Fisheries 

About: Fisheries is an academic journal published by Taylor & Francis. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Fisheries management & Fishing. It has an ISSN identifier of 0363-2415. Over the lifetime, 1873 publications have been published receiving 54777 citations. The journal is also known as: Fisheries magazine.

Assessment of Biotic Integrity Using Fish Communities

Abstract: Man's activities have had profound, and usually negative, influences on freshwater fishes from the smallest streams to the largest rivers. Some negative effects are due to contaminants, while others are associated with changes in watershed hydrology, habitat modifications, and alteration of energy sources upon which the aquatic biota depends. Regrettably, past efforts to evaluate effects of man's activities on fishes have attempted to use water quality as a surrogate for more comprehensive biotic assessment. A more refined biotic assessment program is required for effective protection of freshwater fish resources. An assessment system proposed here uses a series of fish community attributes related to species composition and ecological structure to evaluate the quality of an aquatic biota. In preliminary trials this system accurately reflected the status of fish communities and the environment supporting them.

Instream Flow Regimens for Fish, Wildlife, Recreation and Related Environmental Resources

Abstract: A quick, easy methodology is described for determining flows to protect the aquatic resources in both warmwater and coldwater streams, based on their average flow. Biologists do their analysis with aid of hydrological data provided by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Detailed field studies were conducted on 11 streams in 3 states between 1964 and 1974, testing the “Montana Method.” This work involved physical, chemical, and biological analyses of 38 different flows at 58 cross-sections on 196 stream-miles, affecting both coldwater and warmwater fisheries. The studies, all planned, conducted, and analyzed with the help of state fisheries biologists, reveal that the condition of the aquatic habitat is remarkably similar on most of the streams carrying the same portion of the average flow. Similar analyses of hundreds of additional flow regimens near USGS gages in 21 different states during the past 17 years substantiated this correlation on a wide variety of streams. Ten percent of the average fl...

Conservation Status of Freshwater Mussels of the United States and Canada

Abstract: The American Fisheries Society (AFS) herein provides a list of all native freshwater mussels (families Margaritiferidae and Unionidae) in the United States and Canada. This report also provides state and provincial distributions; a comprehensive review of the conservation status of all taxa; and references on biology, conservation, and distribution of freshwater mussels. The list includes 297 native freshwater mussels, of which 213 taxa (71.7%) are considered endangered, threatened, or of special concern. Twenty-one taxa (7.1%) are listed as endangered but possibly extinct, 77 (20.6%) as endangered but extant, 43 (14.5%) as threatened, 72 (24.2%) as of special concern, 14 (4.7%) as undetermined, and only 70 (23.6%) as currently stable. The primary reasons for the decline of freshwater mussels are habitat destruction from dams, channel modification, siltation, and the introduction of nonindigenous mollusks. The high numbers of imperiled freshwater mussels in the United States and Canada, which har...

Pacific Salmon at the Crossroads: Stocks at Risk from California, Oregon, Idaho, and Washington

Abstract: The American Fisheries Society herein provides a list of depleted Pacific salmon, steelhead, and sea-run cutthroat stocks from California, Oregon, Idaho, and Washington, to accompany the list of rare inland fishes reported by Williams et al. (1989). The list includes 214 native naturally-spawning stocks: 101 at high risk of extinction, 58 at moderate risk of extinction, 54 of special concern, and one classified as threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and as endangered by the state of California. The decline in native salmon, steelhead, and sea-run cutthroat populations has resulted from habitat loss and damage, and inadequate passage and flows caused by hydropower, agriculture, logging, and other developments; overfishing, primarily of weaker stocks in mixed-stock fisheries; and negative interactions with other fishes, including nonnative hatchery salmon and steelhead. While some attempts at remedying these threats have been made, they have not been enough to prevent the broad decl...

Conservation status of imperiled north American freshwater and diadromous fishes

Abstract: This is the third compilation of imperiled (i.e., endangered, threatened, vulnerable) plus extinct freshwater and diadromous fishes of North America prepared by the American Fisheries Society'S Endangered Species Committee. Since the last revision in 1989, imperilment of inland fishes has increased substantially. This list includes 700 extant taxa representing 133 genera and 36 families, a 92% increase over the 364 listed in 1989. The increase reflects the addition of distinct populations, previously non-imperiled fishes, and recently described or discovered taxa. Approximately 39% of described fish species of the continent are imperiled. There are 230 vulnerable, 190 thretened, and 280 endangered extant taxa, and 61 taxa presumed extinct or extirpated from nature. Of those that were imperiled in 1989, most (89%) are the same or worse in conservation status; only 6% have improved in status, and 5% were delisted for various reasons. Habitat degradation and nonindigenous species are the main threat...