Luis A. Cubillos

Objective: This study evaluated the recovery status of the pink shrimp Penaeus notialis fishery in the Colombian Caribbean and assessed the role of a 5-nautical-mile (9.26-km) coastal trawl exclusion zone as a spatial management measure in a data-limited system. Methods: Stock status was assessed using multiple independent approaches, including length-based methods (length-based Bayesian biomass, length-based indicators, and length-based spawning potential ratio) and a Bayesian surplus production model (Just Another Bayesian Biomass Assessment) based on catch and CPUE time series (1972–2022). Spatial patterns in biomass (catch per unit area) and size structure were examined using fishery-independent survey data comparing areas inside and outside the 5-nautical-mile closure. Nonparametric tests were applied to evaluate spatial differences. Results: All assessment methods consistently indicated a recovered and underexploited stock, characterized by high spawning potential (spawning potential ratio = 0.82–0.86), biomass (B) above target levels (ratio of B relative to B at maximum sustainable yield [B/BMSY] = 1.55), and very low fishing mortality (F; ratio of F relative to F at MSY [F/FMSY] = 0.02). Spatial analyses showed no significant differences in biomass between areas, but slightly larger individuals were observed within the coastal zone. Retrospective diagnostics confirmed low model bias and high temporal stability. Conclusions: The shallow-water pink shrimp stock has recovered and is currently underexploited, with high biomass, low fishing mortality, and strong reproductive capacity. Results demonstrate that spatial closures can effectively rebuild stocks in data-limited fisheries. The integrated assessment approach provides robust, transferable evidence to support adaptive management and sustainable exploitation.

Climate change is altering environmental conditions in the Patagonia ecosystems, with potential consequences for the distribution of marine species that sustain artisanal fisheries within the inner sea of northern Chilean Patagonia (41°28.6′S–45°30′S). We evaluated current and future habitat suitability for one forage species (Falkland sprat, Sprattus fuegensis ) and three demersal predators ( Macruronus magellanicus , Merluccius australis , and Genypterus blacodes ) using a species distribution modeling approach (Maxent). Occurrence data derived from fisheries records and acoustic surveys were combined with environmental predictors from Bio‐Oracle under three climate scenarios (SSP1–2.6, SSP2–4.5, SSP5–8.5) for the period 2020–2050. Results indicate that the habitat suitability of demersal species is primarily associated with dissolved oxygen and bottom environmental conditions, whereas Falkland sprat is mainly driven by surface temperature, salinity, and phytoplankton concentration. Current suitable habitats are concentrated in the Gulf of Ancud and adjacent fjord systems, while demersal species occupy broader areas, including inner and outer margins. Future projections suggest spatial redistribution rather than uniform loss for demersal species, while the Falkland sprat shows displacement toward thermally stable and sheltered areas. The magnitude of projected shifts ranges from 10 to 20 km, depending on the species and scenario. These changes may alter the spatial overlap between predators and prey and affect the accessibility of fishing grounds for artisanal fleets. Although projected shifts are moderate, they are comparable to the operational scale of artisanal fisheries and may therefore have significant socioeconomic implications. This study highlights the need to incorporate climate‐driven habitat changes into fisheries management and spatial planning in highly dynamic fjord ecosystems.

The Antarctic krill ( Euphausia superba ) fishery is primarily concentrated around the major island groups and shelf‐break regions of the West Antarctic Peninsula and South Orkney Islands. Climate‐induced sea ice retreat has recently expanded fishing access to previously inaccessible areas, thereby altering spatial and temporal patterns of fishing activity. Because krill distribution and aggregability strongly influence where vessels operate, it is critical to identify specific areas that are repeatedly used as fishing grounds. In this study, we analyzed haul‐by‐haul fishing data from the Chilean vessel Antarctic Endeavour 2017–2024 to identify spatial and temporal clusters of fishing activity. Following the concept of fishing opportunities (FOs), we used hierarchical agglomerative clustering to delineate recurrent, sporadic, and unusual FOs. This procedure resulted in 27 FOs, seven of which were used consistently across years and therefore considered recurrent fishing, comprising 951 hauls. Multivariate correspondence analysis revealed distinct groupings of bycatch species composition across FOs. Furthermore, variations in the proportion of gravid females and juveniles helped identify areas relevant to krill reproduction and recruitment. Catch‐per‐unit effort (catch rate) trends across years indicated stable or declining yields, with evidence of a significant local declining trend in some recurrent FOs. These findings highlight the importance of spatially explicit fishery analyses of fishing behavior and support the development of fine‐scale management strategies for Antarctic krill fisheries under rapidly changing environmental conditions.

