Commentary: Combining Ecosystem and Single-Species Modeling to Provide Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management Advice Within Current Management Systems

Although many countries have formally committed to Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management (EBFM), actual progress toward these goals has been slow. This paper presents two independent case studies that have combined strategic advice from ecosystem modeling with the tactical advice of single-species assessment models to provide practical ecosystem-based management advice. With this approach, stock status, reference points, and initial target F are computed from a single-species model, then an ecosystem model rescales the target F according to ecosystem indicators without crossing pre-calculated single-species precautionary limits. Finally, the single-species model computes the quota advice from the rescaled target F, termed here Feco. Such a methodology incorporates both the detailed population reconstructions of the single-species model and the broader ecosystem perspective from ecosystem-based modeling, and fits into existing management schemes. The advocated method has arisen from independent work on EBFM in two international fisheries management systems: (1) Atlantic menhaden in the United States and (2) the multi species fisheries of the Irish Sea, in the Celtic Seas ecoregion. In the Atlantic menhaden example, the objective was to develop ecological reference points (ERPs) that account for the effect of menhaden harvest on predator populations and the tradeoffs associated with forage fish management. In the Irish Sea, the objective was to account for ecosystem variability when setting quotas for the individual target species. These two exercises were aimed at different management needs, but both arrived at a process of adjusting the target F used within the current single-species management. Although the approach has limitations, it represents a practical step toward EBFM, which can be adapted to a range of ecosystem objectives and applied within current management systems.

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Marine ecosystem assessment in a fisheries management context

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f02-115 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 59 (9) ◽

pp. 1429-1440 ◽

Cited By ~ 145

Author(s):

Jason S Link ◽

Jon K.T Brodziak ◽

Steve F Edwards ◽

William J Overholtz ◽

David Mountain ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Marine Ecosystem ◽

Single Species ◽

Reference Points ◽

System Level ◽

Multivariate Statistical Methods ◽

Multivariate Statistical ◽

Management Context ◽

Ecosystem Level ◽

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management

We examined a suite of abiotic, biotic, and human metrics for the northeast U.S. continental shelf ecosystem at the aggregate, community, and system level (>30 different metrics) over three decades. Our primary goals were to describe ecosystem status, to improve understanding of the relationships between key ecosystem processes, and to evaluate potential reference points for ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM). To this end, empirical indicators of ecosystem status were examined and standard multivariate statistical methods were applied to describe changes in the system. We found that (i) a suite of metrics is required to accurately characterize ecosystem status and, conversely, that focusing on a few metrics may be misleading; (ii) assessment of ecosystem status is feasible for marine ecosystems; (iii) multivariate points of reference can be determined for EBFM; and (iv) the concept of reference directions could provide an ecosystem level analog to single-species reference points.

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Food for thought: pretty good multispecies yield

ICES Journal of Marine Science ◽

10.1093/icesjms/fsw071 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 74 (2) ◽

pp. 475-486 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Anna Rindorf ◽

Catherine Mary Dichmont ◽

Phillip S. Levin ◽

Pamela Mace ◽

Sean Pascoe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Single Species ◽

Maximum Sustainable Yield ◽

Social Benefits ◽

Sustainable Yield ◽

Average Yield ◽

Operational Management ◽

Operating Space ◽

Management Advice ◽

Safe Operating

Abstract MSY principles for marine fisheries management reflect a focus on obtaining continued high catches to provide food and livelihoods for humanity, while not compromising ecosystems. However, maintaining healthy stocks to provide the maximum sustainable yield on a single-species basis does not ensure that broader ecosystem, economic, and social objectives are addressed. We investigate how the principles of a “pretty good yield” range of fishing mortalities assumed to provide >95% of the average yield for a single stock can be expanded to a pretty good multispecies yield (PGMY) space and further to pretty good multidimensional yield to accommodate situations where the yield from a stock affects the ecosystem, economic and social benefits, or sustainability. We demonstrate in a European example that PGMY is a practical concept. As PGMY provides a safe operating space for management that adheres to the principles of MSY, it allows the consideration of other aspects to be included in operational management advice in both data-rich and data-limited situations. PGMY furthermore provides a way to integrate advice across stocks, avoiding clearly infeasible management combinations, and thereby hopefully increasing confidence in scientific advice.

