fishing – Southern Fried Science

New paper: What happened to the world’s first certified sustainable shark fishery?

June 26, 2023 David Shiffman

In 2011, the world’s first fishery for sharks was certified as sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council*. The British Columbia spiny dogfish fishery made major news in fisheries management and ocean conservation world, where the possible existence of sustainable shark fisheries has been debated intensely. A few years later, the fishery voluntarily withdrew their certification, and never publicly said why.

I wanted to know what happened with this scientific mystery. So, with the help of Chuck Bangley and Catherine Macdonald and funding support from the Liber Ero Postdoctoral Fellowship program, I organized a research expedition to find out. The results of our expedition can be found in our new paper (LINK,) (OPEN ACCESS AUTHOR COPY) but in this blog post, I’d like to explain what we did, what we found, and why we think it’s important.

Vanishing Islands, nuclear leaks, oceans of plastic, and one feisty Beluga. Weekly Salvage: November 18, 2019

November 18, 2019November 17, 2019 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Transcript available below.

Unprecedented destruction in the deep Gulf of Mexico, The Ocean Cleanup’s River Pivot, and More! Weekly Salvage: October 28, 2019.

October 28, 2019October 28, 2019 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Transcript below.

Space whales. Space. Whales. SPAAAAACE WHAAAAALES! Weekly Salvage: October 21, 2019

October 21, 2019October 20, 2019 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Transcript below.

Dead whales, glass sponges, 3D-printing for the ocean, and more! Weekly Salvage: October 14, 2019

October 14, 2019October 13, 2019 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Transcript below.

Small Shark Tagging Day

July 17, 2019July 17, 2019 Angelo Villagomez

Uncategorized

I am in Saba in the Dutch Caribbean with the Dutch Elasmobranch Society, St. Maarten Nature Foundation, and the Saba Conservation Foundation serving as a research assistant to an international team of shark scientists participating in the Save Our Sharks Expedition 2019. Today was our first day out on the water and our objective was … Read More “Small Shark Tagging Day” »

Japan returns to commercial whaling, octopuses are probably smarter than you, oil companies are burning oil to refreeze permafrost, and more! Monday Morning Salvage: July 8, 2019.

July 8, 2019July 7, 2019 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

The women fish sellers of West Africa, a great video from China Dialogue.

How smart are octopuses? So smart! For Smart Animals, Octopuses Are Very Weird.

High octopuses don’t love you back, sextants in space, protect our ocean monuments, and more! Monday Morning Salvage: September 24, 2018

September 24, 2018September 23, 2018 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Logo for Monday Morning Salvage.

Foghorn (a call to action)

After a decade spent expanding marine protection throughout the US EEZ, the federal government is going to war on healthy oceans: The Trump Administration’s New Attack on Marine Monuments.
Want to work for COMPASS in DC? One of the nation’s preeminent science communications institutions is hiring, and trust me, DC needs you.
If fleeing to Canada is more your style (David (¬_¬) ), Ocean Watch is hiring a manager to plan, manage and execute the Coastal Ocean Health Initiative.

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

Gulper Eels are amazing. Amazing.

This is an amazing series of visualizations from the Guardian. Seven endangered species that could (almost) fit in a single train carriage.

There are approximately 30 vaquitas left in the world Illustration: Mona Chalabi — There are approximately 30 vaquitas left in the world
Illustration: Mona Chalabi

There are sextants on the International Space Station and I can’t stop thinking about it.

Alvin dives for early-career scientists, join me in the Marianas Islands, stump a scientist, embraces MPAs, and more! Tuesday (?) Morning Salvage: April 17, 2018

April 17, 2018April 16, 2018 Andrew Thaler 1 Comment

Weekly Salvage

We’re late because Andrew doesn’t understand time zones.

Foghorn (A Call to Action!)

This is an incredible oportunity for an early career researcher to get their feet wet leading a deep-sea science cruise: Announcing a NSF-UNOLS Early Career Training Cruise Opportunity to the East Pacific Rise 9° 50’N – December 2018

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

We have a new writer! Please welcome the Original Saipan Blogger, Bucky Villagomez!
Hafa Adai from the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands! Are you following along with our adventure on OpenExplorer? Yesterday was one of the highlights of my career: Marine Ecology and Underwater Robotics in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

The Okeanos Marianas. Our research vessel for the day.

Add this to the list of things that are really not good: Atlantic Ocean Current Slows Down To 1,000-Year Low, Studies Show.
Look, if anyone could actually pull this off, it’s Phil Nuytten, but I. Have. Questions: Who’d like to live under the sea? H/T to Dr. Diva Amon.

The Levee (A featured project that emerged from Oceandotcomm)

Behold, the interactive Salt Marsh!
David S. and S. David did a thing!

Terraforming Mars on Earth, giant larvaceans, conservation jobs, and more! Monday Morning Salvage: May 8, 2017

May 8, 2017May 8, 2017 Andrew Thaler

Weekly Salvage

Fog Horn (A Call to Action)

The time to save the EPA is now! The EPA is seeking public input on the new administrations approach to environmental regulations. They are required to seek public input. They are required to respond to public input. Go tell them how you feel. Public comments close May 15. Here’s the docket with instructions on how to comment: Evaluation of Existing Regulations. We’ve even prepared a script for you.

Flotsam (what we’re obsessed with right now)

On a tiny island in the middle of the Atlantic, a terraforming project a century-and-a-half in the making is underway. A 150-year-old experiment on the remote Ascension Island may help us green Mars. Can it also help us save Earth?

Seabirds on Ascension Island. Photo by Clare Fieseler.

It also happens to be longtime friend of Southern Fried Science Clare Fieseler’s first major story for National Geographic, so go follow her on twitter.

Jetsam (what we’re enjoying from around the web)

Women have a crucial—yet often overlooked—role in fisheries. The Invisible Fishing Fleet by Ilima Loomis at Hakai Magazine.
“What do you do when you’re a graduate student and you’ve been sexually assaulted by the PI of a very exciting paleoanthropological site?” An incredibly powerful piece by Holly Dunsworth: In case this helps you: This happened to me while I was trying to become a paleoanthropologist.
The general theme of this site appears to be ‘humans are terrible, robots are awesome’. Staying on brand: In a first, deep sea robots get a close look at giant larvaceans, a key player in the biological carbon pump.
Deep-sea mining is really heating up. Locals threaten armed campaign against PNG seabed mine.
In the Pacific Northwest, the diligence of citizen scientists is shedding light on the lives, and deaths, of seabirds. Drawing Meaning from Death, One Seabird at a Time by Larry Pynn at Hakai.
This is a pretty great demonstration of how statistics can be used to mislead: Generating Datasets with Varied Appearance and Identical Statistics through Simulated Annealing.