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Fish habitat associations are important measures for effective aquatic habitat management, but often vary over broad spatial and temporal scales, and are therefore challenging to measure comprehensively. We used a 9-year acoustic telemetry dataset to generate spatial–temporal habitat suitability models for seven fish species in an urban freshwater harbour, Toronto Harbour, Lake Ontario. Fishes generally occupied the more natural regions of Toronto Harbour most frequently. However, each species exhibited unique habitat associations and spatial–temporal interactions in their habitat use. For example, largemouth bass exhibited the most consistent seasonal habitat use, mainly associating with shallow, sheltered embayments with high aquatic vegetation (SAV) cover. Conversely, walleye seldom occupied Toronto Harbour in summer, with the highest occupancy of shallow, low-SAV habitats in the spring, which corresponds to their spawning period. Others, such as common carp, shifted between shallow summer and deeper winter habitats. Community level spatial–temporal habitat importance estimates were also generated, which can serve as an aggregate measure for habitat management. Acoustic telemetry provides novel opportunities to generate robust spatial–temporal fish habitat models based on wild fish behaviour, which are useful for the management of fish habitat from a fish species and community perspective.

Telemetry has major potential for application to fish habitat science and management, but to date it is underutilized in this regard. We posit this is because (1) fish telemetry projects are often geared towards detecting fish movement, opposed to systematically sampling habitat selection, and (2) there are often differences in scale between telemetry data and management decisions. We discuss various ways in which telemetry can contribute to fish habitat science and present some considerations for improving its application to this field. To date, most fish telemetry studies have been descriptive (e.g., fish use area A more than area B); greater adoption of more inferential study approaches that assess causal ecological drivers of movement and space use would be of value and require more extensive measurement of environmental conditions. We conclude by presenting a conceptual framework for scaling from individual studies to broad applications in habitat management. Established telemetry networks can readily support synthesis activities, although fish tracking data and environmental data are rarely stored together, and current disconnects among repositories may constrain broad integration and scalability.

Winter at high latitudes is characterized by low temperatures, dampened light levels and short photoperiods which shape ecological and evolutionary outcomes from cells to populations to ecosystems. Advances in our understanding of winter biological processes (spanning physiology, behaviour and ecology) highlight that biodiversity threats (e.g. climate change driven shifts in reproductive windows) may interact with winter conditions, leading to greater ecological impacts. As such, conservation and management strategies that consider winter processes and their consequences on biological mechanisms may lead to greater resilience of high altitude and latitude ecosystems. Here, we use well-established threat and action taxonomies produced by the International Union of Conservation of Nature—Conservation Measures Partnership (IUCN-CMP) to synthesize current threats to biota that emerge during, or as the result of, winter processes then discuss targeted management approaches for winter-based conservation. We demonstrate the importance of considering winter when identifying threats to biodiversity and deciding on appropriate management strategies across species and ecosystems. We confirm our expectation that threats are prevalent during the winter and are especially important considering the physiologically challenging conditions that winter presents. Moreover, our findings emphasize that climate change and winter-related constraints on organisms will intersect with other stressors to potentially magnify threats and further complicate management. Though conservation and management practices are less commonly considered during the winter season, we identified several potential or already realized applications relevant to winter that could be beneficial. Many of the examples are quite recent, suggesting a potential turning point for applied winter biology. This growing body of literature is promising but we submit that more research is needed to identify and address threats to wintering biota for targeted and proactive conservation. We suggest that management decisions consider the importance of winter and incorporate winter specific strategies for holistic and mechanistic conservation and resource management.

There is growing evidence that bioenergetics can explain relationships between environmental conditions and fish behaviour, distribution and fitness. Fish energetic needs increase predictably with water temperature, but metabolic performance (i.e., aerobic scope) exhibits varied relationships, and there is debate about its role in shaping fish ecology. Here we present an energetics-performance framework, which posits that ecological context determines whether energy expenditure or metabolic performance influence fish behaviour and fitness. From this framework, we present testable predictions about how temperature-driven variability in energetic demands and metabolic performance interact with ecological conditions to influence fish behaviour, distribution and fitness. Specifically, factors such as prey availability and the spatial distributions of prey and predators may alter fish temperature selection relative to metabolic and energetic optima. Furthermore, metabolic flexibility is a key determinant of how fish will respond to changing conditions, such as those predicted with climate change. With few exceptions, these predictions have rarely been tested in the wild due partly to difficulties in remotely measuring aspects of fish energetics. However, with recent advances in technology and measurement techniques, we now have a better capacity to measure bioenergetics parameters in the wild. Testing these predictions will provide a more mechanistic understanding of how ecological factors affect fish fitness and population dynamics, advancing our knowledge of how species and ecosystems will respond to rapidly changing environments.

