German fishery's adaptation to historic events, Western Baltic Sea, 1890-1950

Marine social-ecological systems (SES) have been providing important cultural, social, and economic services for many centuries. They are, however, increasingly threatened by fast changing environmental, ecological, and socio-economic conditions. As historical marine research is increasingly developing into a multidisciplinary endeavour, it offers outstanding points of departure to analyse historic events and the response and adaptation of the respective SES. Such knowledge helps to inform today's fisheries management and promotes successful management of changing ecosystems. Here, we compile and analyse historical data (1890-1950) of the German Western Baltic Sea fishery SES. This period is characterised by a series of strong impacts due to political, technological, economic, and ecological changes, such as two world wars, a global economic crisis, and other economic or ecological disasters. In our opinion, potential negative effects of those events were in the past attenuated by the system's high capacity to adapt. However, most of the fishers´ historic options on how to respond and adapt have recently become no longer available. New threats (e.g. climate change) have emerged instead. We conclude that today's fisheries management needs to integrate options of adaptation by exhausting all present or future opportunities. Adaptive fisheries management should not only focus on environmental change but need to include socio-economic change as well.

The Overfishing Problem: Natural and Social Categories in Early Twentieth-Century Fisheries Science

This article looks at how fisheries biologists of the early twentieth century conceptualized and measured overfishing and attempted to make it a scientific object. Considering both theorizing and physical practices, the essay shows that categories and understandings of both the fishing industry and fisheries science were deeply and, at times, inextricably interwoven. Fish were both scientific and economic objects. The various models fisheries science used to understand the world reflected amalgamations of biological, physical, economic, and political factors. As a result, scientists had great difficulty stabilizing the concept of overfishing and many influential scholars into the 1930s even doubted the coherence of the concept. In light of recent literature in history of fisheries and environmental social sciences that critiques the infiltration of political and economic imperatives into fisheries and environmental sciences more generally, this essay highlights both how early fisheries scientists understood their field of study as the entire combination of interactions between political, economic, biological and physical factors and the work that was necessary to separate them.

Early line and hook fishing at the Epipaleolithic site of Jordan River Dureijat (Northern Israel)

Nineteen broken and complete bone fish hooks and six grooved stones recovered from the Epipaleolithic site of Jordan River Dureijat in the Hula Valley of Israel represent the largest collection of fishing technology from the Epipaleolithic and Paleolithic periods. Although Jordan River Dureijat was occupied throughout the Epipaleolithic (~20-10 kya the fish hooks appear only at the later stage of this period (15,000-12,000 cal BP). This paper presents a multidimensional study of the hooks, grooved stones, site context, and the fish assemblage from macro and micro perspectives following technological, use wear, residue and zooarchaeological approaches. The study of the fish hooks reveals significant variability in hook size, shape and feature type and provides the first evidence that several landmark innovations in fishing technology were already in use at this early date. These include inner and outer barbs, a variety of line attachment techniques including knobs, grooves and adhesives and some of the earliest evidence for artificial lures. Wear on the grooved stones is consistent with their use as sinkers while plant fibers recovered from the grooves of one hook shank and one stone suggest the use of fishing line. This together with associations between the grooved stones and hooks in the same archaeological layers, suggests the emergence of a sophisticated line and hook technology. The complexity of this technology is highlighted by the multiple steps required to manufacture each component and combine them into an integrated system. The appearance of such technology in the Levantine Epipaleolithic record reflects a deep knowledge of fish behavior and ecology. This coincides with significant larger-scale patterns in subsistence evolution, namely broad spectrum foraging, which is an important first signal of the beginning of the transition to agriculture in this region.

Describing historical habitat use of a native fish-Cisco (Coregonus artedi)-in Lake Michigan between 1930 and 1932

With the global-scale loss of biodiversity, current restoration programs have been often required as part of conservation plans for species richness and ecosystem integrity. The restoration of pelagic-oriented cisco (Coregonus artedi) has been an interest of Lake Michigan managers because it may increase the diversity and resilience of the fish assemblages and conserve the integrity of the ecosystems in a changing environment. To inform restoration, we described historical habitat use of cisco by analyzing a unique fishery-independent dataset collected in 1930–1932 by the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries’ first research vessel Fulmar and a commercial catch dataset reported by the State of Michigan in the same period, both based on gear fished on the bottom. Our results confirmed that the two major embayments, Green Bay and Grand Traverse Bay, were important habitats for cisco and suggest that the Bays were capable of supporting cisco to complete its entire life cycle in the early 20th century as there was no lack of summer feeding and fall spawning habitats. Seasonally, our results showed that cisco stayed in nearshore waters in spring, migrated to offshore waters in summer, and then migrated back to nearshore waters in fall. The results also suggest that in summer, most ciscoes were in waters with bottom depths of 20–70 m, but the highest cisco density occurred in waters with a bottom depth around 40 m. We highlight the importance of embayment habitats to cisco restoration and the seasonal migration pattern of cisco identified in this study, which suggests that a restored cisco population can diversify the food web by occupying different habitats from the exotic fishes that now dominate the pelagic waters of Lake Michigan.

An environmental (pre)history of European fishing: past and future archaeological contributions to sustainable fisheries

This paper explores the past and potential contribution of archaeology to marine historical ecology. The primary focus is European fishing of marine and diadromous taxa, with global comparisons highlighting the wider applicability of archaeological approaches. The review illustrates how study of excavated fish bones, otoliths and shells can inform our understanding of: (a) changes in biogeography, including the previous distribution of lost species; (b) long-term fluctuations in the aquatic environment, including climate change; (c) the intensity of exploitation and other anthropogenic effects; (d) trade, commodification and globalisation. These issues are also relevant to inform fisheries conservation and management targets. Equally important, the long (pre)history of European fishing raises awareness of our ecological heritage debt, owed for centuries of wealth, sustenance and well-being, and for which we share collective responsibility. This debt represents both a loss and a reason for optimism, insofar as it is a reservoir of potential to be filled by careful stewardship of our rivers, lakes, seas and oceans.

Historical photographs of captures of recreational fishers indicate overexploitation of nearshore resources at an oceanic island

In this study, we used a historical collection of photographs taken by recreational fishers from 1940 to 2014, at the island of Gran Canaria, to show both a significant decrease in the mean total length of Epinephelus marginatus and a concurrent change in the composition of captures. Before 1980, the mean total length of fish caught and photographed was c. 100 cm, while after 2009 this was typically < 40 cm. Before 1980, the predominant captured species was E. marginatus (an apex predator), but currently the majority of catches are of omnivorous species, in particular the parrotfish, Sparisoma cretense and seabreams Diplodus spp. Overall, integration of these results indicates a qualitative and quantitative variation in captures of recreational fishers, probably as a sign of change in ecological balances and the overfished status of many target species.

