Article
Fisheries
Luong Trong Nguyen, Khanh Quoc Nguyen, Toan Phi Nguyen
Summary: The study compared a new gillnet with multiple mesh sizes to a conventional gillnet with a 125 mm mesh opening. The new gillnet showed comparable catch efficiency for Spanish mackerel, spotted mackerel, and wahoo. Analysis of size-dependent catch and selectivity parameters revealed that the new gillnet captured a wider range of fish sizes, including larger individuals. This implies higher yield per unit effort and potential economic benefits for fishing enterprises.
Article
Environmental Studies
Julia Calderwood, Debbi Pedreschi, David G. Reid
Summary: The introduction of the Landing Obligation in Europe has led to an increased need for fishers to adopt more selective fishing practices. However, voluntary uptake of recommendations to reduce unwanted catches is often poor. There are varied opinions among fishers and industry representatives regarding the effectiveness of measures such as gear modifications and spatio-temporal solutions in reducing discards.
Article
Fisheries
Julia Margaret Lawson, Conner Muir Smith
Summary: Catch quotas, which are restrictions on total allowable catch, are important for maintaining healthy fish stocks. However, studies have found that there may be selection bias in the implementation of catch quotas as they are often applied to depleted stocks. This study addresses this challenge by using the synthetic control method to estimate the causal effect of catch quotas on fishing mortality and biomass.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Dirk Zeller, Matthew Ansell, Vania Andreoli, Haley Harguth, William Figueira, Darcy Dunstan, Lekelia D. Jenkins
Summary: The United States emphasizes commercial fisheries when reporting to the FAO, excluding data from recreational fisheries. A study found that total reconstructed catches were 1.2 times higher than reported, with commercial landings dominating and a decline in total catches over the years. The discrepancy in reported data was largely due to industrial catches that were not officially reported, suggesting the need for improved reporting practices.
REGIONAL STUDIES IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Joyce J. L. Ong, Jonathan A. Walter, Olaf P. Jensen, Malin L. Pinsky
Summary: The study revealed high synchrony among global fisheries catch time series, with synchrony being a better predictor of regional catch portfolio effects than catch diversity. Regions with higher synchrony had lower stability, which could have negative consequences for food security and economic wealth.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Marine
Alen Soldo
Summary: Recreational fishing, as a significant component of global capture fisheries, is gaining recognition for its economic, sociocultural, and ecological importance. However, it lacks control and research compared to commercial fishing. The distinction between recreational and sport fishing is unclear, particularly in defining what constitutes each type. This study considers sport fishing as a competition-oriented subset of recreational fishing. The results from the Adriatic Sea show differences between shore and boat angling, as well as between competition and out-of-competition boat angling. There is an urgent need for comprehensive management in the Mediterranean region due to potential social and economic conflicts arising from declining fish resources.
JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Diego Panzeri, Tommaso Russo, Enrico Arneri, Roberto Carlucci, Gianpiero Cossarini, Igor Isajlovic, Svjetlana Krstulovic Sifner, Chiara Manfredi, Francesco Masnadi, Marco Reale, Giuseppe Scarcella, Cosimo Solidoro, Maria Teresa Spedicato, Nedo Vrgoc, Walter Zupa, Simone Libralato
Summary: Spatial fisheries management is an effective method to reduce overfishing and protect biodiversity. However, accurately identifying ecologically meaningful areas can be challenging in mixed fisheries. This study developed a species distribution model that integrates various methods to determine the best locations for fisheries management.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2023)
Article
Environmental Studies
Irna Sari, Muhammad Ichsan, Alan White, Syahril Abdul Raup, Sugeng Hari Wisudo
