Study on primary production and its importance in an integrated fisheries research programme

The importance of the ocean as a source of cheap protein food is too well-known to be emphasised. In recent years there has been a tremendous increase in the fishing activity in all maritime nations and during the last few years the total world production has markedly grown. This study explains the importance of a planned exploitation according to scientific principles to preserve the availability and natural fluctuations in the abundance of stocks of marine fish and other commercially important organisms.

Ranunculus calcareus and its role in lowland streams

Ranunculus calcareus , a species of water crowfoot which occurs in clear, nutrient-rich chalk streams, was studied. Seasonal changes in its biomass, its annual production and its fragmentation (leading to downstream movement of the plant) were investigated. From an understanding of the growth rate and requirements of plants such as these, an indirect method of management can be devised, which does not have the undesirable consequences of the direct methods (such as cutting).

Fisheries production in Asia: its role in food security and nutrition

This paper reviews the status and some management issues of fisheries production in Asia, as well as the supply and demand situation. Its food security and nutritional roles and opportunities for value addition are also discussed.

Fisheries production in Asia: its role in food security and nutrition

This paper reviews the status and some management issues of fisheries production in Asia, as well as the supply and demand situation. Its food security and nutritional roles and opportunities for value addition are also discussed.

Seasonal resolution of laminated sediments in Santa Barbara Basin: its significance in paleoclimatic studies

Sediments in Santa Barbara Basin contain microfossil and sedimentological information that allows reconstruction of major features of the California Current such as water temperature, strength of upwelling, and productivity. ... Until now, investigations of Santa Barbara Basin sediments have utilized analytical techniques that could not resolve seasonal laminae, permitting annual resolution of variations in sediment composition and structure only. ... Based on a successful technique for preparation of epoxy-embedded and highly polished thin-sections that permit economical optical and electron microscope evaluation of laminated sequences, it is our long-term goal to reconstruct, with unprecedented detail, the history of sedimentation processes in the Santa Barbara Basin by developing ultra-high-resolution time series of biotic and detrital proxies.

The NRA's role in wetland conservation

This is the NRA's role in wetland conservation report produced by the National Rivers Authority in 1995. This document is the third of a series of three R&D Notes produced as part of an integrated research programme addressing aspects of the NRA's role in wetland management and conservation. Chapter 1 considers the nature of the wetland resource and its definition. Chapter 2 presents the NRA's current legislative and policy framework relating to its role in wetland conservation. National and international legislation and agreements are considered, and particular attention is afforded to the potential implications of the 'Habitats Directive'. Chapter 4 presents key examples of operational casework involving wetlands. Differences in approach and external perceptions of the NRA's current and likely future role in wetland conservation are discussed within Chapter 5. Other issues highlighted in this report are: policy guidance required on NRA’s role in land drainage; standard of flood defence service for wetlands; cost-benefit analysis; strategies for halting and reversing the decline and degradation of wetland resource; and Catchment Management Planning.

Organic detritus and its role as a food source in chalk streams

This review deals with the variation in populations of invertebrates and the relationships between invertebrate production and detrital food material in chalk streams. The total quantity of detrital material processed by invertebrate consumers is many times greater than the production of these consumers. The amount of detritus ingested each year by chalk stream invertebrates may well be similar to the annual input of autochthonous primary production plus that from allochthonous tree cover.

Homarid Lobster Hatcheries: Their History and Role in Research, Management, and Aquaculture

This paper provides an historical review of homarid lobster fisheries, the development and usage of lobster hatcheries, and much of the research influenced by hatchery-initiated studies on natural history, physiology, and morphological development of the lobster, Homarus spp. Few commercial lobster hatcheries exist in the world today, yet their potential usage in restocking efforts in various countries is constantly being reexamined, particularly when natural stocks are considered “overfished.” Furthermore, many individual researchers working on homarid lobsters use smallscale hatchery operations to provide the animals necessary for their work as well as animals reared and provided by various governmental agencies interested in specific projects on larvae, postlarvae, or juveniles. Such researchers can benefi t from the information in this review and can avoid many pitfalls previously documented. The development of hatcheries and the experimental studies that were generated from their activities have had a direct impact on much of the research on lobsters. The past work arising from hatchery operations—descriptions of life stages, behavior, physiology, etc.—has generally been confirmed rather than refuted and has stimulated further research important for an understanding of the life history of homarid lobsters. The connections between homarid fisheries and hatchery operations (i.e. culturing of the lobsters), whether small- or large-scale for field and laboratory research, are important to understand so that better tools for fishery management can be developed. This review tries to provide such connections. However, the rearing techniques in use in today’s hatcheries—most of which are relics from the past—are clearly not effi cient enough for large-scale commercial aquaculture of lobsters or even for current restocking efforts practiced by several countries today. If hatcheries are to be used to supplement homarid stocks, to restock areas that were overfished, or to reintroduce species into their historical ranges, there is a clear need to further develop culture techniques. This review should help in assessments of culturing techniques for Homarus spp. and provide a reference source for researchers or governmental agencies wishing to avoid repeating previous mistakes.