There are many syntheses on the role of animal behavior in understanding and mitigating conservation threats for wildlife. That body of work has inspired the development of a new discipline called conservation behavior. Yet, the majority of those synthetic papers focus on non-fish taxa such as birds and mammals. Many fish populations are subject to intensive exploitation and management and for decades researchers have used concepts and knowledge from animal behavior to support management and conservation actions. Dr. David L. G. Noakes is an influential ethologist who did much foundational work related to illustrating how behavior was relevant to the management and conservation of wild fish. We pay tribute to the late Dr. Noakes by summarizing the relevance of animal behavior to fisheries management and conservation. To do so, we first consider what behavior has revealed about how fish respond to key threats such as habitat alteration and loss, invasive species, climate change, pollution, and exploitation. We then consider how behavior has informed the application of common management interventions such as protected areas and spatial planning, stock enhancement, and restoration of habitat and connectivity. Our synthesis focuses on the totality of the field but includes reflections on the specific contributions of Dr. Noakes. Themes emerging from his approach include the value of fundamental research, management-scale experiments, and bridging behavior, physiology, and ecology. Animal behavior plays a key role in understanding and mitigating threats to wild fish populations and will become more important with the increasing pressures facing aquatic ecosystems. Fortunately, the toolbox for studying behavior is expanding, with technological and analytical advances revolutionizing our understanding of wild fish and generating new knowledge for fisheries managers and conservation practitioners.

Effective management of freshwater fish habitat is essential to supporting healthy aquatic ecosystems and sustainable fisheries. In Canada, recent changes to the Fisheries Act enhanced the protection of fish habitat, but application of those provisions relies on sound scientific evidence. We employed collaborative research prioritization methods to identify scientific research questions that, if addressed, would significantly advance the management of freshwater fish habitat in Canada. This list was generated by a diverse group of freshwater fish experts, including substantial contributions from practitioners who administer provisions of the Fisheries Act. The research questions generated in this study identify priority topics for future research, while highlighting issues that could be addressed with different funding models. As a result, this study should support evidence-based management of Canada’s aquatic resources by identifying scientific knowledge gaps faced by practitioners, and suggesting mechanisms to address them. Given the important contribution of Canadian freshwater systems to global ecosystem values, and the similar scientific challenges facing fish habitat managers in other jurisdictions, this study is likely to have broad applicability.

The premise of catch-and-release angling is that most fish survive fisheries interactions. Therefore, it is common for anglers, management agencies, and other organizations to share information on handling practices and other strategies that are believed to improve fish welfare and survival. Recent media coverage has sensationalized the use of carbonated beverages to treat bleeding fish, an intervention that is purported to stop bleeding but has yet to be validated scientifically. We captured Northern Pike (Esox lucius) via hook and line, experimentally injured their gills in a standardized manner, and treated them with either Mountain Dew, Coca Cola, or carbonated lake water and observed the duration and intensity of bleeding, as well as overall blood loss (using gill colour as a proxy) while the fish was held in a lake water bath. As a control, we had a group of experimentally injured fish that did not have liquid poured over their gills before the observation period. All treatments and the control were conducted at two different water temperatures (11-18 °C and 24-27 °C) to determine if the effects of pouring carbonated beverages over injured gills is temperature dependent. When compared to the control, we found that the duration and intensity of bleeding increased regardless of the type of carbonated beverages used in this study, and there was no effect of water temperature. Use of chilled versus ambient temperature beverages similarly had no influence on outcomes. As such, there is no scientific evidence to support the use of carbonated beverages for reducing or stopping blood loss for fish that have had their gills injured during recreational angling based on the context studied here. This study reinforced the need to scientifically test angler anecdotes and theories when it comes to best practices for catch-and-release fishing.

