Productivity patterns and abundance-area relationships in 3 marine fish species (cod,herring and haddock); meta-analyses on the effects of temperature, life-history andhabitat size across the N Atlantic

Stock status evaluation and recovery policies in fisheries management rely largely onreference points derived from spawner-recruit (SR) models. The key-parameters of thesemodels, representing productivity and carrying capacity, have been shown to be sensitive toenvironmental forcing and to depend on the biological and ecological characteristics of thestocks.

Our aim was to identify the patterns of the temperature, habitat size and life-historyeffects on the SR dynamics across the N Atlantic range of 3 species; cod (21 stocks), herring(16 stocks) and haddock (7 stocks). Using hierarchical, Bayesian SR models, we combinedthe data across the distribution of the species in order (i) to determine the functional formsof the SR parameters dependence on these factors among and within stocks and (ii) toborrow strength and provide estimates of increased precision.

Temperature during thespawning season was found to have significant effects on the productivities of all species,while carrying capacity was shown to depend also on the available habitat size. Using thederived relationships, it was possible to predict the expected changes in population-specificdynamics resulting from temperature increases.

Synthesizing these patterns can improve ourunderstanding of environmental impacts on key population parameters, which is required foran ecosystem approach to management