Diel vertical migration of European hake Merluccius merluccius and associated temperature histories: insights from a pilot data-storage tagging (DST) experiment

Abstract : A pioneering experiment of archival tagging of European hake Merluccius merluccius provided evidence of a diel vertical migration pattern which was analysed using an automatic method, developed and validated through time-frequency analyses. Frequent vertical movements across the thermocline were observed and fish experienced rapid temperature changes >7° C. These tagging-recapture data also suggested a homing behaviour to feeding grounds.