Pre-Hispanic fishing practices in interfluvial Amazonia: Zooarchaeological evidence from managed landscapes on the Llanos de Mojos savanna

Recent evidence suggests the existence of Pre-Hispanic fisheries in savanna areas of the Amazon basin. How these fisheries may have functioned is still poorly known. Although many studies have drawn attention to how Pre-Hispanic inhabitants of these savannas managed to deal with excess water, little attention has been paid to understanding how large and permanent populations were sustained during long periods of drought. In the Llanos de Mojos, one of the largest savannas in South America, the landscape is greatly affected by the impacts of annual, seasonal flooding and inundations, alternating with a dry period that can last 4–6 months. The fishing practices in this area were studied on the basis of analysis of more than 17,000 fish remains recovered at Loma Salvatierra, a monumental mound located in an interfluvial area 50 km from the Mamoré River and occupied between 500 and 1400 AD. In Loma Salvatierra, a network of circular walled ponds connected to a system of canals has been identified, raising questions about a possible use of these structures for fishing. The exceptional conservation of the bone material has enabled precise taxonomic identification of more than 35 taxa, the richest fish spectrum thus far documented in the Mojos region. The dominant fish, swamp-eels (Synbranchus spp.), armored catfishes (Hoplosternum spp.), lungfish (Lepidosiren paradoxa), and tiger-fish (Hoplias malabaricus) are characteristic of shallow and stagnant waters. Our work documents the first zooarchaeological evidence of a dryland, interfluvial fishing system in the Bolivian Amazon that incorporates distinct species and fishing practices, demonstrating that these regions contain year round resources. Research is taking its first steps toward understanding landscape modifications, fish environments, and specific cultural technologies employed on this and other lowland neotropical savannas that differ from those for fishing in open waters and rivers.

Historical baselines in marine bioinvasions: Implications for policy and management

The human-mediated introduction of marine non-indigenous species is a centuries- if not millennia-old phenomenon, but was only recently acknowledged as a potent driver of change in the sea. We provide a synopsis of key historical milestones for marine bioinvasions, including timelines of (a) discovery and understanding of the invasion process, focusing on transfer mechanisms and outcomes, (b) methodologies used for detection and monitoring, (c) approaches to ecological impacts research, and (d) management and policy responses. Early (until the mid-1900s) marine bioinvasions were given little attention, and in a number of cases actively and routinely facilitated. Beginning in the second half of the 20th century, several conspicuous non-indigenous species outbreaks with strong environmental, economic, and public health impacts raised widespread concerns and initiated shifts in public and scientific perceptions. These high-profile invasions led to policy documents and strategies to reduce the introduction and spread of non-indigenous species, although with significant time lags and limited success and focused on only a subset of transfer mechanisms. Integrated, multi-vector management within an ecosystem-based marine management context is urgently needed to address the complex interactions of natural and human pressures that drive invasions in marine ecosystems.

Reconstructing long-term trajectories of fish assemblages using historical data: the Seine River basin (France) during the last two centuries

We used historical sources from the end of the nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century and current data to retrace fish assemblage trajectories for the past 150 years on 29 river stretches distributed throughout the Seine River basin. We based our analyses on species presence/absence, occurrence of amphidromous and non-native species, and species ecological traits related to habitat preference, oxygen and temperature requirements, and diet. In accordance with general trends observed for Western Europe, we detected a general decline of amphidromous species and an increase in non-native species, even if, at some sites, several non-native species were extirpated. These changes affecting amphidromous and non-native species led to a weak increase in beta-diversity in fish assemblages. Independently of amphidromous and non-native species, for a reduced set of sites, we noted that changes in the balance of ecological traits over time, trace, in a consistent way, the major steps that affected watercourses like waterway development, increasing pollution, dam construction, or, locally, the recent wastewater treatment improvement. Despite local variations, we found contrasted trends between, on one hand, large rivers and/or catchments which had experienced strong expansion in human population, where fish assemblages had deteriorated, and, on the other hand, upstream catchments, with a declining human population, where fish assemblages showed signs of improvement. Because our results suggested that long-term changes affecting fish assemblages cannot be summarized as an unequivocal gradual degradation, we questioned the use of historical data to define ecological reference conditions for river assessment and management purposes.

Opportunism or aquatic specialization? Evidence of freshwater fish exploitation at Ohalo II- A waterlogged Upper Paleolithic site

Analysis of ca. 17,000 fish remains recovered from the late Upper Paleolithic/early Epi-Paleolithic (LGM; 23,000 BP) waterlogged site of Ohalo II (Rift Valley, Israel) provides new insights into the role of wetland habitats and the fish inhabiting them during the evolution of economic strategies prior to the agricultural evolution. Of the current 19 native fish species in Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), eight species were identified at Ohalo II, belonging to two freshwater families: Cyprinidae (carps) and Cichlidae (St. Peter fish). Employing a large set of quantitative and qualitative criteria (NISP, species richness, diversity, skeletal element representation, fragmentation, color, spatial distribution, etc.), we demonstrate that the inhabitants of Ohalo II used their knowledge of the breeding behavior of different species of fish, for year-round intensive exploitation.

Increased mitochondrial DNA diversity in ancient Columbia River basin Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

The Columbia River and its tributaries provide essential spawning and rearing habitat for many salmonid species, including Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). Chinook salmon were historically abundant throughout the basin and Native Americans in the region relied heavily on these fish for thousands of years. Following the arrival of Europeans in the 1800s, salmon in the basin experienced broad declines linked to overfishing, water diversion projects, habitat destruction, connectivity reduction, introgression with hatchery-origin fish, and hydropower development. Despite historical abundance, many native salmonids are now at risk of extinction. Research and management related to Chinook salmon is usually explored under what are termed "the four H's": habitat, harvest, hatcheries, and hydropower; here we explore a fifth H, history. Patterns of prehistoric and contemporary mitochondrial DNA variation from Chinook salmon were analyzed to characterize and compare population genetic diversity prior to recent alterations and, thus, elucidate a deeper history for this species. A total of 346 ancient and 366 contemporary samples were processed during this study. Species was determined for 130 of the ancient samples and control region haplotypes of 84 of these were sequenced. Diversity estimates from these 84 ancient Chinook salmon were compared to 379 contemporary samples. Our analysis provides the first direct measure of reduced genetic diversity for Chinook salmon from the ancient to the contemporary period, as measured both in direct loss of mitochondrial haplotypes and reductions in haplotype and nucleotide diversity. However, these losses do not appear equal across the basin, with higher losses of diversity in the mid-Columbia than in the Snake subbasin. The results are unexpected, as the two groups were predicted to share a common history as parts of the larger Columbia River Basin, and instead indicate that Chinook salmon in these subbasins may have divergent demographic histories.