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Size matters: How single-species management can contribute to ecosystem-based fisheries management

Fisheries Research ◽

10.1016/j.fishres.2008.01.005 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 92 (2-3) ◽

pp. 231-241 ◽

Cited By ~ 105

Author(s):

Rainer Froese ◽

Amanda Stern-Pirlot ◽

Henning Winker ◽

Didier Gascuel

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Single Species ◽

Species Management ◽

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management

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Scientific tools to support the practical implementation of ecosystem-based fisheries management

ICES Journal of Marine Science ◽

10.1093/icesjms/fsm041 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 64 (4) ◽

pp. 633-639 ◽

Cited By ~ 247

Author(s):

A. D. M. Smith ◽

E. J. Fulton ◽

A. J. Hobday ◽

D. C. Smith ◽

P. Shoulder

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Policy Development ◽

Fishery Management ◽

Rapid Development ◽

Management Strategies ◽

National Policy ◽

Single Species ◽

Ecological Impacts ◽

Practical Implementation ◽

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management

Abstract Smith, A. D. M., Fulton, E. J., Hobday, A. J., Smith, D. C., and Shoulder, P. 2007. Scientific tools to support the practical implementation of ecosystem-based fisheries management. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 64: 633–639. Ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) has emerged during the past 5 y as an alternative approach to single-species fishery management. To date, policy development has generally outstripped application and implementation. The EBFM approach has been broadly adopted at a policy level within Australia through a variety of instruments including fisheries legislation, environmental legislation, and a national policy on integrated oceans management. The speed of policy adoption has necessitated equally rapid development of scientific and management tools to support practical implementation. We discuss some of the scientific tools that have been developed to meet this need. These tools include extension of the management strategy evaluation (MSE) approach to evaluate broader ecosystem-based fishery management strategies (using the Atlantis modelling framework), development of new approaches to ecological risk assessment (ERA) for evaluating the ecological impacts of fishing, and development of a harvest strategy framework (HSF) and policy that forms the basis for a broader EBFM strategy. The practical application of these tools (MSE, ERA, and HSF) is illustrated for the southern and eastern fisheries of Australia.

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Refining Fisheries Advice With Stock-Specific Ecosystem Information

Frontiers in Marine Science ◽

10.3389/fmars.2021.602072 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Jacob W. Bentley ◽

Mathieu G. Lundy ◽

Daniel Howell ◽

Steven E. Beggs ◽

Alida Bundy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Single Species ◽

Ecosystem Model ◽

Irish Sea ◽

Fishing Mortality ◽

Standard Assessment ◽

Stock Assessments ◽

Current Assessment ◽

The Irish Sea ◽

Management Advice

Although frequently suggested as a goal for ecosystem-based fisheries management, incorporating ecosystem information into fisheries stock assessments has proven challenging. The uncertainty of input data, coupled with the structural uncertainty of complex multi-species models, currently makes the use of absolute values from such models contentious for short-term single-species fisheries management advice. Here, we propose a different approach where the standard assessment methodologies can be enhanced using ecosystem model derived information. Using a case study of the Irish Sea, we illustrate how stock-specific ecosystem indicators can be used to set an ecosystem-based fishing mortality reference point (FECO) within the “Pretty Good Yield” ranges for fishing mortality which form the present precautionary approach adopted in Europe by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). We propose that this new target, FECO, can be used to scale fishing mortality down when the ecosystem conditions for the stock are poor and up when conditions are good. This approach provides a streamlined quantitative way of incorporating ecosystem information into catch advice and provides an opportunity to operationalize ecosystem models and empirical indicators, while retaining the integrity of current assessment models and the FMSY-based advice process.

