Stock complexity in fisheries management: a perspective of emerging issues related to population sub-units

• Published in: Fisheries research Vol. 43; no. 1; pp. 247 - 249
• Main Author: Stephenson, Robert L
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01-10-1999; Elsevier
• Subjects: ADMINISTRACION PESQUERA; ANIMAL POPULATION; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; BIODIVERSIDAD; BIODIVERSITE; BIODIVERSITY; Biological and medical sciences; ESTRUCTURA DE LA POBLACION; Exploitation and management of natural biological resources (hunting, fishing and exploited populations survey, etc.); FISHERY MANAGEMENT; FISHERY RESOURCES; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; GESTION DES PECHES; IDENTIFICACION; IDENTIFICATION; Marine; POBLACION ANIMAL; POPULATION ANIMALE; POPULATION STRUCTURE; Precautionary approach; RECURSOS PESQUEROS; RESSOURCE HALIEUTIQUE; Spawning components; Stock identification; STRUCTURE DE LA POPULATION; Stock identification; Spawning components; Biodiversity; Precautionary approach; Marine environment; Vertebrata; Population management; Precautionary principle; Pisces; Population structure; Identification; Resource management; Breeding site; Stock
• ISSN: 0165-7836; 1872-6763
• DOI: 10.1016/S0165-7836(99)00076-4

The common approaches to evaluation and management of marine finfish stocks assume discrete populations. While it has long been recognized that this assumption is complicated to some degree by migrations and mixing between management units, there has been little attention paid recently to the complexity of spawning components within management units. Several marine finfish species appear to have more complex stock structure than is recognized, and in many cases, management units contain stock complexes or metapopulations with several spawning components rather than single discrete populations. Unfortunately, these spawning components are typically difficult to define from traditional fisheries data, or to discriminate by conventional stock identification techniques. Failure to recognize or to account for this complex stock structure in management, however, may lead to erosion of spawning components, with unknown ecological consequences. The management of complex fish stocks, at appropriate scales, so as to preserve stock complexity, therefore, remains a major challenge. Maintenance of the full diversity of spawning locations and times is an important aspect of topical discussions of biodiversity and marine protected areas. Consequently, the importance of stock identification will increase as a result of a new emphasis on management which takes into account stock complexity within areas traditionally assumed to contain a single stock. This new emphasis on stock complexity is necessary if management is to comply with a “precautionary approach” to fisheries management.