Fishes are often caught as bycatch on longlines and subsequently discarded. The behavioural response of fishes to longline capture is poorly understood, although it may be linked to the magnitude of the physiological stress response, and, ultimately, contribute to stress-induced mortality. We used accelerometers, video cameras, and hook timers to analyse the behavioural response of 13 subtropical teleost and elasmobranch species to experimental longline capture in The Bahamas. We found that, across all species and species groups, fight intensity during a capture event was best described by a negative linear and positive quadratic response. Nurse sharks and tiger sharks had lower fight intensity values and exhibited less steepness in their quadratic response during the first 10 min of capture than other species, particularly blacktip and Caribbean reef sharks. Nurse sharks also exhibited the most consistent fight intensity during the entire capture event compared to other shark species, particularly the blacknose shark. Generally, obligate ram ventilators and mixed ventilators exhibited higher steepness in fight intensity trajectories than buccal/spiracular pumpers, which had more consistent, lower fight intensity values. Behavioural responses to longline capture are species specific but may be linked to distinct evolutionary traits such as respiratory mode.

Tropical and subtropical coastal flats are shallow regions of the marine environment at the intersection of land and sea. These regions provide myriad ecological goods and services, including recreational fisheries focused on flats-inhabiting fishes such as bonefish, tarpon, and permit. The cascading effects of climate change have the potential to negatively impact coastal flats around the globe and to reduce their ecological and economic value. In this paper, we consider how the combined effects of climate change, including extremes in temperature and precipitation regimes, sea level rise, and changes in nutrient dynamics, are causing rapid and potentially permanent changes to the structure and function of tropical and subtropical flats ecosystems. We then apply the available science on recreationally targeted fishes to reveal how these changes can cascade through layers of biological organization-from individuals, to populations, to communities-and ultimately impact the coastal systems that depend on them. We identify critical gaps in knowledge related to the extent and severity of these effects, and how such gaps influence the effectiveness of conservation, management, policy, and grassroots stewardship efforts.

Understanding the factors that contribute to fish impairment and survival from angling events is essential to guide best angling practices for catch-and-release (C&R) recreational fisheries. Complex interactions often exist between angler behaviour, environmental conditions, and fish characteristics that ultimately determine biological outcomes for fish. Yet, few studies focus on identifying biologically relevant thresholds. We therefore examined the effects of water temperature, air exposure and fish size on reflex impairment and mortality in brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis exposed to experimental and simulated angling stressors (n = 337). Using conditional inference trees, we identified interactions among these factors as well as threshold values within them that determine brook trout reflex impairment as an indicator of whole animal stress. Specifically, longer air exposure times (>30 sec) and warmer temperatures (>19.5°C) had a synergistic effect leading to higher reflex impairment scores. Further, larger fish (>328 mm) were more sensitive to air exposure durations >10 sec. Of the reflex impairment measures, loss of equilibrium and time to regain equilibrium were strongly and moderately associated with brook trout mortality (18–24 h monitoring), although mortality rates were generally low (6%). These findings support previous research that has established strong links between these reflex impairment measures and fish health outcomes in other species. They also highlight the important interactions among air exposure duration, water temperature and fish size that determine impairment in brook trout, providing specific thresholds to guide best angling practices for C&R fisheries. This approach may be widely applicable to generate similar thresholds that can be encouraged by regulators and adopted by anglers for other common C&R fishes.

