UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN
Species shifts and replacements are common in ecological studies. Observations thereof serve as the impetus for many ecological endeavors. Many of the species now known to dominate ecosystem functioning were largely ignored until studies of those underappreciated species elucidated their critical ro...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/06-1154.1 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1890%2F06-1154.1 https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1890/06-1154.1 |
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crwiley:10.1890/06-1154.1 2024-06-23T07:55:41+00:00 UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN Link, Jason S. 2007 http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/06-1154.1 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1890%2F06-1154.1 https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1890/06-1154.1 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Ecological Applications volume 17, issue 7, page 2037-2060 ISSN 1051-0761 1939-5582 journal-article 2007 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1890/06-1154.1 2024-06-04T06:35:38Z Species shifts and replacements are common in ecological studies. Observations thereof serve as the impetus for many ecological endeavors. Many of the species now known to dominate ecosystem functioning were largely ignored until studies of those underappreciated species elucidated their critical roles. Recognizing the potential importance of underappreciated species has implications for functional redundancies in ecosystems and should alter our approach to long‐term monitoring. One example of an applied ecological system containing species shifts, underappreciated species, and potential changes in functional redundancies is the topic of fisheries. The demersal component of many fish communities usually consists of high‐profile and commercially valuable species that are targets of fisheries, plus a diverse group of lesser known species that have minimal commercial value and focus. Yet ecologically these traditionally nontargeted species are often a major biomass sink in marine ecosystems and can also be critical in the functioning of bentho‐demersal food webs. I examined the biomass trajectories of several species of skates, cottids, lophiids, anarhichadids, zooarcids, and similar species in the northeast U.S. Atlantic ecosystem to determine whether their relative abundance has changed across the past four decades. Distribution and stomach contents of these species were also evaluated over time to further elucidate the relative importance of these species. Landings of these underappreciated bentho‐demersal fish were also examined in comparison to those species that historically have been commercially targeted. Of particular emphasis was the evaluation of evidence for sequential stock depletion and the ramifications for functional redundancy for this ecosystem. Results indicate that some of these fish species are now the dominant piscivores, benthivores, and scavengers in this ecosystem. These formerly under‐studied species generally have either maintained a consistent population size or have increased in ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Northwest Atlantic Wiley Online Library Ecological Applications 17 7 2037 2060 |
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Species shifts and replacements are common in ecological studies. Observations thereof serve as the impetus for many ecological endeavors. Many of the species now known to dominate ecosystem functioning were largely ignored until studies of those underappreciated species elucidated their critical roles. Recognizing the potential importance of underappreciated species has implications for functional redundancies in ecosystems and should alter our approach to long‐term monitoring. One example of an applied ecological system containing species shifts, underappreciated species, and potential changes in functional redundancies is the topic of fisheries. The demersal component of many fish communities usually consists of high‐profile and commercially valuable species that are targets of fisheries, plus a diverse group of lesser known species that have minimal commercial value and focus. Yet ecologically these traditionally nontargeted species are often a major biomass sink in marine ecosystems and can also be critical in the functioning of bentho‐demersal food webs. I examined the biomass trajectories of several species of skates, cottids, lophiids, anarhichadids, zooarcids, and similar species in the northeast U.S. Atlantic ecosystem to determine whether their relative abundance has changed across the past four decades. Distribution and stomach contents of these species were also evaluated over time to further elucidate the relative importance of these species. Landings of these underappreciated bentho‐demersal fish were also examined in comparison to those species that historically have been commercially targeted. Of particular emphasis was the evaluation of evidence for sequential stock depletion and the ramifications for functional redundancy for this ecosystem. Results indicate that some of these fish species are now the dominant piscivores, benthivores, and scavengers in this ecosystem. These formerly under‐studied species generally have either maintained a consistent population size or have increased in ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Link, Jason S. |
spellingShingle |
Link, Jason S. UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN |
author_facet |
Link, Jason S. |
author_sort |
Link, Jason S. |
title |
UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN |
title_short |
UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN |
title_full |
UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN |
title_fullStr |
UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN |
title_full_unstemmed |
UNDERAPPRECIATED SPECIES IN ECOLOGY: “UGLY FISH” IN THE NORTHWEST ATLANTIC OCEAN |
title_sort |
underappreciated species in ecology: “ugly fish” in the northwest atlantic ocean |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2007 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1890/06-1154.1 https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1890%2F06-1154.1 https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1890/06-1154.1 |
genre |
Northwest Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Northwest Atlantic |
op_source |
Ecological Applications volume 17, issue 7, page 2037-2060 ISSN 1051-0761 1939-5582 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1890/06-1154.1 |
container_title |
Ecological Applications |
container_volume |
17 |
container_issue |
7 |
container_start_page |
2037 |
op_container_end_page |
2060 |
_version_ |
1802648349645471744 |