News Release

Climate change, conservation, and fisheries

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

American Lobster (<i>Homarus americanus</i>)

image: This is an American lobster (Homarus americanus). view more 

Credit: Image courtesy of Gulf of Maine Research Institute.

Researchers report the effects of climate and conservation efforts on the American lobster fishery in the northwest Atlantic Ocean. Climate change represents a major challenge for marine ecosystems and coastal communities worldwide. Identifying adaptation strategies that ensure the sustainability of commercial fisheries involves understanding how environmental change and management policies influence fishery productivity. Arnault Le Bris and colleagues developed a population dynamics model to study the effects of climate and management strategies on populations of American lobster (Homarus americanus) in the Gulf of Maine and southern New England. Model simulations revealed that an estimated 515% increase in lobster mean abundance from 1985 to 2014 in the Gulf of Maine was likely linked to increasing water temperature and conservation measures to protect large lobsters in the region. In contrast, warming water and a lack of conservation measures to protect large lobsters correlated with an estimated 78% decline in lobster mean abundance in southern New England from 1997-2014. Additional simulations projected to 2050 indicated that the lobster fishery in the Gulf of Maine is likely vulnerable to future warming. According to the authors, the findings suggest that proactive fishery conservation measures might help mitigate climate change effects on commercial fisheries.

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Article #17-11122: "Climate vulnerability and resilience in the most valuable North American fishery," by Arnault Le Bris et al.

MEDIA CONTACT: Elijah Miller, Gulf of Maine Research Institute, Portland, ME; tel: 207-577-2886; e-mail: <emiller@gmri.org>


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