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Fishing

About: Fishing is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 26543 publications have been published within this topic receiving 455552 citations. The topic is also known as: angling.


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Journal ArticleDOI
18 Nov 2010-Nature
TL;DR: It is found that catch MTL does not reliably predict changes in marine ecosystems, and therefore greater efforts are recommended to measure true abundance trends for marine species, especially those most vulnerable to fishing.
Abstract: Biodiversity indicators provide a vital window on the state of the planet, guiding policy development and management. The most widely adopted marine indicator is mean trophic level (MTL) from catches, intended to detect shifts from high-trophic-level predators to low-trophic-level invertebrates and plankton-feeders. This indicator underpins reported trends in human impacts, declining when predators collapse ("fishing down marine food webs") and when low-trophic-level fisheries expand ("fishing through marine food webs"). The assumption is that catch MTL measures changes in ecosystem MTL and biodiversity. Here we combine model predictions with global assessments of MTL from catches, trawl surveys and fisheries stock assessments and find that catch MTL does not reliably predict changes in marine ecosystems. Instead, catch MTL trends often diverge from ecosystem MTL trends obtained from surveys and assessments. In contrast to previous findings of rapid declines in catch MTL, we observe recent increases in catch, survey and assessment MTL. However, catches from most trophic levels are rising, which can intensify fishery collapses even when MTL trends are stable or increasing. To detect fishing impacts on marine biodiversity, we recommend greater efforts to measure true abundance trends for marine species, especially those most vulnerable to fishing.

338 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This work couple a physical–biogeochemical model with a dynamic, size-based food web model to predict the future effects of climate change on fish biomass and production in 11 large regional shelf seas, with and without fishing effects.
Abstract: Existing methods to predict the effects of climate change on the biomass and production of marine communities are predicated on modelling the interactions and dynamics of individual species, a very challenging approach when interactions and distributions are changing and little is known about the ecological mechanisms driving the responses of many species An informative parallel approach is to develop size-based methods These capture the properties of food webs that describe energy flux and production at a particular size, independent of species' ecology We couple a physical-biogeochemical model with a dynamic, size-based food web model to predict the future effects of climate change on fish biomass and production in 11 large regional shelf seas, with and without fishing effects Changes in potential fish production are shown to most strongly mirror changes in phytoplankton production We project declines of 30-60% in potential fish production across some important areas of tropical shelf and upwelling seas, most notably in the eastern Indo-Pacific, the northern Humboldt and the North Canary Current Conversely, in some areas of the high latitude shelf seas, the production of pelagic predators was projected to increase by 28-89%

336 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Those fisheries in which bycatch has been substantially reduced demonstrate that the problem of seabird bycatch could be reduced to negligible proportions by enforced implementation of appropriate best-practice mitigation devices and techniques.
Abstract: Bycatch in longline fisheries is believed to govern the adverse conservation status of many seabird species, but no comprehensive global assessment has been undertaken. We reviewed the extent of seabird bycatch in all longline fisheries for which data are available. Despite the many inadequacies and assumptions contained therein, we estimated that at least 160 000 (and potentially in excess of 320 000) seabirds are killed annually. Most frequently caught are albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters, with current levels of mortality liable to be unsustainable for some species and popula- tions. Where realistic comparisons can be made, with data from the 1990s, there is evidence of sub- stantially reduced bycatch in some key fisheries. Reductions stem from decreased fishing effort (especially in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the Southern Ocean), and greater and more effective use of technical mitigation measures, notably in demersal fisheries. However, bycatch problems in other fisheries have also emerged. Current concerns include those with previously unidentified bycatch problems (e.g. Spanish Gran Sol demersal fleet) and those where bycatch was identified, but where persistent data gaps prevented adequate assessments of the scale of the impact (e.g. Nordic demersal fisheries). Future assessments will only achieve greater precision when mini- mum standards of data collection, reporting and analysis are implemented by longline fishing fleets and the relevant regional fishery management organisations. Those fisheries in which bycatch has been substantially reduced demonstrate that the problem of seabird bycatch could be reduced to negligible proportions by enforced implementation of appropriate best-practice mitigation devices and techniques.

336 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the relationships between fish assemblages, their associated habitat, and degree of protection from fishing were evaluated over a broad spatial scale throughout the main Hawaiian islands and the results showed that fish biomass was lowest in areas of direct wave exposure and highest in areas partially sheltered from swells.
Abstract: The relationships between fish assemblages, their associated habitat, and degree of protection from fishing were evaluated over a broad spatial scale throughout the main Hawaiian islands. Most fish assemblage characteristics showed positive responses to protection whether it was physical (e.g. habitat complexity), biological (e.g. coral cover growth forms), or human-induced (e.g. marine reserves). Fish biomass was lowest in areas of direct wave exposure and highest in areas partially sheltered from swells. Higher values for fish species richness, number of individuals, biomass, and diversity were observed in locations with higher substrate complexity. Areas completely protected from fishing had distinct fish assemblages with higher standing stock and diversity than areas where fishing was permitted or areas that were partially protected from fishing. Locations influenced by customary stewardship harbored fish biomass that was equal to or greater than that of no-take protected areas. Marine protected areas in the main Hawaiian islands with high habitat complexity, moderate wave disturbance, a high percentage of branching and/or lobate coral coupled with legal protection from fishing pressure had higher values for most fish assemblage characteristics.

336 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
02 Dec 1993-Nature
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report the discovery of spawning columns and a highway used by Atlantic cod to traverse the northeastern Newfoundland Shelf during annual springtime feeding migrations, using echosounders.
Abstract: FIVE hundred years of fishing and fifty years of research have produced only vague accounts of the spawning and migrations of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) off Newfoundland in the north-west Atlantic1. Here I report the discovery of 'spawning columns' and a 'highway' used by cod to traverse the northeastern Newfoundland Shelf during annual springtime feeding migrations. Sea research using echosounders2,3 showed that cod spawned in dense shoals (to one fish per m3) that featured midwater spawning columns comprised of pairs of fish. Immature joined mature post-spawning cod to migrate in large (scales of tens of kilometres and hundreds of millions of fish) size-structured aggregations led by larger 'scouts'. Cod traversed the cold waters of the shelf along a deep highway of warm oceanic water (2–2.5 °C). During migration, fish spacing appeared to maximize search volumes while maintaining visual contact. Aggregations fragmented when prey (capelin Mallotus villosus; shrimp, Pandalus spp.) were encountered.

336 citations


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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers in the topic in previous years
YearPapers
20231,709
20223,569
20211,068
20201,247
20191,089
20181,130