© 2000 by ICES/CIEM International Council for the Exploration of the Sea/Conseil International pour l'Exploration de la Mer
Effects of fishing on the structure and functioning of estuarine and nearshore ecosystems
CSIRO Marine Research PO Box 120, Cleveland, Queensland 4163, Australia [tel: +61 7 3826 7214; fax: +61 7 3826 7222; e-mail: Steve.Blaber{at}marine.csiro.au]
Coastal Research Unit of Zululand, Department of Zoology, University of Zululand Private Bag X1001, KwaDlangezwa, 3886, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
ORSTOM, Laboratoire d'hydrobiologie marine et continentale, Université Montpellier II Case 093 Place E. Bataillon, 34095 Montpellier Cedex 5, France
Institute of Biological Sciences, University of Malaya 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences and Coastal Ecology Institute, Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
Institute of Estuarine and Coastal Studies, University of Hull Hull, HU6 7RX, England, UK
National Ocean Service, Center for Coastal Fisheries Habitat Research Beaufort, NC 28516, USA
School of Fisheries, University of Washington Seattle, WA 98195, USA
School of Biological Sciences, Murdoch University Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia
Bedford Institute of Oceanography PO Box 1006, Dartmouth, NS, Canada B2Y 4A2
Estuaries and associated coastal waters support many essential fisheries, a fact which contributes to their disproportionately high economic value. They are, however, also among the most extensively modified and threatened of aquatic environments. Almost all have been strongly affected by human beings, and fisheries are an integral part of human activities on the coast. We have taken a global perspective in synthesizing the effects of fishing on estuaries and coastal waters. Rather than attempt to cover all regions of the world in detail, we review eight process-orientated categories affected by fishing, with case studies for each of them: target organisms, non-target organisms, nursery functions, trophic effects, habitat change, reduced water quality, human environment, and potential for local extinctions. Fishing in the estuarine and nearshore environment has clear impacts on the structure and functioning of these ecosystems, although other, non-fishing issues also effect these ecosystems. This creates multiple interactions and reinforces the need for an integrated approach to coastal zone management. Nonetheless, some form of fish-based action plan could be created, especially within estuaries, which would provide management objectives for a particular system.
Keywords: by-catch, coasts, estuaries, extinctions, fishing, habitats, nurseries, target organisms, trophic effects, water quality