Conservation targets in marine protected area management suffer from shifting baseline syndrome: A case study on the Dogger Bank

The Dogger Bank is a subtidal hill in the North Sea that is a candidate Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive in UK waters. Historical records indicate that the Bank has been subject to human exploitation from before the 16th century but conservation objectives have been developed using recent survey data. This has the potential to significantly underestimate the alteration this ecosystem has experienced, making the Dogger Bank an example of shifting baseline syndrome in protected area management. We compile quantitative and qualitative descriptions from historical records of change in catch rates, fishing effort, price and fish size to show that there have been prolonged declines in abundance of fish on the Bank since the early 19th century. Use of present day data to inform conservation has led to unambitious recovery targets. Historical data, we argue, are an essential input to conservation decision making.

Historical ecology and the conservation of large, hermaphroditic fishes in Pacific Coast kelp forest ecosystems

The intensive commercial exploitation of California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher) has become a complex, multimillion-dollar industry. The fishery is of concern because of high harvest levels and potential indirect impacts of sheephead removals on the structure and function of kelp forest ecosystems. California sheephead are protogynous hermaphrodites that, as predators of sea urchins and other invertebrates, are critical components of kelp forest ecosystems in the northeast Pacific. Overfishing can trigger trophic cascades and widespread ecological dysfunction when other urchin predators are also lost from the system. Little is known about the ecology and abundance of sheephead before commercial exploitation. Lack of a historical perspective creates a gap for evaluating fisheries management measures and marine reserves that seek to rebuild sheephead populations to historical baseline conditions. We use population abundance and size structure data from the zooarchaeological record, in concert with isotopic data, to evaluate the long-term health and viability of sheephead fisheries in southern California. Our results indicate that the importance of sheephead to the diet of native Chumash people varied spatially across the Channel Islands, reflecting modern biogeographic patterns. Comparing ancient (~10,000 calibrated years before the present to 1825 CE) and modern samples, we observed variability and significant declines in the relative abundance of sheephead, reductions in size frequency distributions, and shifts in the dietary niche between ancient and modern collections. These results highlight how size-selective fishing can alter the ecological role of key predators and how zooarchaeological data can inform fisheries management by establishing historical baselines that aid future conservation.

Tambora and the mackerel year: Phenology and fisheries during an extreme climate event

Global warming has increased the frequency of extreme climate events, yet responses of biological and human communities are poorly understood, particularly for aquatic ecosystems and fisheries. Retrospective analysis of known outcomes may provide insights into the nature of adaptations and trajectory of subsequent conditions. We consider the 1815 eruption of the Indonesian volcano Tambora and its impact on Gulf of Maine (GoM) coastal and riparian fisheries in 1816. Applying complex adaptive systems theory with historical methods, we analyzed fish export data and contemporary climate records to disclose human and piscine responses to Tambora's extreme weather at different spatial and temporal scales while also considering sociopolitical influences. Results identified a tipping point in GoM fisheries induced by concatenating social and biological responses to extreme weather. Abnormal daily temperatures selectively affected targeted fish species-alewives, shad, herring, and mackerel-according to their migration and spawning phenologies and temperature tolerances. First to arrive, alewives suffered the worst. Crop failure and incipient famine intensified fishing pressure, especially in heavily settled regions where dams already compromised watersheds. Insufficient alewife runs led fishers to target mackerel, the next species appearing in abundance along the coast; thus, 1816 became the "mackerel year." Critically, the shift from riparian to marine fisheries persisted and expanded after temperatures moderated and alewives recovered. We conclude that contingent human adaptations to extraordinary weather permanently altered this complex system. Understanding how adaptive responses to extreme events can trigger unintended consequences may advance long-term planning for resilience in an uncertain future.

The History and Characteristics of the Mobulid Ray Fishery in the Bohol Sea, Philippines

The fishery for mobulid rays, also known as devil rays, has been practiced in the Bohol Sea for over a century yet very little is known about its history and characteristics. This study provides the first detailed description of the mobulid ray fishery in the Bohol Sea, Philippines. It describes the history and evolution of the fishery from the 19th century to 2013. It characterizes the fishery based on the species targeted, gears used, the organization, catch distribution, processing, monetary value, and the market of its by-products. This paper also analyses the changes that occurred through time, the management of the fishery and the drivers of the fishery. A multi-disciplinary approach was employed by combining ethno-historical research methods and catch landing monitoring in four primary sites within the Bohol Sea. This fishery began as an artisanal fishery using sail and row boats equipped with harpoons and gaff hooks practiced in at least four coastal villages in Bohol, Camiguin and Limasawa. The fishing fleet has decreased since the beginning of the 20th century however, with the motorization of the fishery and shift to the use of gillnets, the extent of the fishing grounds and market of the products have expanded. Four species of mobulid rays are caught in the Bohol Sea: Manta birostris, Mobula japanica, Mobula thurstoni and Mobula tarapacana. A fifth species, targeted by a fishing community off Dinagat as an off-shoot of the Bohol fishery is most likely the Manta alfredi. Currently, the fishery for mobulids is centered in Bohol Province where it has been practiced longest. The monetary value of mobulids in this region has increased and the dependence of fishing communities for their livelihood is significant. The unique characteristics of this fishery and the socio-cultural context within which it operates merits a thorough investigation in order to design the appropriate management strategy.

The Path towards Endangered Species: Prehistoric Fisheries in Southeastern Brazil

Brazilian shellmounds are archaeological sites with a high concentration of marine faunal remains. There are more than 2000 sites along the coast of Brazil that range in age from 8,720 to 985 cal BP. Here, we studied the ichthyoarchaeological remains (i.e., cranial/postcranial bones, otoliths, and teeth, among others) at 13 shellmounds on the southern coast of the state of Rio de Janeiro, which are located in coastal landscapes, including a sandy plain with coastal lagoons, rocky islands, islets and rocky bays. We identified patterns of similarity between shellmounds based on fish diversity, the ages of the assemblages, littoral geomorphology and prehistoric fisheries. Our new radiocarbon dating, based on otolith samples, was used for fishery characterization over time. A taxonomical study of the ichthyoarchaeological remains includes a diversity of 97 marine species, representing 37% of all modern species (i.e., 265 spp.) that have been documented along the coast of Rio de Janeiro state. This high fish diversity recovered from the shellmounds is clear evidence of well-developed prehistoric fishery activity that targeted sharks, rays and finfishes in a productive area influenced by coastal marine upwelling. The presence of adult and neonate shark, especially oceanic species, is here interpreted as evidence of prehistoric fisheries capacity for exploitation and possibly overexploitation in nursery areas. Various tools and strategies were used to capture finfish in seasonal fisheries, over rocky reef bottoms and in sandy littoral environments. Massive catches of whitemouth croaker, main target dermersal species of South Atlantic coast, show evidence of a reduction in body size of approximately 28% compared with modern fisheries. Fishery activity involving vulnerable species, especially in nursery areas, could mark the beginning of fish depletion along the southeastern Brazilian coast and the collapse of natural fish populations.

