SEASONAL DISTRIBUTION OF YOUNG SOLE (SOLEA-SOLEA (L)) IN THE NURSERY GROUND OF THE BAY OF VILAINE (NORTHERN BAY OF BISCAY)

The distribution of young sole was studied in the bay of Vilaine nursery ground as a function of age and season for the 0, 1 and 2-groups. During 1988 and 1989, bimonthly trawl surveys were carried out from the estuary to the 50-m-isobath along a 65-km transect. A regular seasonal pattern demonstrated two combined trends. An offshore movement is observed with increasing age; this general trend is marked by an inshore migration in spring and an offshore one in winter. The fluctuations of the distribution pattern are discussed in relation to sedimentary characteristics, to trophic requirements and to hydroclimatic variations. The main conclusion is that young soles are concentrated inside a closed nursery area. In their third winter some participate in spawning migration and they get mixed, to a certain extent, with newly recruited soles from nearby nursery grounds.