Novel biodiversity baselines outpace models of fish distribution in Arctic waters.

During a recent marine biological expedition to the Northeast Greenland shelf break (latitudes 74-77 °N), we made the first discovery of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), beaked redfish (Sebastes mentella) and capelin (Mallotus villosus). Our novel observations shift the distribution range of Atlantic cod >1000 km further north in East Greenland waters. In light of climate change, we discuss physical forcing and putative connections between the faunas of the Northeast Greenland shelf and the Barents Sea.

Arctic marine fishes and their fisheries in light of global change.

In light of ocean warming and loss of Arctic sea ice, harvested marine fishes of boreal origin (and their fisheries) move poleward into yet unexploited parts of the Arctic seas. Industrial fisheries, already in place on many Arctic shelves, will radically affect the local fish species as they turn up as unprecedented bycatch. Arctic marine fishes are indispensable to ecosystem structuring and functioning, but they are still beyond credible assessment due to lack of basic biological data.

The impact of fisheries on the dynamics of commercial fish species in Barents Sea and the Sea of Azov, Russia: a historical perspective.

This article presents a description of the background material, and analyses used by UNEP-GIWA for the assessment of the Russian seas. It gives an overview of the development of fisheries over the last 100 years in the 2 Russian seas, the Barents and the Azov Sea. The major stages of fisheries development in the Barents and in the Azov Seas and the main reasons for their decreasing productivity are discussed.