Abstract
Every year, millions of pots and traps are lost in crustacean fisheries
around the world. Derelict fishing gear has been found to produce
several harmful environmental and ecological effects, however
socioeconomic consequences have been investigated less frequently. We
analyze the economic effects of a substantial derelict pot removal
program in the largest estuary of the United States, the Chesapeake Bay.
By combining spatially resolved data on derelict pot removals with
commercial blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) harvests and effort, we show
that removing 34,408 derelict pots led to significant gains in gear
efficiency and an additional 13,504 MT in harvest valued at US $21.3
million—a 27% increase above that which would have occurred without
removals. Model results are extended to a global analysis where it is
seen that US $831 million in landings could be recovered annually by
removing less than 10% of the derelict pots and traps from major
crustacean fisheries. An unfortunate common pool externality, the
degradation of marine environments is detrimental not only to marine
organisms and biota, but also to those individuals and communities whose
livelihoods and culture depend on profitable and sustainable marine
resource use.

http://www.nature.com/articles/srep19671.pdf

http://www.nature.com/articles/srep19671#supplementary-information

PDF files
1.
Supplementary Information

http://www.nature.com/article-assets/npg/srep/2016/160121/srep19671/extref/srep19671-s1.pdf

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Plastic debris crossing the Pacific can transport more species with the
help of barnacles

FEBRUARY 3, 2016
MICHELLE NEELEY
PHOTOGRAPHER: MARINA GARLAND

The smooth surfaces of much of the plastic waste rapidly increasing in
the ocean appear to provide poor habitat for animals — that is, until
barnacles step in.

University of Florida researchers discovered that diverse communities of
rafting animals can inhabit even the smoothest pieces of plastic debris
if barnacles step in first to create complex habitat, similar to trees
in a rainforest or corals in a reef. That means plastics could better
transport foreign species across oceans than previously believed, said
Mike Gil, who, as a doctoral candidate at UF, led the study published
Jan. 27 in Scientific Reports.

Now the bad news: While conservationists generally aim to preserve
biological diversity, Gil said, the diversity found on plastic debris
could be harmful.

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Michael A. Gil & Joseph B. Pfaller
Oceanic barnacles act as foundation species on plastic debris:
implications for marine dispersal
Scientific Reports 6, Article number: 19987 (2016)
doi:10.1038/srep19987

Abstract
Plastic has emerged as an abundant, stable substratum for oceanic
dispersal of organisms via rafting. However, the ecological mechanisms
underlying community diversity on plastic debris remain poorly
understood. On a cruise from California to Hawai’i, we surveyed plastic
debris, some likely originating from the 2011 Tōhoku tsunami, to examine
the relationship between rafting community diversity and both habitat
area and stalked barnacle (Lepas spp.) abundance. For sessile taxa
richness, we observed an interaction in which the positive effect of
debris area weakened the negative effect of barnacle cover. In contrast,
for mobile taxa richness, including cohabiting species from opposite
sides of the Pacific Ocean, barnacle abundance had a positive effect
that was strongest at smaller debris sizes. These findings suggest that
barnacles, through interactions with habitat area, have trait-dependent
effects on other species, serving as both foundation species and
competitors, mediating the diversity and dispersal potential of marine
organisms on plastic debris.

http://www.nature.com/articles/srep19987.pdf

http://www.nature.com/articles/srep19987#supplementary-information

PDF files
1.
Supplementary Information

http://www.nature.com/article-assets/npg/srep/2016/160127/srep19987/extref/srep19987-s1.pdf

The post Oceanic barnacles act as foundation species on plastic debris: implications for marine dispersal appeared first on One Earth - One Ocean e. V..

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