Art, fisheries and ethnobiology

BACKGROUND

Nature is perceived in a variety of forms, and the perception of nature can also be expressed in different ways. Local art may represent the perception of nature by humans. It can embody perception, imagination and wisdom. Local art, in particular, reflects how people interact with nature. For example, when studying the representation of fish by different cultures, it is possible to access information on the fish species found in the environment, on its relative importance, and on historical events, among others. In this context, art can be used to obtain information on historical events, species abundance, ecology, and behaviour, for example. It can also serve to compare baselines by examining temporal and spatial scales. This study aims to analyse art and nature from a human ecological perspective: art can understood as an indicator of fish abundance or salience. Art has a variety of dimensions and perspectives. Art can also be associated with conservation ecology, being useful to reinterpret ecological baselines. A variety of paintings on fish, as well as paintings from local art, are explored in this study. They are analyzed as representing important fish, spatially and historically.

METHODS

A survey regarding the fish found in different paintings was conducted using art books and museum books. Pictures were taken by visiting museums, particularly for local or traditional art (Australia and Cape Town).

RESULTS

The fish illustrated here seem to be commonly important in terms of salience. For example, Coryphaena spp. is abundant in Greece, Nile tilapia in Egypt, Gadus morhua in the Netherlands, as well as barracuda in Australia; salience is also applied to useful, noticeable or beautiful organisms, such as Carassius auratus (China). Another aspect of salience, the diversity of a group, is also represented by the panel where Uraspis uraspis appears to be depicted.

CONCLUSIONS

Regarding the evaluation of baselines, we should consider that art may represent abundant fish in certain historic periods and geographic regions. Art could be an important temporal and geographical indicator to discover preterit information on the abundance of fish and compare it to present abundance.

Analysis of large-scale spatio-temporal trends of Ostrea puelchana beds in Northern Patagonian gulfs, Argentina

Wild oyster populations have declined severely worldwide, however fluctuations of South Atlantic populations are poorly documented. We explored the changes in the abundance of Ostrea puelchana population of Northern Patagonia, Argentina, by linking data from paleontological, archaeological and informal sources, with time series data from fishing, ecological and studies of oyster pathology. The present work is the first study which includes a South Atlantic time series concerning oyster beds. The focal area for this study is the San Matías Gulf (SMG, 40° 50'-42° 15' S, 63° 5'-65° 10' W). Populations of O. puelchana were inferred from sub-fossil deposits (>700 years ago) throughout the gulf, but were documented in surveys a century ago only in the NW coast. The population has declined in the last decades. However, new populations have established recently in the NE and southern regions of the gulf. A Bonamia exitiosa epizootic was coincident with the declining trend of the abundance provided by the time series, suggesting that beds declined as a consequence of parasite infections. Dredging fisheries for scallops took place in the 1970s and 1980s on the NE coast of the gulf, in areas adjacent to the NE oyster beds. We proposed that fishing activities might have had a low impact on oyster beds, since NE beds expanded and increased during that period. The southward expansion of oyster population at latitudes beyond the historical distribution range might reflect long-term adequate environmental conditions for larval survival on the NE and S of the SMG.

Commercial fishing and the study of marine fauna in Argentina, 1890-1930

This paper examines the relationship between the development of commercial maritime fishing and the study of marine fauna in Argentina between the end of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century. It analyzes ichthyological research, the commercialization of fresh maritime products and the opportunities that urban markets offered for the creation of collections. It also focuses on the beginnings of deep-sea fishing, which would make it possible to capture and study new species as well as gather information about the marine environment.

[Stocking with bluegill sunfish, Lepomis macrochirus, by fisheries experimental stations, fishing tackle makers, and anglers in Japan, 1960-1975]

This paper discusses some facts that were pivotal in the process of the introduction of Bluegill Sunfish, Lepomis macrochirus, into various places in Japan, however have not been considered in the existing literature. This paper points out that L. macrochirus escaped, and also was stocked, to the open water in Osaka as a result of experiments by a fisheries experimental station in the 1960s and early 1970s. In Shiga Prefecture too, the fish escaped into Lake Biwa as a result of experiments by a fisheries experimental station in about 1969. Neither Osaka nor Shiga are mentioned, by previous studies based on questionnaire research, as the prefectures in which L. macrochirus inhabited in the years between 1960, when the fish was first introduced into Japan, and 1979. In addition, anglers, who considered L. macrochirus an ideal game fish, stocked ponds and lakes in some prefectures with L. macrochirus in around 1970 on purpose to multiply the species. During this process, a network among not only local governments, fisheries experimental stations, and fish farmers, but also industries targeting anglers, such as fishing tackle makers and a magazine for anglers, was being formed, which however did not get established after all. These findings will contribute to enrich the basis of today's genetic research on the distribution of L. macrochirus in Japan.

A spatially distinct history of the development of california groundfish fisheries

During the past century, commercial fisheries have expanded from small vessels fishing in shallow, coastal habitats to a broad suite of vessels and gears that fish virtually every marine habitat on the globe. Understanding how fisheries have developed in space and time is critical for interpreting and managing the response of ecosystems to the effects of fishing, however time series of spatially explicit data are typically rare. Recently, the 1933–1968 portion of the commercial catch dataset from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife was recovered and digitized, completing the full historical series for both commercial and recreational datasets from 1933–2010. These unique datasets include landing estimates at a coarse 10 by 10 minute “grid-block” spatial resolution and extends the entire length of coastal California up to 180 kilometers from shore. In this study, we focus on the catch history of groundfish which were mapped for each grid-block using the year at 50% cumulative catch and total historical catch per habitat area. We then constructed generalized linear models to quantify the relationship between spatiotemporal trends in groundfish catches, distance from ports, depth, percentage of days with wind speed over 15 knots, SST and ocean productivity. Our results indicate that over the history of these fisheries, catches have taken place in increasingly deeper habitat, at a greater distance from ports, and in increasingly inclement weather conditions. Understanding spatial development of groundfish fisheries and catches in California are critical for improving population models and for evaluating whether implicit stock assessment model assumptions of relative homogeneity of fisheries removals over time and space are reasonable. This newly reconstructed catch dataset and analysis provides a comprehensive appreciation for the development of groundfish fisheries with respect to commonly assumed trends of global fisheries patterns that are typically constrained by a lack of long-term spatial datasets.

