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ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil Advance Access originally published online on January 19, 2007
ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil 2007 64(2):309-317; doi:10.1093/icesjms/fsl037
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© 2007 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. Published by Oxford Journals. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Can traditional harvesting methods for cockles be accommodated in a Special Area of Conservation?

Emma McLaughlin1, Alex Portig1 and Mark P. Johnson2,

1 Quercus, Queens University of Belfast, School of Biological Sciences, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 6BL, UK
2 Queens University of Belfast, School of Biological Sciences, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 6BL, UK

Correspondence to M. P. Johnson: tel: +28 90972297; fax: +28 90975877; e-mail: m.johnson{at}qub.ac.uk

McLaughlin, E., Portig, A., and Johnson, M. P. 2007. Can traditional harvesting methods for cockles be accommodated in a Special Area of Conservation? – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 64: 309–317.

The European Natura 2000 project attempts to balance conservation and exploitation by permitting activities that do not affect the conservation status of designated sites. Given the scale of Natura 2000, guidelines are needed to facilitate the drafting of simple site management plans. This need is particularly acute for traditional harvesting methods for which there is usually strong local opposition to the imposition of controls. These issues were examined in Strangford Lough, a special area of conservation where cockles have traditionally been harvested by hand-raking. Raking was found not to affect the ability of cockles to rebury. There were significant reductions in Zostera biomass when raking was carried out within eelgrass beds (a 90% reduction in biomass available to winter migrant birds from summer raking). Traditional harvesting methods could therefore be accepted in Strangford as long as Zostera beds are avoided. A relatively low intensity of harvesting activity in Strangford Lough probably reflects low cockle densities (average 91.8 m–2), with the most economically valuable individuals at some distance from points of access to the shore. An economically feasible management plan could sanction traditional harvesting and result in the implementation of more resource-intensive management only if increases in cockle stocks and market prices stimulate large increases in harvesting activity.

Keywords: burial, conservation, disturbance, habitats directive, shellfish, unregulated harvesting, Zostera

Received 9 May 2006; accepted 24 November 2006; advance access publication 19 January 2007.


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