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Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries

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A special issue of Fishes (ISSN 2410-3888). This special issue belongs to the section "Biology and Ecology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 26127

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Siquan Tian

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Guest Editor

College of Marine Sciences, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China
Interests: fisheries stock assessment and management; fisheries oceanography

Dr. Jie Cao

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Guest Editor

Department of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State University, Morehead City, NC 28557, USA
Interests: quantitative fisheries management; fish population dynamics; stock assessment; ecosystem modeling

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Defining and implementing measures for the sustainable management of fisheries has become imperative owing to the management status of fish stocks and given the current changes in environmental features and their influence on fish populations worldwide. The stock status of a variety of selected fish species is to be evaluated by regional researchers and/or expert working groups based on the regional/country-specific needs, mostly in connection with the socio-economic and ecological importance of the respective stock. Typically, the assessment is based on available data, best available methods assessment techniques and/or knowledge of the life history of the species being assessed. After stock status has been assessed, fisheries managers are responsible for determining, evaluating and adopting management measures. As these measures will define the health situation of different ecosystems and assure the sustainable harvest of different fish stocks in the future. In this regard, it is considered particularly vital that this Special Issue includes a Section devoted to single-and-multi-species fisheries management models, management strategy evaluation, stock assessment modeling, data-limited methods for exploited and non-targeted species, habitat changes relate to fishing pressures, and identification of key environmental factors affecting the spatial distribution of species.

Dr. Siquan Tian
Dr. Jie Cao
Guest Editors

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Keywords

fisheries sustainable use
fisheries stock assessment
fisheries management
fish population dynamics

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 3969 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Stock Status of a Few Small Indigenous Fish Species Exploited in the River Ganga, India

by Archisman Ray, Basanta Kumar Das, Dibakar Bhakta, Canciyal Johnson, Shreya Roy, Subhadeep Das Gupta, Soumya Prasad Panda and Raju Baitha

Fishes 2023, 8(12), 572; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8120572 - 23 Nov 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2316

Abstract

The River Ganga produces a substantial amount of its fish from small native species, defined here as those with a maximum length of 25 cm. The FiSAT program was utilized to estimate stock assessments of four important small indigenous species from the River Ganga: Johnius coitor, Cabdio morar, Salmostoma bacaila, and Gudusia chapra. Fish samples were collected monthly for a year (April 2020–May 2021) from four predetermined sampling sites along the River Ganga (Farakka, Berhampore, Balagarh, and Tribeni) in West Bengal, India. The estimated exploitation rate for Johnius coitor, Salmostoma bacaila, and Gudusia chapra was relatively lower than the optimum level of 0.5 and considerably lower than E_max values, indicating that their stocks are experiencing low fishing pressure in the region. The FiSAT results indicated that the species Cabdio morar was found to be heavily exploited. The total mortality (Z), natural mortality (M), and fishing mortality (F) rates for all four of the SIF species were examined, and they were contrasted with data from previous studies. On the lower stretch of the River Ganga, all of the fish stocks are optimally exploited (E_op_t), except for the species Cabdio morar. The population dynamics of all of the species have been described for the first time on the lower stretch of the River Ganga. According to the findings, all of the fish stocks throughout the lower stretch of River Ganga are optimally exploited (E_opt), except for Cabdio morar. The study also emphasizes the importance of increasing sustainable fishing efforts, focusing on SIFs throughout the lower stretch of the River Ganga in order to safeguard the livelihood and nutritional status of fishermen. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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17 pages, 2831 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ecological Niche and Interspecific Association of the Main Fishes in the Coastal Waters of Hainan Island, China

by Zhengli Luo, Yanbo Zhou, Ning Liu, Liangming Wang, Yan Liu, Binbin Shan, Manting Liu, Cheng Chen, Changping Yang and Dianrong Sun

Fishes 2023, 8(10), 511; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8100511 - 13 Oct 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1992

