Natural and Anthropogenic Factors That Affect Marine Fisheries Resources

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Aquatic Animals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2024 | Viewed by 2526

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Institute for Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnology (IRBIM), National Research Council (CNR), Section of Messina, Spianata San Raineri 86, 98122 Messina, Italy
Interests: fisheries biology; stock assessment; demersal resources; fisheries management; ecosystem-based fisheries

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnology (IRBIM), National Research Council (CNR), Section of Messina, Spianata San Raineri 86, 98122 Messina, Italy
Interests: benthos; biodiversity; demersal species; fisheries biology; marine biology; stock assessment; sustainable fishery; geographic information systems

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnology (IRBIM), National Research Council (CNR), Section of Messina, Spianata San Raineri 86, 98122 Messina, Italy
Interests: fisheries biology; stock assessment; demersal species; biological surveys; histology

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnology (IRBIM), National Research Council (CNR), Section of Messina, Spianata San Raineri 86, 98122 Messina, Italy
Interests: biodiversity; ichthyoplankton; trophic ecology; reproductive biology; cephalopods; alien species

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Sustainable fishery management needs the knowledge of marine stocks in a changing ocean ecosystem under the pressure of global change to improve. In recent decades, keeping the oceans healthy has been increasingly difficult due to both anthropogenic impacts and natural alterations that affect the marine environment.

Climate change, through long-term temperature increases and a higher frequency of short-term extreme events, is undoubtedly affecting the biology and ecology of the organisms in the sea. The most visible changes affect the life cycle, reproductive efforts, and demography, but generally result from subtle adaptive responses, such as physiological adjustments and micro-evolutionary processes. The main consequences of warming are a simultaneous increase in the abundance of thermophilic and thermo-tolerant species and the disappearance or rarefaction of “cold” steno-thermal species.

Another main aspect of climate change is ocean acidification. It may lead to changes in the relative species composition at a given trophic level, affecting the overall productivity. Possible effects at the organism level include reduced growth and reproductive output, increased predation and mortality, alteration in feeding rates and behavior, and reduced thermal tolerance.

Another interesting topic is the relationship between the productivity of fishery target species and biodiversity, and their interactions in space. From a general point of view, the loss of biodiversity is related to a diminished capacity of the oceans to provide food, to maintain a high environmental quality, and to oppose perturbations.

Original manuscripts, including both research papers and review articles that address all biological and ecological aspects of marine species related to fisheries, are invited to be considered for publication in this Special Issue. In particular, the aims of this Special Issue include, but are not restricted to, the evaluation of the effects of natural and anthropic changes in marine ecosystems such as global warming, seawater temperature increases, ocean acidification, and biodiversity loss on species ecology.

Dr. Paola Rinelli
Dr. Adriana Profeta
Dr. Anna Perdichizzi
Dr. Daniela Giordano
Guest Editors

