Fisheries

At the Caribbean Marine Research Center, the research we conduct and support on fisheries has produced some of the most beneficial and dynamic results. Between 2000-2004, we supported extensive scientific research that led to the understanding of key aspects of the life-cycles of economically and ecologically important species throughout the Caribbean and western Atlantic.

We've placed particular focus on three commercially important, locally abundant species including the Nassau Grouper, the Caribbean Spiny Lobster, and the Queen Conch. However, our studies have included numerous fisheries species from Stoplight Parrotfish to Blue Marlin.

Our studies include the identification of essential fish habitats, the movements of life stages at various spatial and temporal scales, larval transport, recruitment and post-settlement processes, the understanding of population dynamics, and factors regulating the success of year-class strength.

Since 2000, the Caribbean Marine Research Center at the Perry Institute for Marine Science has actively supported numerous projects that directly focus on fisheries:

• Mechanisms that regulate spatial and temporal patterns of biodiversity in various marine habitats, such as coral reefs, seagrasses, and mangroves (Dahlgren and Eggleston 2000, Hixon et al. 2002, Steele and Forrester 2002, Webster and Almany 2002, Almany 2003, Almany and Webster 2004)
• Understanding of ecosystem function (Wellington et al. 2001, Smith 2004)
• Effects of anthropogenic activities, including fishing, on fish populations and critical habitats (de Sylva et al. 2000, Crowder et al. 2000, Stockhausen et al. 2000, Lipcius et al. 2001, Choat et al. 2003)
• Critical fish habitat, with particular emphasis on habitats that influence recruitment (Dahlgren and Eggleston 2000, Hixon et al. 2002, Serafy et al. 2003, Adam and Ebersole 2004)
• Long-term oceanographic and climactic conditions, which are critical in the development of realistic simulation models that will predict future conditions (Wellington et al. 2001)
• Life histories and associated requirements of economically and ecologically important species (Dahlgren and Eggleston 2000, 2001, Wilson and Meekan 2001)
• Effects of fishing on trophic interactions (Adam and Ebersole 2004, Almany 2004, Almany and Webster 2004)

Researcher Spotlight - Mark Hixon Ph.D., Oregon State University
"Our NURP-sponsored research at Lee Stocking Island focuses on two questions of central importance in ecosystem-based fisheries management: (1) What drives and regulates population dynamics of marine fish? (2) Do marine reserves provide fish for fisheries? Regarding fish populations, our field experiments and long-term monitoring data have shown that predation on juveniles, sometimes combined with competition and mediated by habitat complexity, regulates local populations' sizes. This finding is important because it indicates that the stability of a particular fish population depends on interactions with other species-intact food webs are more apt to provide sustainable fisheries than those where predators have been removed. Regarding marine reserves, our ongoing tagging and telemetry studies are testing whether fish that grow inside marine reserves eventually swim outside and are taken by fishermen. Known as the "spillover effect," this phenomenon may provide local benefits to fisheries near the boundaries of marine reserves."

<< Back