Journal
DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART II-TOPICAL STUDIES IN OCEANOGRAPHY
Volume 129, Issue -, Pages 319-331Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.dsr2.2014.01.009
Keywords
Brevoortia patronus; Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE); Gulf of Mexico
Categories
Funding
- Lenfest Ocean Program
- Pew Charitable Trusts
- Phil Zwickler Charitable and Memorial Foundation Trust
- Graduate Student Organization at Stony Brook University
- Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society
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The Gulf of Mexico (GoM) is a valuable ecosystem both socially and economically, and fisheries contribute substantially to this value. Gulf menhaden, Brevoortia patronus, support the largest fishery in the Gulf (by weight) and provide forage for marine mammals, seabirds and commercially and recreationally important fish species. Understanding the complex interactions among multiple fisheries and myriad unfished species requires tools different from those used in traditional single-species management. One such tool, Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) is increasingly being used to construct food web models of aquatic ecosystems and to evaluate fisheries management options within a broader, ecosystem context. Here, an EwE model was developed to examine the impact of Gulf fisheries on ecosystem structure and maturity. This model builds on previously published EwE models of the GoM, and is tailored to the range and habitat of Gulf menhaden. The model presented here consists of 47 functional groups, including 4 seabird groups, 1 marine mammal group, 3 elasmobranch groups, 26 bony fish groups, 9 invertebrate groups, 3 primary producer groups and 1 detritus group. A number of different management scenarios for Gulf fisheries were modeled and the results were evaluated in terms of impacts on ecosystem maturity and development. The results of the model simulations indicated that the northern Gulf of Mexico is in an immature state (sensu Odum, 1969). Management scenarios that increased fishing pressure over time consistently resulted in a decrease in the maturity indices. In particular, we found that Gulf menhaden, as a key forage fish in the ecosystem, plays a substantial role in the structure and functioning of the ecosystem. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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