底栖生物栖息地和渔业的影响

精细的底栖鱼分布与大规模的海底地图:生物和地质资料相结合的问题和挑战

塔拉·j·安德森,玛丽·m·Yoklavich和斯蒂芬·l·Eittreim

doi:https://doi.org/10.47886/9781888569605.ch119

抽象的。底栖鱼是一种重要的渔业资源西海岸的美国,但他们的人口规模近年来经历了巨大的下降。许多areabased已经提出管理和评估策略来帮助重建和监控这些人群。最底栖鱼物种有很强的亲和力与特定的基础类型,导致空间的分布。因此,将信息的类型和数量(即海底下层礼物。,habitat availability) into sample design and biomass assessment of groundfish populations could increase the precision and accuracy of fish density and, consequently, population abundance estimates. The success of using habitat availability as a proxy for fish abundance, however, is contingent on the ability to identify those measurable habitat characteristics (e.g., substratum type, depth, relief, etc.) that fish respond to, precisely estimating fish densities within those habitats, and accurately characterizing and delineating these same characteristics across large areas (i.e., seafloor substratum maps). Characterizing seafloor substratum over a large area is not an exact process, but rather, it commonly uses remotely collected information (e.g., acoustic data, sediment samples, and local geology) to infer the seafloor characteristics. As a consequence, combining estimates of fine-scale fish density per unit area of habitat and the amount of each habitat type to generate a population abundance estimate will reflect the combination of the uncertainty and error in both estimates. If sampling uncertainty or error is large for either estimate (error and uncertainty around the largest mean will be the most critical), then the final population abundance estimate might be of little use to managers. We examine a case study in which an in situ groundfish survey, conducted in an area where a detailed seafloor substratum map was available, suggested that maps—even with suboptimal resolution— could be used to increase precision in estimates of fish density. In considering the issues and challenges encountered in linking geological and biological data, it is vital to determine the level of resolution required in the seafloor substratum map, which will depend on the degree of habitat specificity to which the organism responds. Further considerations include whether the mapping technology and methodology can achieve this level of resolution and, finally, whether this sampling approach is cost effective.