Abstract

This study explored the ecological niche and interspecific relationships among the main fish species in the coastal waters of Hainan Island based on data from fishery stock surveys conducted in the spring and autumn of 2022. The methods of chi-square test, percentage of co-occurrence (PC), association coefficient (AC), cluster analysis, and redundancy analysis were used to analyze the interspecific associations and influence of environmental factors on the ecological niches of fish communities. According to the cluster analysis of niche breadth, 20 main fishes could be divided into broad, medium, and narrow niche species. There were four and eight broad niche species in spring and autumn, respectively. The ranges of niche overlap values were 0.001–0.91 in spring and 0–0.87 in autumn, indicating that the species differed and were similar in their ability to utilize resources, survive in habitats, and prey. According to the variance ratio and statistic value W, the main fishes in spring showed a significant positive association, whereas those in autumn showed a positive association, but not at a significant level, indicating that the main fishes in spring were more closely associated with each other. There were 56 species pairs in the 2 seasons that were significantly associated (χ² ≥ 3.841). AC and PC tests revealed that the interspecific association was strong and tended to be positive. According to the redundancy analysis, environmental factors such as surface temperature, water depth, and pH significantly affected the main fishes in spring, while environmental factors such as dissolved oxygen, bottom temperature, surface salinity, and pH significantly affected those in autumn. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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17 pages, 2512 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Biological Parameters and Biomass and Abundance Indices of Two Demersal Species, Turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) and Thornback Ray (Raja clavata), Estimated by a Trawl Survey in Western Black Sea

by Feriha M. Tserkova, Vesselina V. Mihneva and Elitsa P. Petrova-Pavlova

Fishes 2023, 8(8), 400; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8080400 - 2 Aug 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1684

Abstract

In this study, we determined the biological characteristics and indices of abundance and biomass of two demersal species, turbot and thornback ray, through a scientific trawl survey of Bulgarian Black Sea waters in the autumn of 2020. Turbot is among the most valuable fish species in the Black Sea, and thornback ray is a sensitive cartilaginous species with a significantly declining abundance throughout the Mediterranean region. The stock biomass of turbot was estimated at 1467.6 tons, with a relative abundance of 896,922 individuals, and those of the thornback ray were 1187.9 tons and 519,606 individuals, respectively. Mean turbot abundance, interpolated into 0.5° latitude/longitude grid cells, ranged between 52 and 120 ind·km⁻², with a mean biomass of 78.26–238.31 kg·km⁻², and for the thornback ray, these indices were within the limits of 0–107 ind·km⁻² and 0–219 kg·km⁻². The distribution of the different length classes of the two fish species by depth layer was analyzed. Length–weight relationships were estimated based on combined samples of both sexes and separately for female and male individuals, allowing a better understanding of growth patterns. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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21 pages, 4412 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Trawl Fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand: Vulnerability Assessment and Trend Analysis of the Fish Landings

by Pavarot Noranarttragoon, Sontaya Koolkalaya, Weerapol Thitipongtrakul, Piyathap Avakul, Ratanavaree Phoonsawat and Tuantong Jutagate

Fishes 2023, 8(4), 177; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8040177 - 25 Mar 2023