GENERAL The paper aims to fill the gap in Ghana's reproductive biology of Pagrus caeruleoisticus. Despite highlighting the importance of fishery and the paper's title, the authors should have mentioned the species in the introduction. It is crucial...

The dusky finless skate Gurgesiella furvescens appears sporadically as part of the bycatch in the trawl fishery targeting demersal crustaceans on the continental shelf and upper slope of the north-central area of Chile (26ºS-33ºS). Demersal crustaceans could be forage for deep-water predators such as G. furvescens, and sizes and shapes of prey eaten could be restricted by mouth size. The diet composition of G. furvescens was determined based on specimens collected from the bycatch of trawls targeting demersal crustaceans in 2013. Stomach contents revealed nylon shrimp Heterocarpus reedi (32.8% by weight), deep-water shrimp Haliporoides diomedeae (7.2% by weight), and indeterminate crustaceans (9.0% by weight). The diet composition was similar between sexes, body length, or depth strata. Prey size was a linear function of Gurgesiella furvescens mouth width, and prey mass positively related with G. furvescens individual mass. Although squat-lobsters Pleuroncodes monodon and Cervimunida johni were abundant in the study area, the nylon shrimp and deep-water shrimp in the diet of G. furvescens may be due to the preference or selection of this kind of prey in deep waters.

The abundance of juvenile fish changes due to endogenous processes, and determining the functional relationships among conspecifics is essential for fisheries’ management. The hake (Merluccius gayi) is an overexploited demersal fish widely distributed in Chile, from 23°39′ S to 47°00′ S in shallow and deep water over the continental shelf and shelf break. We studied the spatiotemporal distribution of hake juveniles (from ages 0 and 1), emphasizing endogenous relationships among juveniles and adults. The abundance per age data were obtained from bottom trawl cruises carried out in the austral winter between 1997 and 2018. Generalized additive models showed a similar spatiotemporal pattern for ages between 0 and 1, and negative effects of adult hake aged seven and older on the abundance of the young generation. Regarding the changes in juvenile abundance, the residual deviance of selected models explained 75.9% (for the age 0) and 95.3% (for the age 1) of the null deviance, revealing a significant increase in juvenile abundance from 2002 to 2007 and subsequent abundance stability at higher levels. Furthermore, the expansion in the abundance of juveniles after 2002 was favored by the low abundance of older adult hake, most which are able to cannibalize young hake. Our results highlight the importance of endogenous factors in the spatial distribution of Chilean hake juveniles to identify nurseries or juvenile areas free of potential cannibal adults.

Marine biota are redistributing at a rapid pace in response to climate change and shifting seascapes. While changes in fish populations and community structure threaten the sustainability of fisheries, our capacity to adapt by tracking and projecting marine species remains a challenge due to data discontinuities in biological observations, lack of data availability, and mismatch between data and real species distributions. To assess the extent of this challenge, we review the global status and accessibility of ongoing scientific bottom trawl surveys. In total, we gathered metadata for 283,925 samples from 95 surveys conducted regularly from 2001 to 2019. We identified that 59% of the metadata collected are not publicly available, highlighting that the availability of data is the most important challenge to assess species redistributions under global climate change. Given that the primary purpose of surveys is to provide independent data to inform stock assessment of commercially important populations, we further highlight that single surveys do not cover the full range of the main commercial demersal fish species. An average of 18 surveys is needed to cover at least 50% of species ranges, demonstrating the importance of combining multiple surveys to evaluate species range shifts. We assess the potential for combining surveys to track transboundary species redistributions and show that differences in sampling schemes and inconsistency in sampling can be overcome with spatio‐temporal modeling to follow species density redistributions. In light of our global assessment, we establish a framework for improving the management and conservation of transboundary and migrating marine demersal species. We provide directions to improve data availability and encourage countries to share survey data, to assess species vulnerabilities, and to support management adaptation in a time of climate‐driven ocean changes.