Question

How does El Niño affect fishing?

Answer 1

An El Niño reduces the upwelling of cold water off the coast of the Americas. When this happens, fisheither die or migrate into areas where they'll find more to eat. With the fishgone, sea birds that depend on them may die or go elsewhere. Kelp forests are often destroyed by storms and ocean swells.

Answer 2

El Niño events are associated with physical and biological changes in our oceans that affect fish distribution. Among the variations in oceanographic features that are observed following an El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event are changes in sea-surface temperatures, changes in the vertical, thermal structure of the ocean (particularly in coastal regions), and altered coastal and upwelling currents. These changes can directly affect the species composition and abundance of fishes. In the northern hemisphere, El Niño events typically result in observations of tropical, warm water species moving north (thereby extending their range). Cold water species move north or into deeper water (thereby restricting their range). Surface-oriented, schooling fish often disperse and move into deeper waters. Fishes that remain in an affected region experience reduced growth, reproduction, and survival.