A Step Towards Seascape Scale Conservation: Using Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS) to Map Fishing Activity

Published onlineJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tBACKGROUND: Conservation of marine ecosystems will require a holistic understanding of fisheries with concurrent spatial patterns of biodiversity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using data from the UK Government Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) deployed on UK-registered large fishing vessels we investigate patterns of fisheries activity on annual and seasonal scales. Analysis of VMS data shows that regions of the UK European continental shelf (i.e. Western Channel and Celtic Sea, Northern North Sea and the Goban Spur) receive consistently greater fisheries pressure than the rest of the UK continental shelf fishing zone. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: VMS provides a unique and independent method from which to derive patterns of spatially and temporally explicit fisheries activity. Such information may feed into ecosystem management plans seeking to achieve sustainable fisheries while minimising putative risk to non-target species (e.g. cetaceans, seabirds and elasmobranchs) and habitats of conservation concern. With multilateral collaboration VMS technologies may offer an important solution to quantifying and managing ecosystem disturbance, particularly on the high-seas.MJW is supported by a Natural Environment Research Council PhD studentship (NER/S/A/2004/12980) at the University of Exeter (Cornwall Campus). BJG receives funding from the European Social Fund

The relationship between appetite and food preferences in British and Australian children

Background: Appetitive traits and food preferences are key determinants of children’s eating patterns but it is unclear how these behaviours relate to one another. This study explores relationships between appetitive traits and preferences for fruits and vegetables, and energy dense, nutrient poor (noncore) foods in two distinct samples of Australian and British preschool children. Methods: This study reports secondary analyses of data from families participating in the British GEMINI cohort study (n = 1044) and the control arm of the Australian NOURISH RCT (n = 167). Food preferences were assessed by parent-completed questionnaire when children were aged 3–4 years and grouped into three categories; vegetables, fruits and noncore foods. Appetitive traits; enjoyment of food, food responsiveness, satiety responsiveness, slowness in eating, and food fussiness were measured using the Children’s Eating Behaviour Questionnaire when children were 16 months (GEMINI) or 3–4 years (NOURISH). Relationships between appetitive traits and food preferences were explored using adjusted linear regression analyses that controlled for demographic and anthropometric covariates. Results: Vegetable liking was positively associated with enjoyment of food (GEMINI; β = 0.20 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = 0.43 ± 0.07, p < 0.001) and negatively related to satiety responsiveness (GEMINI; β = -0.19 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = -0.34 ± 0.08, p < 0.001), slowness in eating (GEMINI; β = -0.10 ± 0.03, p = 0.002, NOURISH; β = -0.30 ± 0.08, p < 0.001) and food fussiness (GEMINI; β = −0.30 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = -0.60 ± 0.06, p < 0.001). Fruit liking was positively associated with enjoyment of food (GEMINI; β = 0.18 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = 0.36 ± 0.08, p < 0.001), and negatively associated with satiety responsiveness (GEMINI; β = −0.13 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = −0.24 ± 0.08, p = 0.003), food fussiness (GEMINI; β = -0.26 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = −0.51 ± 0.07, p < 0.001) and slowness in eating (GEMINI only; β = -0.09 ± 0.03, p = 0.005). Food responsiveness was unrelated to liking for fruits or vegetables in either sample but was positively associated with noncore food preference (GEMINI; β = 0.10 ± 0.03, p = 0.001, NOURISH; β = 0.21 ± 0.08, p = 0.010). Conclusion: Appetitive traits linked with lower obesity risk were related to lower liking for fruits and vegetables, while food responsiveness, a trait linked with greater risk of overweight, was uniquely associated with higher liking for noncore foods

Impacts of Deep Oil Spills on Fish and Fisheries

The Gulf of Mexico (GoM) total fishery production varies around one million metric tons per year. Fishery production is based on a diverse set of invertebrate and finfish species, including estuarine, continental shelf, and open-ocean species. The GoM has been subjected to two large oil spills in the Southern (Ixtoc 1, 1979–1980) and in the Northern GoM (Deepwater Horizon 2010) that caused serious concern about impacts on the abundance and seafood safety of fishery resources. Scientific evidence does not indicate a collapse or a clear impact on long-term fishery productivity related to either the Ixtoc 1 or DWH oil spills. Fishery landings in the Northern GoM returned quickly to pre-spill levels, and short-term declines could be attributed to the extensive fishery closure in the US exclusive economic zone. In the Southern GoM, fishery production post-Ixtoc 1 decreased dramatically over time attributed primarily to overharvesting of the main target species. Although no oil spill impact on the fishery resources was apparent at the population level, there is considerable evidence of impacts at the organismal and sub-individual levels, and there is concern how these effects could impact fishery resources in the long term. The responses of fish and shellfish populations are analyzed in relation to reproductive strategies, distribution of nursery grounds and critical habitats, exploitation status, oil spill distribution, and overall pollution levels. Fish and shellfish populations show a high capacity to withstand/recover from natural and anthropogenic impacts by taking advantage of favorable environmental conditions and by evolving life history strategies robust to seasonal and interannual variability. Stock resiliency is affected by several factors but mainly overharvesting that may reduce reproductive potential and compromise fishery resource resiliency in the eventual case of another large-scale oil spill disaster

An Analysis of Artificial Reef Fish Community Structure along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Shelf: Potential Impacts of “Rigs-to-Reefs” Programs

Artificial structures are the dominant complex marine habitat type along the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) shelf. These habitats can consist of a variety of materials, but in this region are primarily comprised of active and reefed oil and gas platforms. Despite being established for several decades, the fish communities inhabiting these structures remain poorly investigated. Between 2012 and 2013 we assessed fish communities at 15 sites using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). Fish assemblages were quantified from standing platforms and an array of artificial reef types (Liberty Ships and partially removed or toppled platforms) distributed over the Texas continental shelf. The depth gradient covered by the surveys (30-84 m) and variability in structure density and relief also permitted analyses of the effects of these characteristics on fish richness, diversity, and assemblage composition. ROVs captured a variety of species inhabiting these reefs from large transient piscivores to small herbivorous reef fishes. While structure type and relief were shown to influence species richness and community structure, major trends in species composition were largely explained by the bottom depth where these structures occurred. We observed a shift in fish communities and relatively high diversity at approximately 60 m bottom depth, confirming trends observed in previous studies of standing platforms. This depth was also correlated with some of the largest Red Snapper captured on supplementary vertical longline surveys. Our work indicates that managers of artificial reefing programs (e.g., Rigs-to-Reefs) in the GOM should carefully consider the ambient environmental conditions when designing reef sites. For the Texas continental shelf, reefing materials at a 50-60 m bottom depth can serve a dual purpose of enhancing diving experiences and providing the best potential habitat for relatively large Red Snapper