Comparative assessment of the West Bering Sea and East Bering Sea Large Marine Ecosystems

•The first multi-disciplinary comparative assessment of the West and East Bering Sea Large Marine Ecosystems revealed contrasting physical environments, particularly bathymetry, geomorphology, circulation patterns, fronts, and certain elements of regional climates.•Role of these physical factors in functioning of the West and East Bering Sea LMEs is elucidated.•Ecosystem-based management of these ecosystems must take into account profound differences in physical environment that eventually shape each LME.

A comparison between the West and East Bering Sea Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) is a study in contrast. These LMEs feature different geographical, bathymetric, and geomorphological settings that determine profound differences between their climate, circulation, frontal pattern, primary production, and fisheries yields. This paper focuses largely on physical factors that affect ecology and fisheries to demonstrate that these physical factors vary dramatically across the Bering Sea.