Summary: Small-scale fisheries in Indonesia, which involve 90% of the total number of fishers and provide significant employment for coastal communities, face challenges with catch reporting and monitoring due to the scattered nature of fishers across thousands of islands. Collaborative efforts between the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries and the USAID Sustainable Ecosystems Advanced (SEA) Project have initiated the development of a fishing logbook system to address these challenges. The holistic intervention using sustainable livelihood approach aims to establish a systematic approach for catch monitoring in Indonesian small-scale fisheries, recognizing the tradeoff between an ideal logbook system and an applicable model for this context.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Maite Pons, Jordan T. Watson, Daniel Ovando, Sandra Andraka, Stephanie Brodie, Andres Domingo, Mark Fitchett, Rodrigo Forselledo, Martin Hall, Elliott L. Hazen, Jason E. Jannot, Miguel Herrera, Sebastian Jimenez, David M. Kaplan, Sven Kerwath, Jon Lopez, Jon McVeigh, Lucas Pacheco, Liliana Rendon, Kate Richerson, Rodrigo Sant'Anna, Rishi Sharma, James A. Smith, Kayleigh Somers, Ray Hilborn
Summary: Recent improvements have been made in reducing bycatch in many fisheries, but it remains a threat for numerous species globally. This study evaluated the effectiveness of temporal, static, and dynamic area closures on reducing bycatch and maintaining target catch in 15 fisheries around the world. The results showed that dynamic closures could achieve an average reduction of 57% in bycatch without sacrificing target catch, compared to only 16% reduction achieved by static closures. The use of dynamic management is more effective in reducing bycatch and will be increasingly valuable in the face of climate change.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Angela M. Thomas, Joris de Grooth, Jeffery A. Wood
Summary: Mixed matrix membrane materials (MMMs) are being studied for gas separation, and this research investigates the optimal combination of filler and matrix for maximum selectivity. Computational simulations show that adding a filler with similar permeability to the faster gas in the matrix can result in the highest selectivity change, and these results are compared to analytical solutions from various models. The role of interfacial defects in altering the transport properties of mixtures through the MMMs is also examined.
JOURNAL OF MEMBRANE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Rebecca Schijns, Rainer Froese, Jeffrey A. Hutchings, Daniel Pauly
Summary: The fishery for Northern Atlantic cod off Newfoundland and Labrador witnessed a dramatic decline from sustainable fishing to collapsed stock due to industrial trawl fishing under a seemingly sophisticated management regime. Research suggests that if fishing effort and mortality had been stabilized in the 1980s, precautionary annual yields could have been sustained, highlighting the importance of incorporating prior knowledge to inform sustainable management practices.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Jingya Zhang, Feng Zhang, Wangxi Fang, Jian Jin
Summary: A mixed-dimensional heterostructured oil-water separation membrane consisting of electrospun PDMS/PVDF nanofibers and a hydrophilic PANI microfiltration membrane support was developed. The membrane achieved efficient separation of surfactant-stabilized oil-in-water emulsion by capturing and coalescing small oil droplets while allowing water to pass through. The membrane demonstrated stable flux and high separation efficiency in long-term crossflow experiments. Such heterostructured membranes with tunable wettability have great potential for practical oil-water emulsion separation.
JOURNAL OF MEMBRANE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Brendan S. Talwar, Brooke Anderson, Cristopher G. Avalos-Castillo, Maria del Pilar Blanco-Parra, Alejandra Briones, Diego Cardenosa, John K. Carlson, Patricia Charvet, Charles F. Cotton, Zoe Crysler, Danielle H. Derrick, Michael R. Heithaus, Katelyn B. Herman, Olga Koubrak, David W. Kulka, Peter M. Kyne, Oscar M. Lasso-Alcala, Paola A. Mejia-Falla, Jorge Manuel Morales-Saldana, Beatriz Naranjo-Elizondo, Andres F. Navia, Nathan Pacoureau, Juan C. Perez-Jimenez, Riley A. Pollom, Cassandra L. Rigby, Eric V. C. Schneider, Nikola Simpson, Nicholas K. Dulvy
Summary: Chondrichthyan fishes in the Western Central Atlantic Ocean are at risk of extinction due to intense fishing. Catches in the region peaked in 1992 and have since declined. The United States, Venezuela, and Mexico have the highest catches and host most of the threatened species.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Marine
Daniel Pauly, Chiara Piroddi, Lincoln Hood, Nicolas Bailly, Elaine Chu, Vicky Lam, Evgeny A. Pakhomov, Leonid K. Pshenichnov, Vladimir I. Radchenko, Maria Lourdes D. Palomares
Summary: This article provides a global overview of the catches of mesopelagic fishes from 1950 to 2018, aiming to serve as a baseline for the future development of these fisheries. It discusses commercial and experimental fisheries for mesopelagic fishes, with a focus on Russian fisheries, and summarizes catch data from literature into two text tables.
JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Xabier Lekunberri, Jon Ruiz, Inaki Quincoces, Fadi Dornaika, Ignacio Arganda-Carreras, Jose A. Fernandes
Summary: Fishery monitoring programs are crucial for effective management of marine resources. Some organizations are considering electronic monitoring as an alternative to human observers. This paper proposes a cost-effective methodology for processing fishery images, achieving automatic segmentation, classification, and size distribution estimation.
ECOLOGICAL INFORMATICS
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Joseph A. Langan, Jeremy S. Collie, Coilin Minto
Summary: The size of year-classes in marine fish is not fully determined until age 2, with the first summer being a critical life stage for winter flounder. External stressors such as high temperatures, hypoxia, and predator abundance play significant roles in influencing mortality rates at specific life stages.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FISHERIES AND AQUATIC SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Luke Batts, Coilin Minto, Hans Gerritsen, Deirdre Brophy
Summary: Stage-based assessment models provide a middle ground between aggregate and compositional models. This study compares the capabilities of two theoretically different stage-based assessment approaches and evaluates their performance on simulated and real stock scenarios.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FISHERIES AND AQUATIC SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Cheryl L. Barnes, Timothy E. Essington, Jodi L. Pirtle, Christopher N. Rooper, Edward A. Laman, Kirstin K. Holsman, Kerim Y. Aydin, James T. Thorson
Summary: This study compared conventional 'static' species distribution models with climate-informed 'dynamic' models to assess their ability to predict future responses to climate change. While adding time-varying processes improved hindcast performance, dynamic models did not show advantages in forecast skill compared to static models.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Maurice C. Goodman, Gemma Carroll, Stephanie Brodie, Arnaud Gruss, James T. Thorson, Stan Kotwicki, Kirstin Holsman, Rebecca L. Selden, Elliott L. Hazen, Giulio A. De Leo
Summary: This study used spatiotemporal models to investigate the relationship between habitat changes, predation behavior changes, and increased predation pressure in the poorly observed eastern Bering Sea. The findings highlight the complexity of predicting predation dynamics in marine systems and emphasize the need for better methods to understand the potential ecological impacts of species redistributions. Furthermore, the study suggests that simple metrics of spatial overlap can be used to integrate predictions from species distribution models into ecosystem-based fisheries management, particularly for specialized predators.
Article
Fisheries
Matthew R. Siskey, Andre E. Punt, Peter-John F. Hulson, Meaghan D. Bryan, James N. Ianelli, James T. Thorson
Summary: This study developed a framework for evaluating the impact of survey sampling designs on stock assessments and found that decreasing the number of tows sampled led to an increase in the uncertainty of the overfishing limit (OFL). The study also found that reducing the number of otoliths per tow had a smaller impact on OFL uncertainty. Applying this framework to all monitored stocks is important to identify which stocks benefit the most from increased sampling or have the least impact on OFL uncertainty with reduced sampling.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FISHERIES AND AQUATIC SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
James T. Thorson, Timothy J. Miller, Brian C. Stock
Summary: Weighting data appropriately is necessary in stock assessment models. The multivariate-Tweedie (MVTW) provides a better estimation of data weights and the ability to increase weights when needed. We recommend exploring the sensitivity of likelihood functions in stock assessments.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Julia Indivero, Timothy E. Essington, James N. Ianelli, James T. Thorson
Summary: Environmental conditions can lead to variability in growth and distribution processes, but current stock assessment methods often neglect these patterns. This study used data on walleye pollock in the Bering Sea to demonstrate a feasible approach for incorporating spatially unbalanced size-at-age samples into stock assessments. The analysis revealed extensive variation in size-at-age at fine spatial scales, with year-to-year differences in spatial patterning. Integrating spatiotemporally explicit size-at-age processes improved stock assessment consistency and provided insights into demographic processes. This approach could enhance stock-assessment forecasts under climate change.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Merja Elo, Mira H. Kajanus, Jere Tolvanen, Vincent Devictor, Jukka T. Forsman, Aleksi Lehikoinen, Mikko Monkkonen, James T. Thorson, Maximilian G. R. Vollstadt, Sami M. Kivela
