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Background Coral reefs are rapidly changing in response to local and global stressors. Research to better understand and inform the management of these stressors is burgeoning. However, in situ studies of coral reef ecology are constrained by complex logistics and limited resources. Many reef studies are also hampered by the scale-dependent nature of ecological patterns, and inferences made on causal relationships within coral reef systems are limited by the scales of observation. This is because most socio-ecological studies are conducted at scales relevant to the phenomenon of interest. However, management often occurs across a significantly broader, often geopolitical, range of scales. While there is a critical need for incisive coral reef management actions at relevant spatial and temporal scales, it remains unclear to what extent the scales of empirical study overlap with the scales at which management inferences and recommendations are made. This systematic map protocol will evaluate this potential scale mismatch with the goal of raising awareness about the significance of effectively addressing and reporting the scales at which researchers collect data and make assumptions. Methods We will use the Collaboration for Environmental Evidence (CEE) systematic mapping guidelines to identify relevant studies using a framework-based synthesis to summarise the spatial and temporal scales of coral reef fish ecology research and the scales at which management inferences or recommendations are made. Using tested predefined terms, we will search for relevant published academic and grey literature, including bibliographic databases, web-based search engines, and organisational websites. Inclusion criteria for the evidence map are empirical studies that focus on coral reef fish ecological organisation and processes, those informing management interventions and policy decisions, and management documents that cite coral reef research for management decision-making. Study results will be displayed graphically using data matrices and heat maps. This is the first attempt to systematically assess and compare the scales of socio-ecological research conducted on coral reef systems with their management.

International audience; The great scallop (Pecten maximus) is a commercially important bivalve in Europe, particularly in the English Channel, where fisheries are managed at regional and local scales through the regulation of fishing effort. In the long term, knowledge about larval dispersal and gene flow between populations is essential to ensure proper stock management. Yet, previous population genetic studies have reported contradictory results. In this study, scallop samples collected across the main fishing grounds along the French and English coasts of the English Channel (20 samples with temporal replicates for three sites,n= 1059 individuals), and the population genetic structure was analysed using 13 microsatellite loci. Coupling empirical genetic data with demogenetic modelling based on a biophysical model simulating larval exchanges among scallop beds revealed a subtle genetic differentiation between south-west English populations and the rest of the English Channel, which was consistent with larval dispersal simulations. The present study provides a step forward in the understanding of great scallop population biology in the English Channel, underlining the fact that even in a context of potentially high gene flow and recent divergence times since the end of the last glacial maximum, weak but significant spatial genetic structure can be identified at a regional scale.

Understanding the distribution of fishing activity is fundamental to quantifying its impact on the seabed. Vessel monitoring system (VMS) data provides a means to understand the footprint (extent and intensity) of fishing activity. Automatic Identification System (AIS) data could offer a higher resolution alternative to VMS data, but differences in coverage and interpretation need to be better understood. VMS and AIS data were compared for individual scallop fishing vessels. There were substantial gaps in the AIS data coverage; AIS data only captured 26% of the time spent fishing compared to VMS data. The amount of missing data varied substantially between vessels (45–99% of each individuals' AIS data were missing). A cubic Hermite spline interpolation of VMS data provided the greatest similarity between VMS and AIS data. But the scale at which the data were analysed (size of the grid cells) had the greatest influence on estimates of fishing footprints. The present gaps in coverage of AIS may make it inappropriate for absolute estimates of fishing activity. VMS already provides a means of collecting more complete fishing position data, shielded from public view. Hence, there is an incentive to increase the VMS poll frequency to calculate more accurate fishing footprints.

Bottom-contact fishing gears are globally the most widespread anthropogenic sources of direct disturbance to the seabed and associated biota. Managing these fishing disturbances requires quantification of gear impacts on biota and the rate of recovery following disturbance. We undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis of 122 experiments on the effects-of-bottom fishing to quantify the removal of benthos in the path of the fishing gear and to estimate rates of recovery following disturbance. A gear pass reduced benthic invertebrate abundance by 26% and species richness by 19%. The effect was strongly gear-specific, with gears that penetrate deeper into the sediment having a significantly larger impact than those that penetrate less. Sediment composition (% mud and presence of biogenic habitat) and the history of fishing disturbance prior to an experimental fishing event were also important predictors of depletion, with communities in areas that were not previously fished, predominantly muddy or biogenic habitats being more strongly affected by fishing. Sessile and low mobility biota with longer life-spans such as sponges, soft corals and bivalves took much longer to recover after fishing (>3 year) than mobile biota with shorter life-spans such as polychaetes and malacostracans (

