Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Use an alternative commercial fishing method Nine studies examined the effects of using an alternative commercial fishing method on marine fish populations. One study was in each of the Arafura Sea (Australia), the Greenland and Norwegian Seas (Norway), the Norwegian Sea (Norway), the Atlantic Ocean (Portugal), the Mediterranean Sea (Italy), the Gulf of Maine (USA), the Coral Sea (Australia), the Tyrrhenian Sea (Italy) and the Kattegat and Skagerrak (Sweden).  COMMUNITY RESPONSE (0 STUDIES) POPULATION RESPONSE (0 STUDIES) BEHAVIOUR (0 STUDIES) OTHER (9 STUDIES) Reduction of unwanted catch (9 studies): Seven of nine replicated studies (two controlled, one randomized, controlled, one paired, controlled) in the Arafura Sea, Greenland/Norwegian Sea, Norwegian Sea, Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, Gulf of Maine, Coral Sea, Tyrrhenian Sea and Kattegat and Skagerrak found that using an alternative method of fishing caught fewer discarded fish species and reduced the catches of unwanted (discarded or non-commercial species) fish overall, and of immature halibut, haddock, Atlantic cod, bluefin tuna and over half of the individual fish species. One study found that an alternative fishing method caught larger (and more likely to be mature) unwanted hammerhead sharks. The other study found that sizes of striped sea bream, annular sea bream and red mullet were similar in catches between gear types. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F2730https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F2730Wed, 27 Jan 2021 17:06:17 +0000Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Use an alternative method to commercially harvest plankton One study examined the effect of using an alternative method to commercially harvest plankton on marine fish populations. The study was in the Norwegian Sea (Norway).  COMMUNITY RESPONSE (0 STUDIES) POPULATION RESPONSE (0 STUDIES) BEHAVIOUR (0 STUDIES) OTHER (1 STUDY) Reduction of unwanted catch (1 study): One controlled study in the Norwegian Sea found that the amount of unwanted fish larvae and eggs in fine-mesh catches of zooplankton were reduced after deployment of a bubble-plume harvester, compared to without deployment. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F2731https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F2731Thu, 28 Jan 2021 11:41:59 +0000Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Use hook and line fishing instead of other commercial fishing methods Three studies examined the effects of using hook and line fishing instead of other commercial fishing methods on marine fish populations. One study was in each of the Tasman Sea (Australia), the Atlantic Ocean (Canada) and the Gulf of St. Lawrence (Canada).  COMMUNITY RESPONSE (0 STUDIES) POPULATION RESPONSE (1 STUDY) Survival (1 study): One replicated, controlled study in the Gulf of St. Lawrence found that fish caught by hook and line methods had greater vitality (an indicator of post-release survival) than fish caught by other gear types. BEHAVIOUR (0 STUDIES) OTHER (2 STUDIES) Reduction of unwanted catch (1 study): One replicated, controlled study in the Tasman Sea found that using longlines reduced the capture of unwanted small snapper, compared to trawling. Improved size-selectivity of fishing gear (1 study): One replicated, paired, controlled study in the Atlantic Ocean found that longlining compared to trawling, increased the size selectivity of cod and haddock at larger hook sizes only. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F2732https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F2732Thu, 28 Jan 2021 11:49:50 +0000
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What Works in Conservation

What Works in Conservation provides expert assessments of the effectiveness of actions, based on summarised evidence, in synopses. Subjects covered so far include amphibians, birds, mammals, forests, peatland and control of freshwater invasive species. More are in progress.

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