Ocean Stewardship
Actions taken by society to protect the ocean and its living/nonliving resources
What percent of the ocean bottom has been mapped to the same resolution as the surface of Earth's neighboring planets Mars and Venus?
<5%
National OceaniC and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
The principal gov't agency in the US charged with stewardship responsibility for the nation's marine environment and living resources
Sustainability
Developments that meet the needs of the present without compormising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
Artisanal Fisheries
Fishers that use traditional methods and account for 50% of the world's marine fish production
Recruitment Overfishing
Adult fish are taken in such great numbers that too few survive to replenish the breeding stock
Growth Overfishing
Fish are taken when they're too small to grow to a size that would produce maximum yield
FAO
The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization
Fishing down the food web
Shift in targeted fishes brought about by the overfishing of top predators
Maximum Sustainable Yield
Limits are set on fish catches (total allowable catch) so that stocks are maintained at a level that'll ensure the long-term viability of the target species
Fishing quotas must take into consideration...
Life span, population growth rate, and reproductive capacity of a particular fish species
Carrying Capacity
Maximum population that can be sustained by the resourced of the marine habitat.
In fisheries, the carrying capacity is the maximum population that would exist in the absence of commercial fishing
When does the fish population have the greatest potential for gowth/reproduction?
At an intermediate size
For most fish species, what percent of the population in relation to carrying capacity produces maximum yield?
50%
Ecosystem Approach to Management
Managing human activities that use/impact ecosystems instead of believing we can manage ecosystems
Ecologically Sustainable Yield
The yield that a marine ecosystem can sustain without undergoing an undesirable change in state
Bycatch
Fish and other marine animals that are taken in addition to the target species
Gillnetting
Netting that hangs in the ocean from floats. The head passes through, but not the body. As it excapes, its gills get caught in the net
Harpooning
Used to catch large bluefin tuna and swordfish. Uses large aluminum harpoon to spear and kill the fish
Longlining
A central fishing line plus smaller ones are strung with thousands of baited hooks extending up to 80 km. Can catch fish near the surface or near the bottom
Pole and Line
Fishers stand on deck shoulder to shoulder, holding a long, single pole and a short line. Fish are caught one by one. Targets: tuna, mahi-mahi
Purse Seining
A large net encircles a school of fish and a line lets the crew close the bottom (like a purse). Target: tuna, sardines, herring, mackeral
Traps and Pots
Baited cages attached to line used to trap the catch and keep it alive until its collected in several days. Target: lobster, crabs, shrimp, bottom-dwelling fish
Trawling/Dragging
Different types of nets are dragged behind a ship to fish in midwater (schools of small fish like anchovies) and along the ocean bottom (cod, halibut). Also, nets with chain-mesh bottoms are dragged through sediments (scallops)
Trolling
Boat with long rods pulling fishing lines through the water with different baits/lures
Shrimp trawling represents only __% of the global fish catch, but is responsible for __ of the world's total bycatch
2%, 1/3
Marine Reserves (No-take zones)
Protected areas where fishing is prohibited
Recreational Fisheries
They involve large numbers of people who catch fish for sport, not profit.
US Endangered Species Act (1973)
Law providing for the protection of endangered and threatened species and their habitats
Endangered
Species determined to be in imminent danger of extinction throughout a significant portion of their range
Threatened
Likey to become endangered in the future
Convention of International Trade in Endangered Speicies of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
Inteneded to control international commerce in endangered species and their products
What's the most commercially valuable sea turtle?
Green sea turtles
Which sea turtle has the most limited range?
Hawksbills (their shells, tortoiseshells, are used for jewelry)
What is the rarest sea turtle?
Kemp's (Atlantic) ridley. Only known nesting place i Rancho Nuevo, New Mexico
Which sea turtle has the second largest population along the US southeast coast?
Loggerhead
The largest sea turtle...
Leatherback turtles
International Whaling Commission (IWC)
Decision-making arm of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW)
Scientific Whaling
Taking whales for research purposes only
Examples of endangered whales:
North Atlantic right whale, blue whale, bowhead whale
DDT
Organic pesticide that accumulates in fatty tissues of fish that pelicans eat, causing pelican and other birds' eggs to develop thin shells that break before hatching
Mariculture
Industrial farming of fish and shellfish in the ocean
Exotic (alien) species
Animals/plants introduced into ecosystems, usually by humans
International Joint Commission (IJC)
US-Canadian organization established to protect the Great Lakes
Successful Invasive Species
Asian carp (Mississippi River), northern snakehead (Potomac River)