Knowledge of the extent and intensity of fishing activities is critical to inform management in relation to fishing impacts on marine conservation features. Such information can also provide insight into the potential socio-economic impacts of closures (or other restrictions) of fishing grounds that could occur through the future designation of Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs). We assessed the accuracy and validity of fishing effort data (spatial extent and relative effort) obtained from Fishers' Local Knowledge (LK) data compared to that derived from Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) data for a high-value shellfish fishery, the king scallop (Pecten maximus L.) dredge fishery in the English Channel. The spatial distribution of fishing effort from LK significantly correlated with VMS data and the correlation increased with increasing grid cell resolution. Using a larger grid cell size for data aggregation increases the estimation of the total area of seabed impacted by the fishery. In the absence of historical VMS data for vessels ≤15 m LOA (Length Overall), LK data for the inshore fleet provided important insights into the relative effort of the inshore (6 NM from land) king scallop fishing fleet in the English Channel. The LK data provided a good representation of the spatial extent of inshore fishing activity, whereas representation of the offshore fishery was more precautionary in terms of defining total impact. Significantly, the data highlighted frequently fished areas of particular importance to the inshore fleet. In the absence of independent sources of geospatial information, the use of LK can inform the development of marine planning in relation to both sustainable fishing and conservation objectives, and has application in both developed and developing countries where VMS technology is not utilised in fisheries management.

As with many other regions in the world, more complete information on the distribution of marine habitats in the Gulf is required to inform environmental policy, and spatial management of fisheries resources will require better understanding of the relationships between habitat and fish communities. Towed cameras and sediment grabs were used to investigate benthic habitats and associated epifauna, infauna and fish communities in the central Gulf, offshore from the east coast of Qatar, in water depths of between 12 and 52 m. Six different habitats were identified: (i) soft sediment habitats of mud and (ii) sand, and structured habitats of (iii) macro-algal reef, (iv) coral reef, (v) mixed reef, and (vi) oyster bed. The epibenthic community assemblage of the mud habitat was significantly different to that of sand, which in turn differed from the structured habitats of coral reef, mixed reef and oyster bed, with the macroalgal assemblage having similarities to both sand and the other structured habitats. Fish assemblages derived from video data did not differ between habitats, although certain species were only associated with particular habitats. Epibenthic diversity indices were significantly lower in mud, sand and macro-algal habitats, with no differences recorded for fish diversity. Soft sediment grab samples indicated that mud habitats had the highest benthic diversity, with Shannon-Weiner values of >4, and were more diverse than sand with values of 3.3. The study demonstrates high biodiversity in benthic habitats in the central and southwestern Gulf, which may in part be due to the absence of trawling activity in Qatari waters. There is a strong influence of depth on benthic habitat type, so that depth can be used to predict habitat distribution with a high level of accuracy. The presence of outcrops of hard substrata creates a mosaic of patchy shallow structured benthic habitat across extensive areas of the offshore seabed. Such heterogeneity, and the association of commercially exploited fish species with specific habitats, indicates that this region is well suited to a spatial approach to fisheries management.

Scallop dredging is considered to be one of the most damaging forms of fishing to benthic habitats, although these effects vary among different habitats. The present study characterizes the biological communities that occur within the spatial limits of the English Channel king scallop dredge fishery in relation to key environmental drivers [mean seabed temperature; seabed temperature range; interannual temperature variation; bed shear stress (BSS); substrate characteristics; and depth] and across a gradient of scallop dredging intensity derived from vessel monitoring system data. Dredge fishing intensity was not correlated with species richness, species diversity, or species composition. However, increasing tidal BSS had a significant negative correlation with species richness and diversity. This outcome indicates that it is not possible to demonstrate that there is an effect of scallop fishing within the current spatial limits of the king scallop dredge fishery. This may be because historical dredge fishing could have already altered the benthic communities within the area of the scallop fishery to those that are resilient to scallop dredging, or that fishing disturbance has no impact over and above natural physical disturbance within the fishery. An analysis of biological and life history traits revealed that there was no relationship between recent fishing intensity, or BSS, and the functional composition of the communities present. However, even the lowest BSS values in the present study could be considered relatively high compared with areas outside the spatial boundaries of the fishery. Two distinct habitat groups were identified, based on the environmental drivers. These two groups were largely characterized by depth: deep (western) and shallow (eastern) sites. Species with traits that increase resilience to physical disturbance were abundant across all sample sites. Management concerning the environmental impacts of the fishery is discussed in terms of the spatial footprint of the fishery and predicted recovery time-scales for the associated benthic communities.

