Observations of severe hypoxia and offshore displacement of Cape hake over the Namibian shelf in 1994

Abstract

In 1994, persistent and pronounced hypoxic conditions developed off the coast of central and northern Namibia, with oxygen levels <0.5 mℓ·ℓ⁻¹ in bottom water over much of the continental shelf. These conditions apparently displaced juvenile Cape hake Merluccius capensis offshore from their typical inshore habitat, subjecting them to heavy mortalities from predation by larger hake and from commercial trawling.