Abstract. A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model (GETM) was coupled with a particle tracking routine (GITM) to study the inter-annual variability in transport paths of particles in the North Sea and English Channel. For validation, a comparison with observed drifter trajectories was made. The aim was to investigate to what extent variability in the hydrodynamic conditions alone (reflecting passive particle transport) contributed to inter-annual variability in transport of eggs and larvae. In this idealized study, no a-priori selection of spawning grounds or periods was made and no active behaviour (vertical migration) or mortality were included. Egg and larval development towards coastal nursery areas was based solely on sea water temperature, while settlement areas were defined by a threshold water depth. Results showed strong inter-annual variability in drift direction and distance, caused by a combination of wind speed and direction. Strong inter-annual variability was observed both in absolute amount of settlement in coastal areas, as well as in the relative importance of the different areas. Settlement in the western Dutch Wadden Sea not only showed inter-annual variability, but patterns were also variable within each year and revealed seasonal changes in the origin of particles.
Predictive framework for codend size selection of brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) in the North Sea beam-trawl fishery