Movement of fishes in the aquatic realm is fundamental to their ecology and survival. Movement can be driven by a variety of biological, physiological, and environmental factors occurring across all spatial and temporal scales. The intrinsic capacity of movement to impact fish individually (e.g., foraging) with potential knock-on effects throughout the ecosystem (e.g., food web dynamics) has garnered considerable interest in the field of movement ecology. The advancement of technology in recent decades, in combination with ever-growing threats to freshwater and marine systems, have further spurred empirical research and theoretical considerations. Given the rapid expansion within the field of movement ecology and its significant role in informing management and conservation efforts, a contemporary and multidisciplinary review about the various components influencing movement is outstanding. Using an established conceptual framework for movement ecology as a guide (i.e., Nathan et al., 2008 PNAS. 105:19052), we synthesize the environmental and individual factors that affect the movement of fishes. Specifically, internal (e.g., energy acquisition, endocrinology, and homeostasis) and external (biotic and abiotic) environmental elements are discussed, as well as the different processes that influence individual-level (or population) decisions, such as navigation cues, motion capacity, propagation characteristics, and group behaviours. In addition to environmental drivers and individual movement factors, we also explore how associated strategies help survival by optimizing physiological and other biological states. Next, we identify how movement ecology is increasingly being incorporated into management and conservation by highlighting the inherent benefits that spatio-temporal fish behaviour imbues into policy, regulatory, and remediation planning. Finally, we consider the future of movement ecology by evaluating ongoing technological innovations and both the challenges and opportunities that these advancements create for scientists and managers. As aquatic ecosystems continue to face alarming climate (and other human-driven) issues that impact animal movements, the comprehensive and multidisciplinary assessment of movement ecology will be instrumental in developing plans to guide research and promote sustainability measures for aquatic resources.

Recreational fisheries hold immense ecological, social, and economic value. The management of these fisheries is increasingly important as we move forward in the Anthropocene. Recreational fisheries managers face several challenges as fisheries often involve diverse social and ecological systems comprised of complex feedback and stakeholder motivations and needs. Here, we used a horizon scanning exercise to yield 100 research questions related to recreational fisheries science and management in the Anthropocene. Initial research questions (n = 205) were collected from recreational fisheries experts (i.e., stakeholders, managers, researchers) from various sectors (i.e., industry, government, NGOs) and geographic locations (14 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, USA). These questions were subsequently categorized, thematized, and refined by our authorship team, eventually yielding what we considered to be the top 100 research questions of relevance to management of recreational fisheries. The key themes include: human dimensions; bioeconomics; resource monitoring and data acquisition; governance; management—regulatory actions; management—stock and habitat enhancement; catch-and-release; impacts of recreational fisheries on populations, communities and ecosystems; threats and sustainability; and angler outreach, education and engagement. It is our intention that this comprehensive and forward-looking list will create a framework to guide future research within this field, and contribute to evidence-based recreational fisheries management and policy.

We used acoustic telemetry to quantify permit Trachinotus falcatus habitat use and connectivity in proximity to the Florida Keys, USA, and assessed these patterns relative to current habitat and fisheries management practices. From March 2017 to June 2018, 45 permit tagged within 16 km of the lower Florida Keys were detected at stationary acoustic receivers throughout the south Florida region, the majority of which remained within the Special Permit Zone, where more extensive fisheries harvest regulations are implemented. There was a high level of connectivity between nearshore flats (i.e.

Interspecific interactions can play an essential role in shaping wildlife populations and communities. To date, assessments of interspecific interactions, and more specifically predator-prey dynamics, in aquatic systems over broad spatial and temporal scales (i.e., hundreds of kilometers and multiple years) are rare due to constraints on our abilities to measure effectively at those scales. We applied new methods to identify space-use overlap and potential predation risk to Atlantic tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) and permit (Trachinotus falcatus) from two known predators, great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran) and bull (Carcharhinus leucas) sharks, over a 3-year period using acoustic telemetry in the coastal region of the Florida Keys (USA). By examining spatiotemporal overlap, as well as the timing and order of arrival at specific locations compared to random chance, we show that potential predation risk from great hammerhead and bull sharks to Atlantic tarpon and permit are heterogeneous across the Florida Keys. Additionally, we find that predator encounter rates with these game fishes are elevated at specific locations and times, including a prespawning aggregation site in the case of Atlantic tarpon. Further, using machine learning algorithms, we identify environmental variability in overlap between predators and their potential prey, including location, habitat, time of year, lunar cycle, depth, and water temperature. These predator-prey landscapes provide insights into fundamental ecosystem function and biological conservation, especially in the context of emerging fishery-related depredation issues in coastal marine ecosystems.

