Small-scale fisheries in ecologically sensitive areas in Latin America and the Caribbean: Do marine protected areas benefit fisheries governance?

Many small-scale fisheries (SSFs) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) operate in ecologically sensitive areas, where balancing conservation and resource use is challenging. 'Multiple-use' marine protected areas (MPAs) have been implemented to accommodate SSFs (among other uses) within areas designated for conservation, creating opportunities and challenges for SSF governance. We analyzed eleven case studies from LAC to explore: (1) how different MPA institutional designs affect key aspects of SSF governance and (2) the links between these effects and the type of initiative that promoted MPA establishment (origin).

Beach strandings of Tehuelche scallop, Aequipecten tehuelchus, in Patagonia: Multi-scale processes and management implications.

The magnitude and causal mechanisms of a massive beach stranding of Tehuelche scallops that occurred in November 2017 in San José Gulf, Argentina, were investigated with the long-term goal of improving the assessment and management of the scallop fishery. The biomass of scallops washed ashore and deposited over a 10-km stretch of coast was estimated by quadrat sampling and compared with the results of a scallop stock assessment survey conducted three months prior to the stranding event. The resulting estimate of total biomass loss was in the order of 200 t, representing 10% of the estimated total scallop biomass in the San José gulf.

Trawl impacts on the relative status of biotic communities of seabed sedimentary habitats in 24 regions worldwide.

Bottom trawling is widespread globally and impacts seabed habitats. However, risks from trawling remain unquantified at large scales in most regions. We address these issues by synthesizing evidence on the impacts of different trawl-gear types, seabed recovery rates, and spatial distributions of trawling intensity in a quantitative indicator of biotic status (relative amount of pretrawling biota) for sedimentary habitats, where most bottom-trawling occurs, in 24 regions worldwide.

Patagonian grouper Acanthistius patachonicus (Jenyns, 1840) forms massive spawning aggregations in the Southwest Atlantic.

Here we describe massive spawning aggregations and seasonal changes in the large-scale distribution of the Patagonian grouper Acanthistius patachonicus in the Southwest Atlantic based on three sources of information: (a) data from bottom trawl research surveys covering the distributional range of the species within the Argentine continental shelf; (b) folk ecological knowledge gathered from experienced captains of the Argentine industrial trawl fisheries; and (c) sampling of an artisanal trap fishery targeting the Patagonian grouper in a specific location off the coast of Buenos Aires Province. The trawl surveys showed a general pattern of aggregation of Patagonian grouper towards the coast during the reproductive period (September-December). Captains described massive aggregations of the species at specific near-shore locations, where trawl catches of up to 15 t in a single haul were registered during the reproductive season.

The future of food from the sea.

Global food demand is rising, and serious questions remain about whether supply can increase sustainably. Land-based expansion is possible but may exacerbate climate change and biodiversity loss, and compromise the delivery of other ecosystem services. As food from the sea represents only 17% of the current production of edible meat, we ask how much food we can expect the ocean to sustainably produce by 2050.

Effective fisheries management instrumental in improving fish stock status.

Marine fish stocks are an important part of the world food system and are particularly important for many of the poorest people of the world. Most existing analyses suggest overfishing is increasing, and there is widespread concern that fish stocks are decreasing throughout most of the world. We assembled trends in abundance and harvest rate of stocks that are scientifically assessed, constituting half of the reported global marine fish catch.

Bottom trawl fishing footprints on the world's continental shelves.

Bottom trawlers land around 19 million tons of fish and invertebrates annually, almost one-quarter of wild marine landings. The extent of bottom trawling footprint (seabed area trawled at least once in a specified region and time period) is often contested but poorly described. We quantify footprints using high-resolution satellite vessel monitoring system (VMS) and logbook data on 24 continental shelves and slopes to 1,000-m depth over at least 2 years.

Global analysis of depletion and recovery of seabed biota after bottom trawling disturbance.

Bottom trawling is the most widespread human activity affecting seabed habitats. Here, we collate all available data for experimental and comparative studies of trawling impacts on whole communities of seabed macroinvertebrates on sedimentary habitats and develop widely applicable methods to estimate depletion and recovery rates of biota after trawling. Depletion of biota and trawl penetration into the seabed are highly correlated.

Variability in abundance of temperate reef fishes estimated by visual census.

Identifying sources of sampling variation and quantifying their magnitude is critical to the interpretation of ecological field data. Yet, most monitoring programs of reef fish populations based on underwater visual censuses (UVC) consider only a few of the factors that may influence fish counts, such as the diver or census methodology. Recent studies, however, have drawn attention to a broader range of processes that introduce variability at different temporal scales.

Rebuilding global fisheries.

After a long history of overexploitation, increasing efforts to restore marine ecosystems and rebuild fisheries are under way. Here, we analyze current trends from a fisheries and conservation perspective. In 5 of 10 well-studied ecosystems, the average exploitation rate has recently declined and is now at or below the rate predicted to achieve maximum sustainable yield for seven systems.

Institutions, incentives and the future of fisheries.

Fisheries around the world are managed with a broad range of institutional structures. Some of these have been quite disastrous, whereas others have proven both biologically and economically successful. Unsuccessful systems have generally involved either open access, attempts at top-down control with poor ability to monitor and implement regulations, or reliance on consensus.