Summary: This study investigates the impacts of environmental filtering and biotic interactions on spatial and temporal associations among bird species using a novel hypothesis-testing framework based on joint dynamic species distribution models and functional trait similarity. The findings suggest that the aggregation of species is mainly driven by environmental filtering and heterospecific attraction, with no evidence of competition.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Arnaud Gruss, James T. Thorson, Owen F. Anderson, Richard L. O'Driscoll, Madison Heller-Shipley, Scott Goodman
Summary: This study developed a spatio-temporal modelling framework that integrates research survey data and other data sources. It demonstrated the effectiveness of this framework through two case studies.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FISHERIES AND AQUATIC SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
James T. Thorson, Cheryl L. Barnes, Sarah T. Friedman, Janelle L. Morano, Margaret C. Siple
Summary: Species distribution models (SDMs) are commonly used to analyze the relationship between species occurrence/density and environmental conditions, often including a spatially correlated variable. Spatially varying coefficients (SVCs) in SDMs have received less attention but have the potential to improve interpretability and descriptive power. This article reviews the benefits of using SVCs in ecological contexts such as ecological teleconnections, density-dependent habitat selection, spatially varying detectability, and interactions with unmeasured covariates. Detailed examples using the vector autoregressive spatio-temporal (VAST) model illustrate the advantages of SVCs in analyzing decadal trends, community assembly, and population dynamics. SVCs extend the capabilities of SDMs and enhance our understanding of ecological processes.
Article
Ecology
James T. T. Thorson, Aurore A. A. Maureaud, Romain Frelat, Bastien Merigot, Jennifer S. S. Bigman, Sarah T. T. Friedman, Maria Lourdes D. Palomares, Malin L. L. Pinsky, Samantha A. A. Price, Peter Wainwright
Summary: This study extends previous methods by using structural equation models and associations among categorical traits to achieve mixed-trait imputation. Results show that a one-degree increase in habitat temperature is associated with an average 3.5% increase in natural mortality and a 3.0% decrease in fecundity.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
A. Gruess, A. R. Charsley, J. T. Thorson, O. F. Anderson, R. L. O'Driscoll, B. Wood, O. N. Breivik, C. A. O'Leary
Summary: Species distribution models often require multiple data sources to achieve their objectives. In this study, we developed a spatio-temporal modelling framework that integrated research survey data and observer data from fishing vessels, while accounting for physical barriers. Applying this framework to deepwater fisheries in New Zealand, we found that using both observer-only data and integrated data is essential for mapping fish biomass at a large scale and interpolating local biomass indices in years without survey data. We also demonstrated the importance of considering the reliability of interannual variability when choosing between models relying on integrated data or survey-only data for a given geographic area. Moreover, our simulation experiment revealed that the predictions of our spatio-temporal models were not significantly affected by the presence of physical barriers.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
J. J. Badger, S. Large, J. T. Thorson
Summary: Many economic sectors rely on marine ecosystem services, and integrated ecosystem assessments (IEAs) are necessary for holistic management and sustainable use. This study demonstrates the utility of spatially and temporally explicit ecological indicators in assessing ecosystem performance and identifying localized processes. The examples highlight the benefits of spatio-temporal methods for integrated ecosystem analysis in the northeast US Shelf Ecosystem.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Daniel Ovando, Darcy Bradley, Echelle Burns, Lennon Thomas, James Thorson
Summary: Designing effective spatial management strategies for marine ecosystems is challenging due to their complexity and uncertainties. This paper presents a modelling framework called marlin, which can simulate the bio-economic dynamics of marine systems efficiently. The framework can be used for both management and research purposes. The study demonstrates the capabilities of marlin through two case studies on marine protected areas (MPAs) and their impacts on conservation and food production. It shows how the framework can assess the distributional outcomes and climate resilience of different MPA design strategies and fishing fleets. The paper highlights the importance of intermediate complexity simulation in predicting and managing trade-offs among conservation, fisheries yields, and distributional outcomes of management policies affected by spatial bio-economic dynamics.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
James T. Thorson
Summary: Phylogenetic comparative methods (PCM) and phylogenetic structural equation models (PSEM) can replace linear models and improve performance in fisheries meta-analyses, but they are rarely applied in fisheries science.
FISH AND FISHERIES
(2023)
