Successful ecosystem-based management of Antarctic krill should address uncertainties in krill recruitment, behaviour and ecological adaptation

Meyer, B, Atkinson, A, Bernard, KS, Brierley, AS, Driscoll, R, Hill, SL, Marschoff, E, Maschette, D, Perry, FA, Reiss, CS, Rombolá, E, Tarling, GA, Thorpe, SE, Trathan, PN, Zhu, G and Kawaguchi, S 2020 Successful ecosystem-based management of Antarctic krill should address uncertainties in krill recruitment, behaviour and ecological adaptation. Communications Earth & Environment, 1 (1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-020-00026-1

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Abstract/Summary

Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba, supports a valuable commercial fishery in the Southwest Atlantic, which holds the highest krill densities and is warming rapidly. The krill catch is increasing, is concentrated in a small area, and has shifted seasonally from summer to autumn/winter. The fishery is managed by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, with the main goal of safeguarding the large populations of krilldependent predators. Here we show that, because of the restricted distribution of successfully spawning krill and high inter-annual variability in their biomass, the risk of direct fishery impacts on the krill stock itself might be higher than previously thought. We show how management benefits could be achieved by incorporating uncertainty surrounding key aspects of krill ecology into management decisions, and how knowledge can be improved in these key areas. This improved information may be supplied, in part, by the fishery itself.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	1Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar und Marine Research, Am Handelshafen 12, Bremerhaven, Germany. 2Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment, University of Oldenburg, Carl-von-Ossietzky-Straße 9-11, 26111 Oldenburg, Germany. 3Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity at the University of Oldenburg (HIFMB), Ammerländer Heerstrasse 231, Oldenburg 26129, Germany. 4Plymouth Marine Laboratory, Prospect Place, The Hoe, Plymouth PL1 3DH, UK. 5College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, 104 CEOAS Admin Bldg., Corvallis, OR 97330, USA. 6Scottish Oceans Institute, School of Biology, Gatty Marine Laboratory, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TS, UK. 7British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Rd, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK. 8Instituto Antártico Argentino, Dirección Nacional del Antartico, 25 de Mayo 1143, San Martín, Buenos Aires, Argentina. 9Fisheries and Aquaculture Centre, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia. 10Australian Antarctic Division, Kingston, Tasmania 7050, Australia. 11National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA. 12College of Marine Sciences, Shanghai Ocean University, 999 Huchenghuan Road, Pudong New District, 201306 Shanghai, China. 13Center for Polar Research, Shanghai Ocean University, 999 Huchenghuan Road, Puodong New District, 201306 Shanghai, China. ✉email: bettina.meyer@awi.de
Divisions:	Plymouth Marine Laboratory > National Capability categories > Single Centre NC - CLASS Plymouth Marine Laboratory > Science Areas > Marine Ecology and Biodiversity
Depositing User:	S Hawkins
Date made live:	04 Nov 2020 11:59
Last Modified:	04 Nov 2020 11:59
URI:	https://plymsea.ac.uk/id/eprint/9072

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