Small Indigenous Freshwater Fish Species: their Role in Poverty Alleviation, Food Security and Conservation of Biodiversity, 23-25 February 2010, Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata, West Bengal. Workshop report

This is the report on the workshop on “Small Indigenous Freshwater Fish Species: Their Role in Poverty Alleviation, Food Security and Conservation of Biodiversity”, organized by the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers(ICSF) in collaboration with the Inland Fisheries Society of India (IFSI). The workshop was a forum for exchange of views on the role of small indigenous freshwater fish species (SIFFS) in enhancing rural food supply and livelihood security, and in conserving biodiversity. The workshop also discussed the socioeconomic and cultural contexts for the culture and capture of SIFFS, and how to enhance access—especially for women—to better incomes, livelihoods and nutritional security, through appropriate policy spaces. This report provides a fresh focus on SIFFS, usually regarded as ‘trash’ fish. It urges scientists, researchers and decisionmakers to develop policy and legislative measures to ensure the conservation and promotion of SIFFS, both in capture- and culture-fisheries systems. This report will be useful for fishworker organizations, researchers, policymakers, fish farmers, members of civil society and anyone interested in fisheries and livelihoods. (PDF contains 86 pages)

Reef Habitats in the Middle Atlantic Bight: Abundance, Distribution, Associated Biological Communities, and Fishery Resource Use

One particular habitat type in the Middle Atlantic Bight is not well recognized among fishery scientists and managers, although it is will known and used by recreational and commercial fisheries. This habitat consists of a variety of hard-surface, elevated relief "reef" or reef-like environments that are widely distributed across the predominantly flat or undulating, sandy areas of the Bight and include both natural rocky areas and man-made structures, e.g. shipwrecks and artificial reefs. Although there are natural rock and shellfish reefs in southern New England coastal waters and estuaries throughout the Bight, most reef habitats in the region appear to be man-made reef habitat modification/creation may be increasing. Very little effort has been devoted to the study of this habitat's distribution, abundance, use by living marine resources and associated biological communities (except on estuarine oyster reefs) and fishery value or management. This poorly studied and surveyed habitat can provide fish refuge from trawls and can be a factor in studies of the distribution and abundance of a variety of reef-associated fishery resources. This review provides a preliminary summary of information found on relative distribution and abundance of reef habitat in the Bight, the living marine resources and biological communities that commonly use it, threats to this habitat and its biological resources, and the value or potential value of artificial reefs to fishery or habitat and its biological resources, and the value or potential value of artificial reefs to fishery or habitat managers. The purpose of the review is to initiate an awareness among resource managers about this habitat, its role in resource management, and the need for research.

Wetland resource evaluation and the NRA's role in its conservation. Classification of British wetlands

This is the Wetland resource evaluation and the NRA's role in its conservation: Classification of British wetlands report produced by the National Rivers Authority in 1995. This R&D document provides a clear classification for wetlands in England and Wales. The classification incorporates many of the existing ideas on the subject but avoids some of the problems associated with other classifications. A two-layered 'hydrotopographical' classification is proposed. The first layer identifies situation-types, i.e. the position the wetland occupies in the landscape, with special emphasis upon the principal sources of water. The second layer identifies hydrotopographical elements, i.e. units with distinctive water supply and, sometimes, distinctive topography in response to this. This system is seen as an independent, basic, classification upon which it is possible to superimpose additional, independent classifications based on other features (e.g. base-status, fertility, vegetation, management etc.). Some proposals for such additional classifications are provided.

Wetland resource evaluation and the NRA's role in its conservation. 1. Resource assessment

This is the Wetland resource evaluation and the NRA's role in its conservation: Resource assessment report produced by the National Rivers Authority in 1995. This R&D document provides a strategy for the assessment of the wetland resource of England and Wales. As a first step the report defines wetlands in their UK context. The following working definition is suggested: Wetland is land that has (or had until modified) a water level predominantly at, near, or up to 1.5 m above the ground surface for sufficient time during the year to allow hydrological processes to be a major influence on the soils and biota. These processes may be expressed in certain features, such as characteristic soils and vegetation. The report also summarises a hydrotopographical classification of wetlands. The report then develops a strategy for the establishment of a wetland resource Inventory based on a geographical information system (GIS) as a means of storing and manipulating site data from across England and Wales.