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 1559 KiB  
Article
Initial Alterations of Fish Community Structure and Diversity Following Fishing Cessation in Qilu Lake, China
by Tingbing Zhu, Feifei Hu, Jinling Gong, Kairun Liu, Zhibin Guo, Deguo Yang and Xuemei Li
Animals 2024, 14(16), 2289; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14162289 - 6 Aug 2024
Viewed by 346
Abstract
The Qilu Lake is an eutrophic shallow lake located in Yunnan Province, China. An ecological fishery project was initiated in the lake from 2011 to 2021 to introduce filter-feeding fish species that feed on algae, with the aim of improving water quality. In [...] Read more.
The Qilu Lake is an eutrophic shallow lake located in Yunnan Province, China. An ecological fishery project was initiated in the lake from 2011 to 2021 to introduce filter-feeding fish species that feed on algae, with the aim of improving water quality. In January 2022, when the ecological fishery project expired, all fisheries-related activities (including fish stocking and fishing activities) ceased in the lake. To comprehensively evaluate the initial alterations in fish community structure and diversity resulting from the fishing cessation in the Qilu Lake, the present study conducted field surveys within the one year before the fishing cessation (referred to as BFC) and the one year after the fishing cessation (referred to as AFC). A total of twenty-one fish species were collected, including four native species. Four species were recorded in the lake for the first time, including Pelteobagrus fulvidraco, Pelteobagrus vachelli, Paramisgurnus dabryanus, and Hyporhamphus intermedius. The number of fish species decreased from 21 to 13 following the fishing cessation. The fishes collected in both BFC and AFC are mainly omnivorous-feeding and of bottom-dwelling habits. The mean size of the fishes in the AFC sample shows a significant decrease compared to those in BFC. After the fishing cessation, the Shannon–Wiener diversity index and Margalef richness index of the fish slightly declined. The fish community structure of the Qilu Lake exhibits a high degree of similarity to adjacent lakes in central Yunnan. Our study demonstrates a significant shift in the fish community of the Qilu Lake following the fishing cessation, one which may adversely impact the stability of the lake ecosystem. To enhance fish species diversity in the Qilu Lake, it is recommended that policies be implemented to promote the ecological fishery project and improve habitat restoration for native fish species, while also regulating fish community structure. Full article
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14 pages, 5991 KiB  
Article
Spatial Dynamics of Demersal Fish Assemblages off the Korean Coast in the East Sea
by Joo Myun Park, Chung Il Lee, Jong Won Park, Hae Kun Jung and In Seong Han
Animals 2024, 14(11), 1612; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14111612 - 29 May 2024
Viewed by 432
Abstract
This study assessed variations in demersal fish assemblages with respect to the study site and water depth. Seasonal samplings from May 2018 to March 2019 were conducted along the northern (Ayajin, Goseong) and southern (Hupo, Uljin) sites of the East Sea off the [...] Read more.
This study assessed variations in demersal fish assemblages with respect to the study site and water depth. Seasonal samplings from May 2018 to March 2019 were conducted along the northern (Ayajin, Goseong) and southern (Hupo, Uljin) sites of the East Sea off the Korean coast, using commercial gill nets. Samples were collected at depths of ~50, ~80, ~150 m across the study sites, with concurrent monitoring of water column structures. A total of 73 species and 6250 specimens were collected. Distinctive fish species compositions were observed according to the study site and depth. Although Glyptocephalus stelleri was the most abundant fish species in both Ayajin and Hupo, Gadus macrocephalus, Icelus cataphractus, and Alcichthys elongatus were most predominant in Ayajin, whereas Cleisthenes pinetorum, Hippoglossoides dubius, and Gymnocanthus herzensteini were more prevalent in Hupo. In terms of depth layer, in Ayajin, G. stelleri dominated in both intermediate and deeper layers, with Hemilepidotus gilberti, A. elongatus, Enophrys diceraus common in shallower depths. Conversely, in Hupo, G. stelleri, C. pinetorum, and A. nadeshnyi dominated across all depth layers, whereas Dasycottus setiger and G. herzensteini dominated in deeper and shallower depths, respectively. Significant influences of the study site and water depth on fish assemblage structures were observed due to variations in water temperature at the seasonal thermocline boundary. Full article
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15 pages, 5346 KiB  
Article
Summer Biomass Variability and Spatial Interactions between European Sprat (Sprattus sprattus) and Moon Jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) in the Western Part of the Black Sea
by Vesselina Mihneva, Violin Raykov and Dimitar Petkov Dimitrov
Animals 2023, 13(23), 3691; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13233691 - 29 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1088
Abstract
Over the past few decades, various causal connections between commercial small pelagic fish species and gelatinous zooplankton have been reported in the Black Sea, which affect the pelagic ecosystem. Recently, moon jellyfish regained dominance among gelatinous plankton; however, biomass fluctuations and interactions with [...] Read more.
Over the past few decades, various causal connections between commercial small pelagic fish species and gelatinous zooplankton have been reported in the Black Sea, which affect the pelagic ecosystem. Recently, moon jellyfish regained dominance among gelatinous plankton; however, biomass fluctuations and interactions with small pelagic fish remain poorly understood. During the summers of 2019–2022, scientific pelagic trawl surveys in the Western Black Sea enabled simultaneous monitoring of small pelagic fish biomass, with sprat as the key species and moon jellyfish as an incidental catch. In total, 153 trawl hauls were conducted across four depth strata from 15 to 100 m, and a “swept area” method was used for biomass estimation. The sprat stock biomass ranged from 10,698 to 29,177 t, with an average value of 19,432 ± 4834 t. The total biomass of moon jellyfish was 2002 ± 868.73 t, and dense aggregations were observed in the coastal waters during certain years. Two scenarios of spatial interactions between planktivorous species were identified and linked to the formation of A. aurita aggregations. We found that changes in jellyfish density were associated with weak-to-moderate effects on the spatial distribution of sprat assemblages in coastal areas. Full article
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