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Does increasing mortality change the response of fish populations to environmental fluctuations?
Author(s) -
Rouyer Tristan,
Sadykov Alexander,
Ohlberger Jan,
Stenseth Nils Chr.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
ecology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.852
H-Index - 265
eISSN - 1461-0248
pISSN - 1461-023X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2012.01781.x
Subject(s) - biology , fish <actinopterygii> , ecology , environmental change , life history theory , population , vital rates , forcing (mathematics) , life history , climate change , demography , population growth , fishery , atmospheric sciences , sociology , geology
Ecology Letters (2012) 15 : 658–665 Abstract Fluctuations of fish populations abundances are shaped by the interplay between population dynamics and the stochastic forcing of the environment. Age‐structured populations behave as a filter of the environment. This filter is characterised by the species‐specific life cycle and life‐history traits. An increased mortality of mature individuals alters these characteristics and may therefore induce changes in the variability of populations. The response of a generic age‐structured model was analysed to investigate the expected changes in the fluctuations of fish populations in response to decreased adult survival. These expectations were then tested on an extensive dataset. In accordance with theory, the analyses revealed that decreased adult survival and mean age of spawners were linked to an increase in the relative importance of short‐term fluctuations. It suggests that intensive exploitation can lead to a change in the variability of fish populations, an issue of central interest from both conservation and management perspectives.