In the wake of politics: the political and economic construction of fisheries biology, 1860-1970

As an environmentally focused, applied field science, fisheries biology has recently been marked by its failed promise to enable sustainable exploitation. Fisheries biology's origin through state support raises many questions. How did fisheries biologists get this support? Did political considerations and economic ideals fundamentally shape the science? Why has it been perceived as fundamentally conservation oriented? New evidence indicates the political basis for Thomas Henry Huxley's contention that the deep-sea fisheries were inexhaustible; this essay shows how his influence extended to recent neoliberal resource management solutions. It also explores how fisheries biology acquired the ideal of maximum sustained yield (MSY) via Progressive Era efficiency conservation and German scientific forestry; how American Cold War foreign policy made this ideal paradigmatic of mid to late twentieth-century fisheries biology; and how emerging bioeconomics in the 1950s imposed a troublesome misunderstanding of fisheries biology's earlier mission.

Coastal fisheries in the Eastern Baltic Sea (Gulf of Finland) and its basin from the 15 to the Early 20th centuries

The paper describes and analyzes original data, extracted from historical documents and scientific surveys, related to Russian fisheries in the southeastern part of the Gulf of Finland and its inflowing rivers during the 15- early 20^th centuries. The data allow tracing key trends in fisheries development and in the abundance of major commercial species. In particular, results showed that, over time, the main fishing areas moved from the middle part of rivers downstream towards and onto the coastal sea. Changes in fishing patterns were closely interrelated with changes in the abundance of exploited fish. Anadromous species, such as Atlantic sturgeon, Atlantic salmon, brown trout, whitefish, vimba bream, smelt, lamprey, and catadromous eel were the most important commercial fish in the area because they were abundant, had high commercial value and were easily available for fishing in rivers. Due to intensive exploitation and other human-induced factors, populations of most of these species had declined notably by the early 20^th century and have now lost commercial significance. The last sturgeon was caught in 1996, and today only smelt and lamprey support small commercial fisheries. According to historical sources, catches of freshwater species such as roach, ide, pike, perch, ruffe and burbot regularly occurred, in some areas exceeding half of the total catch, but they were not as important as migrating fish and no clear trends in abundance are apparent. Of documented marine catch, Baltic herring appeared in the 16^th century, but did not become commercially significant until the 19^th century. From then until now herring have been the dominant catch.

Rising catch variability preceded historical fisheries collapses in Alaska

Statistical indicators such as rising variance and rising skewness in key system parameters may provide early warning of "regime shifts" in communities and populations. However, the utility of these indicators has rarely been tested in the large, complex ecosystems that are of most interest to managers. Crustacean fisheries in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea experienced a series of collapses beginning in the 1970s, and we used spatially resolved catch data from these fisheries to test the predictions that increasing variability and skewness would precede stock collapse. Our data set consisted of catch data from 14 fisheries (12 collapsing and two non-collapsing), spanning 278 cumulative years. Our sampling unit for analysis was the Alaska Department of Fish and Game statistical reporting area (mean n for individual fisheries = 42 areas, range 7-81). We found that spatial variability in catches increased prior to stock collapse: a random-effects model estimating trend in variability across all 12 collapsing fisheries showed strong evidence of increasing variability prior to collapse. Individual trends in variability were statistically significant for only four of the 12 collapsing fisheries, suggesting that rising variability might be most effective as an indicator when information from multiple populations is available. Analyzing data across multiple fisheries allowed us to detect increasing variability 1-4 years prior to collapse, and trends in variability were significantly different for collapsing and non-collapsing fisheries. In spite of theoretical expectations, we found no evidence of pre-collapse increases in catch skewness. Further, while models generally predict that rising variability should be a transient phenomenon around collapse points, increased variability was a persistent feature of collapsed fisheries in our study. We conclude that this result is more consistent with fishing effects as the cause of increased catch variability, rather than the critical slowing down that is the driver of increased variability in regime shift models. While our results support the use of rising spatial variability as a leading indicator of regime shifts, the failure of our data to support other model-derived predictions underscores the need for empirical validation before these indicators can be used with confidence by ecosystem managers.

[Review on taxonomical studies of Chinese inland-water fish]

We reviewed the taxonomy and systematics research history of freshwater fish in China based on 1 236 taxonomic literature records on Chinese freshwater fish. The research was divided into five research periods according to specific historical events: (1) period by foreign scholars, (2) period with Chinese scholars, (3) period during World War II and Civil War, (4) recovery period and (5) period of rapid development. There were representative studies and innovations in all periods. We also discuss here the characteristics of each period on the basis of literature analysis.

Multi-annual fluctuations in reconstructed historical time-series of a European lobster (Homarus gammarus) population disappear at increased exploitation levels

Through the history of ecology, fluctuations of populations have been a dominating topic, and endogenous causes of fluctuations and oscillations have been recognized and studied for more than 80 years. Here we analyzed an historical dataset, covering more than 130 years, of European lobster (Homarus gammarus) catches. The data shows periodic fluctuations, which are first dampened and then disappear over time. The disappearance of the periodicity coincided with a substantial increase in fishing effort and the oscillations have not reappeared in the time series. The shifting baseline syndrome has changed our perception of not only the status of the stock, but also the regulating pressures. We describe the transition of a naturally regulated lobster population into a heavily exploited fisheries controlled stock. This is shown by the incorporation of environmental and endogenous processes in generalized additive models, autocorrelation functions and periodicity analyses of time-series.

"Good looks don’t boil the pot": Irish-Newfoundland women as fish(-producing) wives

This article explores the historical understanding of maritime womanhood in Newfoundland by examining women in fishing families along the southern Avalon Peninsula from the late eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries. It does not talk about fishwives in any popular sense of the word, for these women did not market fish; rather, they produced salt fish for market. And while middle-class observers may have perceived them as coarse and bold, within their own families and fishing communities they were seen as essential partners who contributed equally to family economies. Within a sexual division of labor that assigned vital and complementary tasks to both men and women, Newfoundland fish(-producing) wives carried out hard physical labor at public sites of production. This contributed significantly to the construction of “woman” as essential worker, which in turn had broader repercussions for their status and authority within fishing communities. The participation of fish(-producing) wives changed significantly from the 1950s onward, as the fishery moved from household production to a modernized, and discursively masculinized, industry. Yet the iconic image of the fish(-producing) wife in traditional household production remains undisrupted in the early twenty-first century.

