The core of a multibillion dollar sport fishing industry, tarpon and bonefish, two of the earth's oldest creatures, are experiencing obvious and precipitous population decline. Experienced anglers in the Florida Keys suggest a drop of approximately 90-95 percent for the bonefish population over the last 65 years. Despite the economic value of the i

Stephen Spotte, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, Florida, USA Tarpons arose from an ancient lineage, and just two species exist today, confined to the tropics and subtropics: Megalops atlanticus in the western and eastern Atlantic and Megalops cyprinoides distributed widely across the Indo-West Pacific. The Atlantic tarpon is considered king of the saltwater sport fishes and supports a multi-billion dollar recreational fishery in the U.S. alone. The Pacific tarpon, which is much smaller, is less valued by anglers. Both have limited commercial value but offer considerable potential for future aquaculture because of their hardiness, rapid growth, and ease of adaptation to captivity. This book is the latest and most thorough text on the biology, ecology, and fisheries (sport and commercial) of tarpons. The chapters comprise clear, intricate discourses on such subjects as early development and metamorphosis, population genetics, anatomical and physiological features and adaptations, migrations, reproductive biology, and culminate with a concise overview of the world's tarpon fisheries. A comprehensive appendix includes Spotte's original translations of important papers published previously by others in Spanish and Portuguese and unavailable until now to English readers. Tarpons: Biology, Ecology, Fisheries will be of considerable interest and use to fishery and research biologists, marine conservationists, aquaculturists, and informed anglers

While artificial reefs may have much to offer, they remain an anecdote in the greater scheme of fisheries management, primarily due to the lack of data specific to validating their use. Based on papers presented at the 9th Conference on Artificial Reefs and Artificial Habitats (CARAH) and also including original articles written for this reference,

This book gathers current data on the two types of fish metamorphoses and their endocrine controls. It will be of interest for fish biologists as well as comparative physiologists and endocrinologists. Metamorphosis is a major developmental phase characterized by morphological and physiological changes. It prepares organisms for a drastic shift in

Australia’s experience in community-based environmental repair is unique in the world, with no shortage of analysis by bureaucrats, academics and environmentalists. This collection of 17 case studies gives a view from ground level. It includes heroic accounts of families who changed their way of farming and their relationship to the land so significantly they found they could stop hand-feeding stock during a drought and see the bush coming back. It describes the experience with ‘bush tenders’, which were oversubscribed, as farmers competed with each other for stewardship payments to manage their grazing lands for endangered ground-nesting birds as well as beef and wool. And it tells of a group of wheat growers who plant patches of grassland for beneficial insects that save them tens of thousands of dollars a year in pesticide bills. The case studies arose from a meeting of 250 farmers, foresters and fishers from all Australian states, who met in Launceston as guests of the community group Tamar Natural Resource Management to reflect on the question: ‘Is it possible to be good environmental managers and prosper in our businesses?’ As well as tales of environmental hope, there are also messages about the limits of duty of care, the need to share the costs of achieving society’s expectations, and the possibility of learning from unlikely places. Biodiversity: Integrating Conservation and Production includes the seven ‘Tamar Principles’, distilled by the delegates from the meeting for those on the front line.

Interrelationships Between Corals and Fisheries is derived from a workshop held by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council in Tampa, Florida in May 2013, where world authorities came together to discuss the current problems in managing tropical fisheries and offered suggestions for future directions for both researchers and environmental resource managers. This book addresses current and emerging threats as well as challenges and opportunities for managing corals and associated fisheries. It provides an information baseline toward a better understanding of how corals and the consequences of coral condition influence fish populations, especially as they relate to management of those populations. The book contains content from presentations modified as a result of interactions and discussions with colleagues and peer reviews by global experts in corals and fisheries. Many chapters include additional materials not presented in the workshop. There are also papers that were not presented at the workshop but contribute to the central theme of the book. Topics covered include: Global decline in coral reefs and impacts on fishery yields Distribution and diversity in the Gulf of Mexico Implementation of Coral Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (CHAPCs) Deepwater coral/sponge habitats Coral populations on offshore platforms Mangrove connectivity for sustaining coral reef fisheries Restoring deepwater coral ecosystems and fisheries after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill Predictive mapping of coral reef fish Covering a range of subject matter, most of the chapters offer suggestions for future research on the interrelationships between corals and fisheries. In addition, the final chapter presents a summary on these interrelationships and discusses managing them for the future.

At an increasingly global scale, aquatic scientists are heavily entrenched in understanding the fate of marine ecosystems in the face of human-altered environments. Oil spill disasters, especially large-scale ones like the 2010 Deepwater Horizon tragedy, have left uncertain and indelible marks on marine ecosystems. Impacts of Oil Spill Disasters on