Spatial distribution of the copepod Centropages typicus in Ligurian Sea (NW Mediterranean). Role of surface currents estimated by Topex-Poseidon altimetry.

A particle-tracking model was used to simulate the dispersion and development of the planktonic copepod Centropages typicus during spring in Ligurian Sea. We show that mesoscale current structure, with a coastal jet and eddies, plays a key role in the transport and dispersion of C. typicus during its life cycle. Although, in the north, offshore Nice, cohorts can be advected southwestward out of Ligurian basin, more to the south others are retained in the central eddy and may give the start to the spring bloom of this species. However, input of individuals from the south through the Corsican Channel and along the west coast of Corsica may also be important in spring. This study shows that the ambit of C. typicus population is larger than the Ligurian Sea.