Spatial and seasonal distribution of American whaling and whales in the age of sail

American whalemen sailed out of ports on the east coast of the United States and in California from the 18^th to early 20^th centuries, searching for whales throughout the world’s oceans. From an initial focus on sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) and right whales (Eubalaena spp.), the array of targeted whales expanded to include bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus), humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), and gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus). Extensive records of American whaling in the form of daily entries in whaling voyage logbooks contain a great deal of information about where and when the whalemen found whales. We plotted daily locations where the several species of whales were observed, both those caught and those sighted but not caught, on world maps to illustrate the spatial and temporal distribution of both American whaling activity and the whales. The patterns shown on the maps provide the basis for various inferences concerning the historical distribution of the target whales prior to and during this episode of global whaling.

The tragedy of the commodity and the farce of AquAdvantage Salmon

The US Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve AquAdvantage Salmon as the first genetically modified animal for human consumption. The genetic modifications allow the proprietary fish to grow at a rate twice as fast as a wild salmon, leading to greater ‘efficiency’ in terms of reduced costs and reduced time to market. This article provides an analysis of the ways in which AquAdvantage Salmon exemplifies capitalist market forces controlling and guiding the terms of salmon recovery and conservation. The authors trace historical developments within the salmon industry to demonstrate how capitalist commodity production has impacted fishing communities. They reject the oft-cited ‘tragedy of the commons’ hypothesis offered to explain fisheries crises. In its place, they offer the conceptual framework of the ‘tragedy of the commodity’ to explore how capitalist market forces and complicit state regulations amplify rather than resolve global environmental problems.

Stable isotope evidence for late medieval (14th-15th C) origins of the eastern Baltic cod (Gadus morhua) fishery

Although recent historical ecology studies have extended quantitative knowledge of eastern Baltic cod (Gadus morhua) exploitation back as far as the 16th century, the historical origin of the modern fishery remains obscure. Widespread archaeological evidence for cod consumption around the eastern Baltic littoral emerges around the 13th century, three centuries before systematic documentation, but it is not clear whether this represents (1) development of a substantial eastern Baltic cod fishery, or (2) large-scale importation of preserved cod from elsewhere. To distinguish between these hypotheses we use stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis to determine likely catch regions of 74 cod vertebrae and cleithra from 19 Baltic archaeological sites dated from the 8th to the 16th centuries. δ(13)C and δ(15)N signatures for six possible catch regions were established using a larger sample of archaeological cod cranial bones (n = 249). The data strongly support the second hypothesis, revealing widespread importation of cod during the 13th to 14th centuries, most of it probably from Arctic Norway. By the 15th century, however, eastern Baltic cod dominate within our sample, indicating the development of a substantial late medieval fishery. Potential human impact on cod stocks in the eastern Baltic must thus be taken into account for at least the last 600 years.

Comparison of modern and historical fish catches (AD 750-1400) to inform goals for marine protected areas and sustainable fisheries

We tested the unsustainable fishing hypothesis that species in assemblages of fish differ in relative abundance as a function of their size, growth rates, vagility, trophic level, and diet by comparing species composition in historical bone middens, modern fisheries, and areas closed to fishing. Historical data came from one of the earliest and most enduring Swahili coastal settlements (approximately AD 750-1400). Modern data came from fisheries near the archeological site and intensively harvested fishing grounds in southern Kenya. The areas we sampled that were closed to fishing (closures) were small (<28 km(2) ) and permanent. The midden data indicated changes in the fish assemblage that are consistent with a weak expansion of fishing intensity and the unsustainable fishing hypothesis. Fishes represented in the early midden assemblages from AD 750 to 950 had longer life spans, older age at maturity, and longer generation times than fish assemblages after AD 950, when the abundance of species with longer maximum body lengths increased. Changes in fish life histories during the historical period were, however, one-third smaller than differences between the historical and modern assemblages. Fishes in the modern assemblage had smaller mean body sizes, higher growth and mortality rates, a higher proportion of microinvertivores, omnivores, and herbivores, and higher rates of food consumption, whereas the historical assemblage had a greater proportion of piscivores and macroinvertivores. Differences in fish life histories between modern closures and modern fishing grounds were also small, but the life histories of fishes in modern closures were more similar to those in the midden before AD 950 because they had longer life spans, older age at maturity, and a higher proportion of piscivores and macroinvertivores than the modern fisheries. Modern closures and historical fish assemblages were considerably different, although both contained species with longer life spans.

The BP oil spill and the bounty of Plaquemines Parish

The source of 25 to 30 percent of America's seafood, the Mississippi River Delta's cornucopian world is now uncertain. And yet, even if shrimp, oysters, and finfish are unaffected by the BP Oil Spill - a big if - one can already reflect on the passing of the culture once built upon gathering them. For almost three centuries, levees made life possible along the riverbanks and in the wetlands beyond. Those same levees also ensured the wetlands would eventually melt away into the Gulf. Cutting off the silt left behind during annual river inundations subjected the fragile land to erosion. Sulfur, natural gas, and oil production companies dug twenty thousand miles of canals to gain more direct routes to their fields and to pump out their mineral wealth. This caused salt-water intrusion that killed off plant life and caused more erosion. The world that sustained my Plaquemines ancestors was less subject to collapse following disasters not only because the ecosystem before the wetlands' ongoing loss was then more vibrant, complex, and robust; but also because their lives, especially their culinary lives, were more vibrant, complex, and robust. Life was hard, but when it came to putting food on the table, life followed the seasons.

An asset-based approach to vulnerability: the case of small-scale fishing areas in Cameroon and Nigeria

This paper analyses vulnerability to poverty of rural small-scale fishing communities using cross-section data from 295 households in Cameroon and 267 in Nigeria. We propose a vulnerability measure that incorporates the idea of asset poverty into the concept of expected poverty, which allows decomposing expected poverty into expected structural-chronic, structural-transient, and stochastic-transient poverty. The findings show that most households in our study areas are expected to be structurally-chronic and structurally-transient poor. This underlines the importance of asset formation for long-term poverty reduction strategies. Further refinements are possible with longitudinal data and information about future states of nature.

Something fishy: Chile's blue revolution, commodity diseases, and the problem of sustainability

The United Nations describes aquaculture as the fastest-growing method of food production, and some industry boosters have heralded the coming of a sustainable blue revolution. This article interprets the meteoric rise and sudden collapse of Atlantic salmon aquaculture in southern Chile (1980-2010) by integrating concepts from commodity studies and comparative environmental history. I juxtapose salmon aquaculture to twentieth-century export banana production to reveal the similar dynamics that give rise to "commodity diseases"—events caused by the entanglement of biological, social, and political-economic processes that operate on local, regional, and transoceanic geographical scales. Unsurprisingly, the risks and burdens associated with commodity diseases are borne disproportionately by production workers and residents in localities where commodity disease events occur. Chile's blue revolution suggests that evaluating the sustainability of aquaculture in Latin America cannot be divorced from processes of accumulation.