Knowledge of the habitat associations and spatial–temporal distributions of wild animals is essential for successful ecosystem management, and effective analytical approaches are key to develop accurate models of these relationships. We explore the influence of several modeling techniques, tuning parameters, and assignment thresholds on a variety of model fit metrics to characterize habitat associations and make spatial–temporal predictions of species distribution based on a nine-year acoustic telemetry fish tracking dataset from a freshwater system. Unweighted generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) and random forests (RF) had the highest prediction accuracy of fish occupancy (> 84%) and precision (positive predictive value accuracy), but because the data were imbalanced (> 70% absences), predictions had low sensitivity (accuracy of true presences

Telemetry is being used to generate an unprecedented level of knowledge on the underwater environment, much of which is relevant to marine policy and management. Yet, examples of telemetry directly informing management practices are still rare or undocumented. Here we describe a case in which fish telemetry data were rapidly incorporated into recreational fisheries policy for Permit (Trachinotus falcatus) in Florida. The reproductive strategy of Permit involves forming large aggregations, during which time they are often targeted by recreational anglers. To protect Permit from overfishing, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission established regulations in 2011 to prohibit Permit harvest during May through July, based on knowledge of seasonal Permit reproductive status. However, an acoustic telemetry study initiated in 2016 revealed that spawning aggregations were forming prior to this period, during the month of April. This information had a rapid and definitive impact on fisheries management policy. Given the well-documented difficulties of incorporating new science and information into environmental decision-making, this case provides valuable insights into how the knowledge-action gap may be bridged. Many factors contributed to the rapid uptake of this telemetry-derived knowledge into management, including applied research funding and objectives, integrating managers and stakeholders into the research, rapid dissemination of preliminary data, plus well-established relationships amongst scientists, managers, and stakeholders mediated by a non-government organization, Bonefish & Tarpon Trust. These factors may serve as a basis for researchers and managers seeking to translate new research into management practice, improving research impact and achievement of conservation goals.

Telemetry is an increasingly common tool for studying the ecology of wild fish, with great potential to provide valuable information for management and conservation. For researchers to conduct a robust telemetry study, many essential considerations exist related to selecting the appropriate tag type, fish capture and tagging methods, tracking protocol, data processing and analyses, and interpretation of findings. For telemetry-derived knowledge to be relevant to managers and policy makers, the research approach must consider management information needs for decision-making, while end users require an understanding of telemetry technology (capabilities and limitations), its application to fisheries research and monitoring (study design), and proper interpretation of results and conclusions (considering the potential for biases and proper recognition of associated uncertainties). To help bridge this gap, we provide a set of considerations and a checklist for researchers to guide them in conducting reliable and management-relevant telemetry studies, and for managers to evaluate the reliability and relevance of telemetry studies so as to better integrate findings into management plans. These considerations include implicit assumptions, technical limitations, ethical and biological realities, analytical merits, and the relevance of study findings to decision-making processes.

Recreational fisheries (RF) are complex social-ecological systems that play an important role in aquatic environments while generating significant social and economic benefits around the world. The nature of RF is diverse and rapidly evolving, including the participants, their priorities and behaviors, and the related ecological impacts and social and economic benefits. RF can lead to negative ecological impacts, particularly through overexploitation of fish populations and spread of non-native species and genotypes through stocking. Hence, careful management and monitoring of RF is essential to sustain these ecologically and socioeconomically important resources. This special issue on recreational fisheries contains diverse research, syntheses, and perspectives that highlight the advances being made in RF research, monitoring, management, and practice, which we summarize here. Co-management actions are rising, often involving diverse interest groups including government and non-government organizations; applying collaborative management practices can help balance social and economic benefits with conservation targets. Technological and methodological advances are improving the ability to monitor biological, social, and economic dynamics of RF, which underpin the ability to maximize RF benefits through management actions. To ensure RF sustainability, much research focuses on the ecological aspects of RF, as well as the development of management and angling practices that reduce negative impacts on fish populations. For example, angler behavior can be influenced to conform to conservation-minded angling practices through regulations, but is often best accomplished through growing bottom-up social change movements. Anglers can also play an important role in fisheries monitoring and conservation, including providing data on fish abundance and assemblages (i.e., citizen science). The increasing impacts that growing human populations are having on the global environment are threatening many of the natural resources and ecosystem services they provide, including valuable RF. However, with careful development of research initiatives, monitoring and management, sustainable RF can generate positive outcomes for both society and natural ecosystems and help solve allocation conflicts with commercial fisheries and conservation.