Bottom trawling is the most widespread human activity affecting seabed habitats. Here, we collate all available data for experimental and comparative studies of trawling impacts on whole communities of seabed macroinvertebrates on sedimentary habitats and develop widely applicable methods to estimate depletion and recovery rates of biota after trawling. Depletion of biota and trawl penetration into the seabed are highly correlated. Otter trawls caused the least depletion, removing 6% of biota per pass and penetrating the seabed on average down to 2.4 cm, whereas hydraulic dredges caused the most depletion, removing 41% of biota and penetrating the seabed on average 16.1 cm. Median recovery times posttrawling (from 50 to 95% of unimpacted biomass) ranged between 1.9 and 6.4 y. By accounting for the effects of penetration depth, environmental variation, and uncertainty, the models explained much of the variability of depletion and recovery estimates from single studies. Coupled with large-scale, high-resolution maps of trawling frequency and habitat, our estimates of depletion and recovery rates enable the assessment of trawling impacts on unprecedented spatial scales. Fil: Hiddink, Jan Geert. Bangor University; Reino Unido Fil: Jennings, Simon. Centre for the Environment; Reino Unido. University of East Anglia; Reino Unido Fil: Sciberras, Marija. Bangor University; Reino Unido Fil: Szostek, Claire L.. Bangor University; Reino Unido Fil: Hughes, Kathryn M.. Bangor University; Reino Unido Fil: Ellis, Nick. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization Oceans & Atmosphere; Australia Fil: Rijnsdorp, Adriaan D.. Institute for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies; Países Bajos Fil: McConnaughey, Robert A.. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Estados Unidos Fil: Mazor, Tessa. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization Oceans & Atmosphere; Australia Fil: Hilborn, Ray. University of Washington; Estados Unidos Fil: Collie, Jeremy S.. University of Rhode Island; Estados Unidos Fil: Pitcher, C. Roland. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization Oceans & Atmosphere; Australia Fil: Amoroso, Ricardo Oscar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico; Argentina Fil: Parma, Ana María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico; Argentina Fil: Suuronen, Petri. Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations; Italia Fil: Kaiser, Michel J.. Bangor University; Reino Unido

The effects of exposure to elevated levels of suspended particulate matter (SPM) and burial on juvenile king scallops Pecten maximus L. were assessed in 2 separate experiments. Shell gape activity was monitored during exposure to no SPM and 'low' (50 to 100 mg l �1 ) and 'high' (200 to 700 mg l �1 ) levels of SPM for 18 d. The frequency of shell 'claps' (a complete shell closure) and shell movements (of ≥10°) differed significantly among treatments. Shell 'claps' and move- ments were significantly greater under high SPM than under low or control conditions. Scallops under low and high levels of SPM showed significantly lower growth rates compared to scallops under control conditions. The response to burial was assessed under varying burial duration (1 to 8 d), depth (0 to 5 cm) and size-fraction of sediment (fine: 0.1 to 0.3 mm, medium fine: 0.4 to 0.8 mm and coarse: 1.2 to 2.0 mm diameter). All 3 conditions had a significant influence on the ability of scallops to emerge from burial, as well as on mortality while buried. Emergence was higher at shallower depths and in coarse to medium grain sizes. Mortality rates while buried under coarse and medium grain sizes were low and appeared unrelated to depth, while within fine sediment, mortality increased with depth of burial. Survival decreased across all 3 sediment types with increasing burial duration. Comparison with earlier studies indicates that P. maximus appears more tolerant of burial and elevated levels of SPM than the queen scallop Aequipecten opercu- laris. Elevated SPM did not have any short-term effects on survival; however, the reduction in growth rate observed has implications for the management of scallop fishing grounds.

The biomass and composition of bycatch from king scallop dredge fisheries was assessed and compared between the English Channel, Cardigan Bay in Wales and around the Isle of Man. Bycatch composition varied significantly at localised, and broad, geographic scales. The mean proportion of scallop dredge bycatch biomass in the English Channel was 19% of total catch biomass. The proportion of bycatch was lower in Cardigan Bay (15%) but notably higher around the Isle of Man (53%). The proportion of individual bycatch species in dredge catches were low, therefore scallop dredging is unlikely to cause a substantial increase the population mortality of individual commercially fished species beyond that caused by the target fisheries for those species, or bycatches of other fisheries. The amount and mortality of organisms left on the seabed in the dredge path was not quantified in this study but should also be considered in management of the fishery. The discard rate of finfish and shellfish of commercial value from the king scallop dredge fishery in the English Channel was between 18 and 100%, with a higher rate of discarding occurring in the eastern English Channel compared to the west. The clear regional differences in bycatch composition and variation in the quantity of discards mean that an area by area approach to managing bycatch species is required in relation to the king scallop dredge fishery.