Viewed by 3604

Abstract

Vulnerability of each stock in the catches from trawl fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand was assessed by productivity susceptibility analysis. Separate assessments were made based on type of trawler (otter-board, pair and beam) and vessel size (SS, S, M, L and XL, according to gross tonnage). Catches were distinctly different among trawler types and were dominated by demersal fishes, pelagic fishes and shrimps in the otter-board, pair and beam trawlers, respectively. The stocks of over 200 taxa were included in the study; high-vulnerability taxa were found for all trawl types and sizes, except the beam trawler size S. Only seven (7) taxa were classified as high vulnerability, including four (4) teleost taxa, namely Saurida elongata, Plotosus spp., Gymnothorax spp. and Sphyraena spp., and three (3) elasmobranch taxa, namely Carcharhinus spp., Brevitrygon heterura and Neotrygon kuhlii. Meanwhile, as many as 26 high-medium vulnerability taxa were found in catches by otter-board trawler size L, which included not only fishes but also cephalopods. Trends and variation in fish landings of 20 high and high-medium vulnerability taxa were analyzed. Eighteen (18) taxa showed monotonic trends, both continuous and discontinuous, in their time series of annual landings, but not Muraenesox spp. nor Uroteuthis spp. The long-term variations in fish landings ranged mostly between 40% and 50%. The short-term variations showed positive absolute and relative skewness, i.e., mostly between 10% and 20%. Results of this study highlight the taxa that require a precautionary approach for fishery management and warrant comprehensive fish stock assessment. Such data will allow more accurate determination of their status compared to the reference points and facilitate better management of trawl fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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27 pages, 3267 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Assessing the Effects of Physical Barriers and Hypoxia on Red Drum Movement Patterns to Develop More Effective Management Strategies

by Steven M. Baker, Eric A. Reyier, Bonnie J. Ahr and Geoffrey S. Cook

Fishes 2023, 8(4), 171; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8040171 - 23 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2521

Abstract

Human modification of coastal ecosystems often creates barriers to fish movement. Passive acoustic telemetry was used to quantify movement patterns and habitat use of red drums (Sciaenops ocellatus) within and around a complex of coastal impoundments, and explored how the presence of artificial structures (i.e., bollards and culverts) and a hypoxia-related mortality event impacted fish movement. Results indicated bollards impede the movement of individuals with head widths greater than the mean distance between bollards (~16.0 cm). Red drum home range area and daily distance traveled were related to water dissolved oxygen concentrations; as oxygen levels decreased, fish habitat use area decreased initially. However, continued exposure to hypoxic conditions increased fish cumulative daily distance traveled. When exposed to anoxic waters, fish daily distance traveled and rate of movement were greatly reduced. These findings suggest prolonged exposure to low dissolved oxygen in combination with artificial structures can reduce movement of red drum, increase risk of mortality, and decrease habitat connectivity. Constructing and maintaining (sediment and biofouling removal) larger culvert openings and/or using wider bollard spacing would improve water circulation in impoundments, increase habitat connectivity, and facilitate movement of large sportfish inhabiting Florida’s coastal waters. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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16 pages, 2611 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Aging Uncertainty on the Estimation of Growth Functions of Major Tuna Species

by Dongqi Lu, Qinqin Lin, Jiangfeng Zhu and Fan Zhang

Fishes 2023, 8(3), 131; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8030131 - 24 Feb 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1920

Abstract

Fishery stock assessment requires accurate specification of the growth function of target species, and aging uncertainty is an important factor that affects the estimation of growth parameters. In this study, we used simulations to study the effects of two types of aging uncertainty, aging error and sampled age range, on the parameter estimation of the Von Bertalanffy growth function, including asymptotic length (L_∞), growth coefficient (k), and theoretical age in the year at zero length (t₀) of five important tuna species. We found that the uncertainty of the estimated growth curves increased with increasing aging errors. When aging errors were fixed among ages, the effects of age range on estimation error of growth parameters were different among species and growth parameters. When the aging error increased with age, the estimation uncertainty of L_∞ and k was the greatest when only young age groups were sampled, while the estimation uncertainty of t₀ was the greatest when only old age groups were sampled. Therefore, reducing the aging error and sampling individuals with a wider age range are important for increasing the accuracy and decreasing the uncertainty of the estimated growth function, which will further reduce the uncertainty in fishery stock assessment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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20 pages, 3844 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploring the Response of the Japanese Sardine (Sardinops melanostictus) Stock-Recruitment Relationship to Environmental Changes under Different Structural Models

by Xuan Bai, Li Gao and Sangduk Choi

Fishes 2022, 7(5), 276; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes7050276 - 6 Oct 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3175