Recreational fisheries are increasingly important sectors of tourism-based economies. In the last decade, new recreational fisheries have emerged that target species of varying conservation status including vulnerable, endangered, and unassessed species. In Guyana, catch-and-release angling tourism has begun to target arapaima, a genus of giant air-breathing fishes. Given the uncertain conservation status of this species and that no information is available to evaluate the sustainability of this activity, we sought to describe the responses of arapaima to recreational angling. We harnessed tri-axial accelerometer biologgers around the trunk of fish that had been captured and released by recreational anglers, allowing us to monitor post-release survival and behaviour, including surfacing, which is essential for this air-breathing fish to recover from exhaustion. Twenty-seven individuals were instrumented (162 ± 25 cm), 24 of which were considered survivors (89%) during the 47 ± 35 (SD) min monitoring period. Fish that died were observed to drown soon after release (i.e. within minutes), not surfacing to breathe air. Supervised machine learning classification of behaviours using a random forest algorithm identified surfacing events with 80% accuracy (i.e. out-of-bag error rate = 20%), which we applied to unobserved data periods to estimate breathing frequency after release, along with overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA) as a proxy for activity. Neither mean breathing frequency nor ODBA were related to body size (total length), handling time (which incorporated facilitated recovery of individuals), nor time of capture (early or late in the dry season spanning water temperatures of 29.3–34.1 °C). The precise angling-related factors that led to arapaima mortality were unclear, but the frequency of mortality aligns with the mortality documented in other recreational fisheries. This mortality source can be incorporated into conservation plans and provide context to the impacts of recreational angling relative to the costs of legal or illegal harvest.

Bonefish (Albula vulpes) support a world-renowned fishery in South Florida, USA. However, fishing guides and anglers have been reporting significant declines in bonefish angling quality over that past three decades. In the absence of any long-term bonefish stock and ecosystem assessments, the cause of this decline in the fishery is unclear. Here we summarize our current knowledge of bonefish ecology in Florida and discuss potential causes of fishery decline. Reductions and alterations in freshwater flows from the Everglades have caused major changes in bonefish habitat, including acute (anoxic conditions) and chronic (changes in benthic flora and fauna) effects in Florida Bay and Biscayne Bay. Various pollutants from agricultural and urban runoff may also be impacting bonefish population(s) directly and/or indirectly throughout their range. Efforts to locate juvenile A. vulpes in Florida have been largely unsuccessful to date, suggesting abundances may be low, and/or juveniles have unknown habitat requirements in Florida. Further, bonefish larvae may be sourced from adult individuals outside of Florida in areas such as Cuba or Mexico, in which case bonefish conservation in other regions is highly relevant to the Florida population. Extreme weather events may have also contributed to the decline; an extreme cold spell in 2010 caused significant bonefish mortality and coincided with documented declines in the fishery. The fishery may also be impacting the population. We outline research needs and potential approaches to better understand the causes of the bonefish decline in Florida and restore populations of this ecologically and socioeconomically important species.

Bonefish (Albula spp.) are a popular recreational gamefish; however, there is currently limited information on bonefish early life history stages. Here we examine the diet of juvenile bonefish (Albula vulpes) in Eleuthera, The Bahamas, and provide a comparison to previously collected data on bonefish (Albula spp., primarily A. goreensis) in Florida. In Eleuthera, amphipods and carideans were the most important prey items found in the digestive tracts of 111 juvenile bonefish collected in 2011 and 2012. There was no difference in the ranking of 14 prey taxa between years, however, there was a difference between sample locations on Eleuthera, The Bahamas, with fish being from either Rock Sound (west coast) or Savannah Sound and Half Sound (east coast). Prey species diversity, evenness, and richness were all lower on the west coast compared to the east coast of Eleuthera. There was also a higher probability of an empty stomach with larger bonefish on the west coast, higher amphipod and caridean abundances in juvenile bonefish on the west coast, and higher amphipod abundance with larger bonefish of Eleuthera. Differences may be related to variation in habitat structure and/or prey availability between the sample locations of the island. There was no statistical difference in ranking between the 17 prey taxa categories in Eleuthera A. vulpes and Florida A. spp (86% A. goreensis) juvenile bonefish stomachs; however, only one taxon (Amphipoda) occurred in the top-five-ranked taxa between the two studies. Results reported here provide the first insight into juvenile A. vulpes diet and how bonefish diet may vary across embayments, regions, and species.

