A predator fish known as the “shark of the Antarctic” appears to be in a decline correlated to commercial fishing, according to three recent peer-reviewed publications. The authors argue that fishing could disrupt the entire Ross Sea food web because it targets large Antarctic toothfish, sold in the U.S. as Chilean sea bass.They call for increased monitoring and for a marine protected area (MPA) to protect large toothfi sh and the broader ecosystem.
Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMO) oversee the management of fisheries that are not confined to the waters of a single nation. Among their tasks is to mitigate adverse effects of bycatch and discards. This "report card" looks at an August 2012 report assessing the performance of 13 RFMOs in governing bycatch and discards
Catch shares are a method of fisheries management in which fishermen get the right to harvest a share of the total allowable catch. According to three recent studies, catch shares reduce year-to-year variation in fishing mortality—likely because they end the harmful “race to fish”—but do not consistently affect other important ecological metrics, such as the biomass of fish remaining in the population.
The Ross Sea is the most untouched stretch of ocean on the planet. This publication summarizes a study of the seasonal movements of the Ross Sea’s diverse predators. The study concludes that an MPA will need to cover the entire sea if it is to protect these predators and their ecosystem.
In 2008, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 9th Conference of the Parties approved a set of criteria for identifying Ecologically or Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs), a crucial step in protecting marine habitats and biodiversity. A series of regional workshops began in 2011 to describe areas that meet these EBSA criteria. This research summary details why seabird data are especially useful in such conservation planning exercises.
This publication summarizes the April 2012 report "Little Fish, Big Impact," by the Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force, a group of 13 preeminent scientists formed to provide practical advice on sustainable management. The Task Force found that conventional management can be risky for forage fish because it does not adequately account for their wide population swings and high catchability.
This table provides details on the Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force's recommendations for management based on "information tiers." This table is also included in the Lenfest Ocean Program publication "Summary: Little Fish, Big Impact."
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