Abstract

Japanese sardines (Sardinops melanostictus) are environmentally sensitive pelagic fish. We investigated the effects of environmental factors on the stock-recruitment (S-R) relationship of S. melanostictus in the Pacific Ocean from 1984 to 2018. We modeled and analyzed the recruitment of S. melanostictus using the Ricker model, the Ricker environment extension model (Ricker-E), and the generalized additive model (GAM). Different numbers of environmental factors were added to the models for fitting, and the Akaike information criterion (AIC) was used to select the optimal model. The results showed that the nonlinear GAM provided the best fit. The results of the GAM single factor and multifactor analysis showed that environmental factors were significantly correlated with recruitment in S. melanostictus (p < 0.05). The best fitting model was the GAM, with an AIC of 57.9 and a cumulative explanation rate of 95.7%. Sea surface temperature was the most dominant environmental factor and had a negative impact on R/S. Considering both spawning stock biomass (S) and the environmental factors in the S-R relationship is important for studying the mechanisms of complementary changes and population changes in S. melanostictus under the influence of the marine environment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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17 pages, 6133 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Do Two Different Approaches to the Season in Modeling Affect the Predicted Distribution of Fish? A Case Study for Decapterus maruadsi in the Offshore Waters of Southern Zhejiang, China

by Wen Ma, Chunxia Gao, Song Qin, Jin Ma and Jing Zhao

Fishes 2022, 7(4), 153; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes7040153 - 27 Jun 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2191

Abstract

The relationships between environmental factors and fish density are closely related, and species distribution models (SDMs) have been widely used in exploring these relationships and predicting the spatial distribution of fishery resources. When exploring the prediction of the spatial distribution of species in different seasons, the method of choosing the appropriate approach to the season will help to improve the predictive performance of the model. Based on data collected from 2015 to 2020 during a survey off southern Zhejiang, the Tweedie-GAM was used to establish the relationship between the density of Decapterus maruadsi and environmental factors at different modeling approaches. The results showed that water temperature, salinity and depth were the main factors influencing D. maruadsi, and they operated through different mechanisms and even resulted in opposite trends of density in different seasons. Spatially, the two modeling approaches also differed in predicting the spatial distribution of D. maruadsi, with the seasonal model showing a higher density trend in inshore waters than in offshore waters in spring but showing the opposite trend in summer and autumn, which was more consistent with the actual spatial distribution of the resource. By analyzing the effects of two different approaches on the prediction of fishery resources, this study aims to provide research ideas and references for improving the predictive performance of SDMs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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Review

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128 pages, 1639 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

A Review of Grass Carp and Related Species Literature on Diet, Behavior, Toxicology, and Physiology Focused on Informing Development of Controls for Invasive Grass Carp Populations in North America

by Mark L. Wildhaber, Benjamin M. West, Karlie K. Ditter, Adrian P. Moore and Alex S. Peterson

Fishes 2023, 8(11), 547; https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes8110547 - 10 Nov 2023

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4496

Abstract

Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) are globally important in aquaculture and aquatic vegetation control. However, escaped grass carp have established invasive populations. A targeted keyword search was performed on a carp (order: Cypriniformes) literature database maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey to identify literature relevant to grass carp. Additional sources cited in reviewed documents and provided by numerous reviewers were also included. There were three focus areas designed to provide support for invasive grass carp management: (1) diet and behavior; (2) physiological constraints, toxicity, and biology; and (3) gut physiology. Each focus area provides information to guide development of potential pathways for invasive grass carp control. Information from other carp species was used to fill in gaps where grass carp information was lacking and provide additional, potential research directions. Diet-related information included food selection and aquacultural diet formulations. Behavioral information included stimuli and non-physical barriers to attract, repel, or stop movement. Physiological constraints, toxicology, reproductive control, and biological control provide a research review for control options. Gut physiology and related control pathways provide knowledge to improve toxin or pathogen delivery. This review provides a basis for developing approaches and research for controlling invasive grass carp populations, aquaculture, and native population management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Stock Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries)

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