18 pages, 5 figures, supplementary data https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109175.-- The data supporting the findings of this study are available in the Supplementary Materials (Appendix 3–5, Table A3-A5). Raw datasets (where available) and results summary tables for each analysis of human mobility and empirical datasets are deposited in a github repository: https://github.com/rjcommand/PAN-Environment, The global lockdown to mitigate COVID-19 pandemic health risks has altered human interactions with nature. Here, we report immediate impacts of changes in human activities on wildlife and environmental threats during the early lockdown months of 2020, based on 877 qualitative reports and 332 quantitative assessments from 89 different studies. Hundreds of reports of unusual species observations from around the world suggest that animals quickly responded to the reductions in human presence. However, negative effects of lockdown on conservation also emerged, as confinement resulted in some park officials being unable to perform conservation, restoration and enforcement tasks, resulting in local increases in illegal activities such as hunting. Overall, there is a complex mixture of positive and negative effects of the pandemic lockdown on nature, all of which have the potential to lead to cascading responses which in turn impact wildlife and nature conservation. While the net effect of the lockdown will need to be assessed over years as data becomes available and persistent effects emerge, immediate responses were detected across the world. Thus initial qualitative and quantitative data arising from this serendipitous global quasi-experimental perturbation highlights the dual role that humans play in threatening and protecting species and ecosystems. Pathways to favorably tilt this delicate balance include reducing impacts and increasing conservation effectiveness, The Canada Research Chairs program provided funding for the core writing team. Field research funding was provided by A.G. Leventis Foundation; Agence Nationale de la Recherche, [grant number ANR-18-32–0010CE-01 (JCJC PEPPER)]; Agencia Estatal de Investigaci; Agência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação (ARDITI), [grant number M1420-09-5369-FSE-000002]; Alan Peterson; ArcticNet; Arkadaşlar; Army Corp of Engineers; Artificial Reef Program; Australia's Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS), National Collaborative; Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS), University of Tasmania; Australian Institute of Marine Science; Australian Research Council, [grant number LP140100222]; Bai Xian Asia Institute; Batubay Özkan; BC Hydro Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program; Ben-Gurion University of the Negev; Bertarelli Foundation; Bertarelli Programme in Marine Science; Bilge Bahar; Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Biology Society of South Australia; Boston University; Burak Över; California State Assembly member Patrick O'Donnell; California State University Council on Ocean Affairs, Science & Technology; California State University Long Beach; Canada Foundation for Innovation (Major Science Initiative Fund and funding to Oceans Network Canada), [grant number MSI 30199 for ONC]; Cape Eleuthera Foundation; Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique; Charles Darwin Foundation, [grant number 2398]; Colombian Institute for the Development of Science and Technology (COLCIENCIAS), [grant number 811–2018]; Colombian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, [grant number 0041–2020]; Columbia Basin Trust; Commission for Environmental Cooperation; Cornell Lab of Ornithology; Cultural practices and environmental certification of beaches, Universidad de la Costa, Colombia, [grant number INV.1106–01–002-15, 2020–21]; Department of Conservation New Zealand; Direction de l'Environnement de Polynésie Française; Disney Conservation Fund; DSI-NRF Centre of; Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology; Ecology Project International; Emin Özgür; Environment and Climate Change Canada; European Community: RTD programme - Species Support to Policies; European Community's Seventh Framework Programme; European Union; European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, Marie Skłodowska-Curie, [grant number 798091, 794938]; Faruk Eczacıbaşı; Faruk Yalçın Zoo; Field research funding was provided by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology; Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program; Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, [grant numbers FWC-12164, FWC-14026, FWC-19050]; Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional; Fonds québécois de la recherche nature et technologies; Foundation Segré; Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT Portugal); Galapagos National Park Directorate research, [grant number PC-41-20]; Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, [grant