Title: Unidirectional trans-Atlantic gene flow and a mixed spawning area shape the genetic connectivity of Atlantic bluefin tuna
Running title: Genetic connectivity of Atlantic bluefin tuna
Natalia Díaz-Arce1*, Pierre-Alexandre Gagnaire2, David E. Richardson3, John F. Walter III4, Sophie Arnaud-Haond5, Jean-Marc Fromentin5, Deirdre Brophy6, Molly Lutcavage7, Piero Addis8, Francisco Alemany9, Robert Allman10, Simeon Deguara11, Igaratza Fraile12, Nicolas Goñi12#, Alex R Hanke13, F Saadet Karakulak14, Ashley Pacicco15, Joseph M Quattro16, Jay R Rooker17, Haritz Arrizabalaga12 and Naiara Rodríguez-Ezpeleta1,*
*Correspondence: ndiaz@azti.es;nrodriguez@azti.es;
1 AZTI Marine Research Division, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Sukarrieta, Spain
2 ISEM, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
3 Northeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Narragansett, RI, USA
4 Southeast Fisheries Sciences Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Miami, FL, USA
5 MARBEC, Univ Montpellier, Ifremer, IRD, CNRS, Sète, France
6 Marine and Freshwater Research Center, Atlantic Technological University (ATU), Galway City, Ireland
7 Large Pelagics Research Center, School for the Environment, University of Massachusetts Boston, Gloucester, MA, USA
8 Department of Environmental and Life Science, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy
9 International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, GBYP, Madrid, Spain
10 National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Panama City Laboratory, Panama City, FL, USA.
11 AquaBio Tech Ltd., Central Complex, Mosta, Malta
12 AZTI Marine Research Division, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Pasaia, Spain
13 St Andrews Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada
14 Faculty of Aquatic Sciences, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
15 Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
16 Department of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA
17 Department of Marine Biology, Texas A&M University at Galveston, Galveston, TX, USA
# Present address: Fisheries and Fish Resources, Natural Resources Institute Finland, Turku, Finland