Grassroots development and upwards accountabilities: tensions in the reconstruction of Aceh's fishing industry

This article explores the tensions between aid funding and grassroots development goals in the context of post-disaster fisheries reconstruction in Aceh, Indonesia. We argue that both short- and long-term grassroots goals are distorted by upward accountability requirements which lead to unsatisfactory aid outcomes. Our analysis employs the concept of aid webs and draws on fifty-one formal interviews with stakeholders in Aceh in 2007/2008. The findings initially concentrate on the impacts of upward accountability on project cycles, with a particular focus on the problematic incorporation of private boat-building contractors and commercial values during the implementation phase. We then discuss the more subtle, long-term impacts of upward accountability on the professionalization of community institutions — in this case, the Panglima Laot Lhok. We conclude with a few observations about the hybrid institutions — combining elements of local and development cultures — that are produced within the current political economy of aid.

Fish and boats: fisheries management issues in Northland

New Zealand fisheries management has been the focus of a great deal of research, largely because of the early, and very successful, introduction of a neoliberal property regime in the country's commercial fisheries. Less attention has been paid to the other management activities of New Zealand's Ministry of Fisheries. This paper outlines the fisheries management issues arising over the last decade in the region to the north of Auckland and the practices of the Ministry as it worked to address them.

Reviving red snapper

Red snappers in the Gulf of Mexico once hovered on the brink of extinction, their population having dropped to 2 percent of what had historically swum in the Gulf. But thanks to a recently introduced plan that turns the conventional wisdom of fisheries management on its head, the picture has begun to change. Called Individual Fishing Quotas (IFQs), the new regulations, which give a guaranteed allotment of fish to each participant instead of applying industry-wide quotas, went into effect for Gulf of Mexico Red Snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) in early 2007. The results were immediate and so profound that the Gulf Fishery Management Council voted earlier this year to increase the annual limit on red snapper to nearly 7 million pounds from 5 million.

Graphical methods and Cold War scientific practice: the Stommel Diagram's intriguing journey from the physical to the biological environmental sciences

In the last quarter of the twentieth century, an innovative three-dimensional graphical technique was introduced into biological oceanography and ecology, where it spread rapidly. Used to improve scientists' understanding of the importance of scale within oceanic ecosystems, this influential diagram addressed biological scales from phytoplankton to fish, physical scales from diurnal tides to ocean currents, and temporal scales from hours to ice ages. Yet the Stommel Diagram (named for physical oceanographer Henry Stommel, who created it in 1963) had not been devised to aid ecological investigations. Rather, Stommel intended it to help plan large-scale research programs in physical oceanography, particularly as Cold War research funding enabled a dramatic expansion of physical oceanography in the 1960s. Marine ecologists utilized the Stommel Diagram to enhance research on biological production in ocean environments, a key concern by the 1970s amid growing alarm about overfishing and ocean pollution. Before the end of the twentieth century, the diagram had become a significant tool within the discipline of ecology. Tracing the path that Stommel's graphical techniques traveled from the physical to the biological environmental sciences reveals a great deal about practices in these distinct research communities and their relative professional and institutional standings in the Cold War era. Crucial to appreciating the course of that path is an understanding of the divergent intellectual and social contexts of the physical versus the biological environmental sciences.

Historical marine ecology: examining the role of fisheries in changes in North Sea benthos

The organisms living on and in the sea floor, the benthos, represent an important ecological group. Although some (shellfish) have an economic value, most do not, and so little long-term data are available. We have identified three sources of historic benthic data for the North Sea, a regional sea that has been subjected to multiple human impacts for at least several hundred years. Each dataset has its limitations, but by their use together some issues emerge. Wider community shifts were observed in the shorter term and a number of extirpations at the scale of the North Sea were seen over longer time scales. The extirpated taxa share a number of characteristics consistent with an effect of fisheries such as fragile morphology. We must concentrate now on furthering our understanding of the ecological significance of shifts in dominance of particular functional units and protecting those habitats and species most vulnerable to fisheries-driven extirpation.

Fisheries in the Southern Ocean: an ecosystem approach

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) is bound by its Article II, 3 to follow an ecosystem approach to management. This approach has been extended to the application of a precautionary approach in the late 1980s. In our review, we deal primarily with the science-related aspects of CCAMLR and its development towards an ecosystem approach to the management of the living resources of the Southern Ocean. To assist the Commission in meeting its objectives, as set out in Article II, 3, the Scientific Committee established the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Programme to detect possible effects of krill fishing on the performance of top-level predators, such as albatrosses, penguins, petrels and fur seals. Fisheries in the Southern Ocean followed the fate of other fisheries worldwide in which target species were depleted to low level one after the other. Currently, two types of fisheries are open: the longline fisheries on Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) and Antarctic toothfish (Dissostichus mawsoni) and the trawl fisheries on mackerel icefish (Champsocephalus gunnari). Both fisheries are managed in a single-species context, however, with conservation measures in place to protect by-catch species, such as rattails (Macrouridae) and skates and rays (Rajidae). Two major problems still exist in fisheries in the Southern Ocean: the by-catch of birds in longline fisheries primarily in the Indian Ocean and the high level of IUU fishing again in the Indian Ocean. Both, the by-catch of birds and high IUU catches undermine the credibility of CCAMLR to safeguard the marine living resources in the Southern Ocean.

"Esteeme a little of fish": fish, fishponds, and farming in eighteenth-century New England and the Mid-Atlantic

Prior to the advent of scientific aquaculture in the mid-nineteenth century, English farming manuals of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries instructed American colonists in the "art of husbandry," imparting advice and passing on the best-known strategies for keeping and rearing fish in enclosed ponds. The development of such ponds in the New England and Mid-Atlantic colonies during the eighteenth century marked the culmination of a long process by which British-American colonists adapted to declines in natural fish populations brought on by over-fishing and disruption of habitat by water-powered mills. The development of private fishponds as an increasingly important component of American mixed husbandry practices in long-settled areas by the end of the eighteenth century illustrates early American farmers' ability to successfully adapt to self-wrought changes in their physical environment.

Cod and God: Dr Wilfred Grenfell in Newfoundland

Wilfred Thomason Grenfell (1865-1940) began his medical career working for the National Mission for Deep Sea Fishermen on the North Sea. In 1892, the Mission sent him to Newfoundland to invesitigate the living and working conditions of the fishermen there. He spent most of his life improving conditions for the settlers on the coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador. His unorthodox methods and difficult personality brought him into conflict with the authorities. In spite of this, he achieved significant changes for the Newfoundlanders in medical care, education and economic prospects.