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Implementing ecosystem-based fisheries management: from single-species to integrated ecosystem assessment and advice for Baltic Sea fish stocks

ICES Journal of Marine Science ◽

10.1093/icesjms/fst123 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 71 (5) ◽

pp. 1187-1197 ◽

Cited By ~ 63

Author(s):

Christian Möllmann ◽

Martin Lindegren ◽

Thorsten Blenckner ◽

Lena Bergström ◽

Michele Casini ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Baltic Sea ◽

Fisheries Management ◽

Gadus Morhua ◽

Single Species ◽

Clupea Harengus ◽

Fish Stock ◽

Fish Stocks ◽

The Baltic ◽

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽

Sea Fish

Abstract Theory behind ecosystem-based management (EBM) and ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) is now well developed. However, the implementation of EBFM exemplified by fisheries management in Europe is still largely based on single-species assessments and ignores the wider ecosystem context and impact. The reason for the lack or slow implementation of EBM and specifically EBFM is a lack of a coherent strategy. Such a strategy is offered by recently developed integrated ecosystem assessments (IEAs), a formal synthesis tool to quantitatively analyse information on relevant natural and socio-economic factors, in relation to specified management objectives. Here, we focus on implementing the IEA approach for Baltic Sea fish stocks. We combine both tactical and strategic management aspects into a single strategy that supports the present Baltic Sea fish stock advice, conducted by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). We first review the state of the art in the development of IEA within the current management framework. We then outline and discuss an approach that integrates fish stock advice and IEAs for the Baltic Sea. We intentionally focus on the central Baltic Sea and its three major fish stocks cod (Gadus morhua), herring (Clupea harengus), and sprat (Sprattus sprattus), but emphasize that our approach may be applied to other parts and stocks of the Baltic, as well as other ocean areas.

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Abundance and size of western rock lobster (Panulirus cygnus) as a function of benthic habitat: implications for ecosystem-based fisheries management

Marine and Freshwater Research ◽

10.1071/mf09031 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 61 (3) ◽

pp. 279 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Lynda M. Bellchambers ◽

Scott N. Evans ◽

Jessica J. Meeuwig

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Single Species ◽

Benthic Habitat ◽

Ecological Interactions ◽

Rock Lobster ◽

Important Species ◽

Effective Implementation ◽

Panulirus Cygnus ◽

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management ◽

The Relationship

Ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) requires the expansion of fisheries research programs to include the relationship between target species and their habitats such that trophic and other ecological interactions can be assessed. The western rock lobster (Panulirus cygnus) is an ecologically important species that supports Australia’s most valuable single-species fisheries. We tested the relationship between abundance and size of western rock lobster and benthic habitats based on the annual independent breeding stock survey and benthic towed video transects. The work was undertaken at Dongara, Jurien Bay and Lancelin, Western Australia between 2005 and 2007. Abundance of western rock lobster was significantly but moderately related to benthic habitat (adjR2 = 0.28), with high abundances associated with high cover of mixed assemblage and Ecklonia sp. Size was effectively predicted by habitat (adjR2 = 0.65) with larger lobsters found in mixed assemblages with sponge and smaller lobsters associated with mixed assemblage with Ecklonia sp. Our study has shown that understanding the influence of habitat and fishing pressure on the abundance and size of targeted species is a critical step in the effective implementation of EBFM.

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Ecosystem-based fisheries management: some practical suggestions

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f07-062 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 64 (6) ◽

pp. 928-939 ◽

Cited By ~ 112

Author(s):

Richard J Marasco ◽

Daniel Goodman ◽

Churchill B Grimes ◽

Peter W Lawson ◽

Andre E Punt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fisheries Management ◽

Large Scale ◽

Fishery Management ◽

Single Species ◽

The United States ◽

Course Of Action ◽

Daunting Task ◽

Transition Modeling ◽

And Function ◽

Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management

Globally, there is increased scientific and public interest in the concept of ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM). This trend is fueled by a widespread perception that large-scale fishing operations are powerful forces altering the structure and function of marine ecosystems. It is acknowledged that management needs to better account for variations in ocean productivity, stock structure, and changing social values. Many countries are contemplating how to improve ocean fishery management. In the United States, fishery management bodies are experiencing pressure to undertake the daunting task of moving from their current single-species management plans to EBFM. Impediments include lack of a clear definition of EBFM, what it entails, or how to proceed. In this paper, characteristics of fishery management that are unique to EBFM are identified. The transition to EBFM needs to be evolutionary rather than revolutionary. A course of action is outlined that can be used to guide this transition. Modeling approaches and metrics useful for planning, implementing, and evaluating EBFM are discussed, with particular emphasis on management strategy evaluation.

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