of two sympatric krill species, through a complementary approach including field observations, laboratory experiments and modelling. Most importantly, by coupling individual based models (IBMs) of the krill population dynamics and productivity to the 3D dynamics of the physical environment, and by modelling the krill stock biomass in the framework of a mass-balanced food web model, our research will go beyond the descriptive level and will provide an integrated tool for fact based management decisions.