Directional selection by fisheries and the timing of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) migrations

The timing of migration from feeding to breeding areas is a critical link between the growth and survival of adult animals, their reproduction, and the fitness of their progeny. Commercial fisheries often catch a large fraction of the migrants (e.g., salmon), and exploitation rates can vary systematically over the fishing season. We examined daily records of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) in the Egegik and Ugashik management districts in Bristol Bay, Alaska (USA), for evidence of such temporally selective fishing. In recent years, the early migrants have experienced lower fishing rates than later migrants, especially in the Egegik district, and the median migration date of the fish escaping the fisheries has been getting progressively earlier in both districts. Moreover, the overall runs (catch and escapement) in the Egegik district and, to a lesser extent the Ugashik district, have been getting earlier, as predicted in response to the selection on timing. The trends in timing were not correlated with sea surface temperature in the region of the North Pacific Ocean where the salmon tend to concentrate, but the trends in the two districts were correlated with each other, indicating that there may be some common environmental influence in addition to the effect of selection. Despite the selection, both groups of salmon have remained productive. We hypothesize that this resilience may result from representation of all component populations among the early and late migrants, so that the fisheries have not eliminated entire populations, and from density-dependent processes that may have helped maintain the productivity of these salmon populations.

Japanese whaling and other cetacean fisheries

BACKGROUND, AIM AND SCOPE

Discussions on management of whales and whaling are factually monopolized by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), resulting in a limitation of information flow to outside communities. With an aim to improve the situation, this article briefly reviews whaling and dolphin/porpoise fisheries in Japan, which is recognized to be the world largest cetacean exploitation.

MAIN FEATURES

The Japanese government grants an annual take of 22,647 cetaceans of 15 species for scientific whaling and various kinds of active dolphin/porpoise fisheries by the nationals. Further, over 100 baleen whales and numerous small cetaceans are taken in passive net fisheries. They are used mostly for human consumption and some for aquarium display.

RESULTS

Sustainability of the take is not evident and some populations have shown a historical decline. The Japanese program of scientific whaling has been reviewed by IWC and its Scientific Committee (SC), although they have arrived at no consensus.

DISCUSSION

The current scientific whaling program invites arguments from the view points of science as well as concerning the ethics of scientists, economy, and interpretation of the International Convention for Regulation of Whaling (ICRW) of 1946. The scientific whaling and other Japanese cetacean fisheries are benefited from nationalistic public attitude, and ambiguity and weakness of the ICRW.

CONCLUSIONS

Japanese cetacean harvest will continue supported by domestic demand for whale products as long as the proceeds can sustain the operation, even with criticisms from outside communities.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND PERSPECTIVES

For safe management of small cetaceans exploited by Japan, studies are urgent on the population structure, abundance and validity of catch statistics. The results should be open to scientific communities.

New streams of religion: fly fishing as a lived, religion of nature

Fly fishers around the world frequently use terms such as religious, spiritual, sacred, divine, ritual, meditation, and conversion to describe their personal angling experiences. Further, drawing upon religious terminology, anglers will refer to rivers as their church and to nature as sacred. Often these latter pronouncements drive a concern for the conservation of these sacred spaces as evidenced by participation in both local and national conservation organizations. Informed by theoretical perspectives offered by religious studies, particularly "lived religion" and "religion and nature," I shall trace a few of the historical, material, and everyday elements of fly fishers and their subcultures, demonstrating along the way the insights that come by understanding fly fishing as a religious practice, which can, at times, drive an ethic of environmental conservation.

An evaluation of the effects of conservation and fishery enhancement hatcheries on wild populations of salmon

The historical, political and scientific aspects of salmon hatchery programmes designed to enhance fishery production, or to recover endangered populations, are reviewed. We start by pointing out that the establishment of hatcheries has been a political response to societal demands for harvest and conservation; given this social context, we then critically examined the levels of activity, the biological risks, and the economic analysis associated with salmon hatchery programmes. A rigorous analysis of the impacts of hatchery programmes was hindered by the lack of standardized data on release sizes and survival rates at all ecological scales, and since hatchery programme objectives are rarely defined, it was also difficult to measure their effectiveness at meeting release objectives. Debates on the genetic effects of hatchery programmes on wild fish have been dominated by whether correct management practices can reduce negative outcomes, but we noted that there has been an absence of programmatic research approaches addressing this important issue. Competitive interactions between hatchery and wild fish were observed to be complex, but studies researching approaches to reduce these interactions at all ecological scales during the entire salmon life history have been rare, and thus are not typically considered in hatchery management. Harvesting of salmon released from fishery enhancement hatcheries likely impacts vulnerable wild populations; managers have responded to this problem by mass marking hatchery fish, so that fishing effort can be directed towards hatchery populations. However, we noted that the effectiveness of this approach is dependant on accurate marking and production of hatchery fish with high survival rates, and it is not yet clear whether selective fishing will prevent overharvest of wild populations. Finally, research demonstrating disease transmission from hatchery fish to wild populations was observed to be equivocal; evidence in this area has been constrained by the lack of effective approaches to studying the fate of pathogens in the wild. We then reviewed several approaches to studying the economic consequences of hatchery activities intended to inform the social decisions surrounding programmes, but recognized that placing monetary value on conservation efforts or on hatcheries that mitigate cultural groups' loss of historical harvest opportunities may complicate these analyses. We noted that economic issues have rarely been included in decision making on hatchery programmes. We end by identifying existing major knowledge gaps, which, if filled, could contribute towards a fuller understanding of the role that hatchery programmes could play in meeting divergent goals. However, we also recognized that many management recommendations arising from such research may involve trade-offs between different risks, and that decisions about these trade-offs must occur within a social context. Hatcheries have played an important role in sustaining some highly endangered populations, and it is possible that reform of practices will lead to an increase in the number of successful programmes. However, a serious appraisal of the role of hatcheries in meeting broader needs is urgently warranted and should take place at the scientific, but more effectively, at the societal level.

Water quality and fisheries in the Mersey estuary, England: A historical perspective

The Mersey estuary, NW England, once had a prolific fishery but in the aftermath of the industrial revolution water quality and fisheries declined and the Mersey became infamous as one of the most polluted rivers in Europe. Until relatively recently, almost all industrial and domestic effluents were discharged without treatment resulting in abominable fouling of the shoreline, and long anoxic reaches in the upper estuary during the summer. In addition, there were unknown biological impacts resulting from a complex mixture of dangerous substances present in the river. Over 1000 million pound has been spent to remedy this situation and there is unequivocal evidence that this has had the desired effect. Dissolved oxygen is now generally >60% saturation, salmon are now found at the tidal-limit and the estuary is becoming ever more popular for sea angling. The river is no longer an embarrassing liability but is now perceived as an important asset in the economic regeneration of this region of the United Kingdom.