number GBMF9881 and GBMF 8072]; Government of Tristan da Cunha; Habitat; Conservation Trust Foundation; Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment; Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas, Sevastopol, Russia; Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt; Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Brazil; Israeli Academy of Science's Adams Fellowship; King Family Trust; Labex, CORAIL, France; Liber Ero Fellowship; LIFE (European Union), [grant number LIFE16 NAT/BG/000874]; María de Maeztu Program for Units of Excellence in R&D; Ministry of Science and Innovation, FEDER, SPASIMM,; Spain, [grant number FIS2016–80067-P (AEI/FEDER, UE)]; MOE-Korea, [grant number 2020002990006]; Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund; Montreal Space for Life; National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Earth and Space Science Fellowship Program; National Geographic Society, [grant numbers NGS-82515R-20]; National Natural Science Fund of China; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; National Parks Board, Singapore; National Science and Technology Major Project of China; National Science Foundation, [grant number DEB-1832016]; Natural Environment Research Council of the UK; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Alliance COVID-19 grant program, [grant numbers ALLRP 550721–20, RGPIN-2014-06229 (year: 2014), RGPIN-2016-05772 (year: 2016)]; Neiser Foundation; Nekton Foundation; Network of Centre of Excellence of Canada: ArcticNet; North Family Foundation; Ocean Tracking Network; Ömer Külahçıoğlu; Oregon State University; Parks Canada Agency (Lake Louise, Yoho, and Kootenay Field Unit); Pew Charitable Trusts; Porsim Kanaf partnership; President's International Fellowship Initiative for postdoctoral researchers Chinese Academy of Sciences, [grant number 2019 PB0143]; Red Sea Research Center; Regional Government of the Azores, [grant number M3.1a/F/025/2015]; Regione Toscana; Rotary Club of Rhinebeck; Save our Seas Foundation; Science & Technology (CSU COAST); Science City Davos, Naturforschende Gesellschaft Davos; Seha İşmen; Sentinelle Nord program from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund; Servizio Foreste e Fauna (Provincia Autonoma di Trento); Sigrid Rausing Trust; Simon Fraser University; Sitka Foundation; Sivil Toplum Geliştirme Merkezi Derneği; South African National Parks (SANParks); South Australian Department for Environment and Water; Southern California Tuna Club (SCTC); Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge; Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness; Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation; State of California; Sternlicht Family Foundation; Suna Reyent; Sunshine Coast Regional Council; Tarea Vida, CEMZOC, Universidad de Oriente, Cuba, [grant number 10523, 2020]; Teck Coal; The Hamilton Waterfront Trust; The Ian Potter Foundation, Coastwest, Western Australian State NRM; The Red Sea Development Company; The Wanderlust Fund; The Whitley Fund; Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline; Tula Foundation (Hakai Institute); University of Arizona; University of Pisa; US Fish and Wildlife Service; US Geological Survey; Valencian Regional Government; Vermont Center for Ecostudies; Victorian Fisheries Authority; VMRC Fishing License Fund; and Wildlife Warriors Worldwide, With funding from the Spanish government through the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2019-000928-S

Technology that is developed for or adopted by the recreational fisheries sector (e.g., anglers and the recreational fishing industry) has led to rapid and dramatic changes in how recreational anglers interact with fisheries resources. From improvements in finding and catching fish to emulating their natural prey and accessing previously inaccessible waters, to anglers sharing their exploits with others, technology is completely changing all aspects of recreational fishing. These innovations would superficially be viewed as positive from the perspective of the angler (aside from the financial cost of purchasing some technologies), yet for the fisheries manager and policy maker, technology may create unintended challenges that lead to reactionary or even ill-defined approaches as they attempt to keep up with these changes. The goal of this paper is to consider how innovations in recreational fishing are changing the way that anglers interact with fish, and thus how recreational fisheries management is undertaken. We use a combination of structured reviews and expert analyses combined with descriptive case studies to highlight the many ways that technology is influencing recreational fishing practice, and, relatedly, what it means for changing how fisheries and/or these technologies need to be managed—from changes in fish capture, to fish handling, to how anglers share information with each other and with managers. Given that technology is continually evolving, we hope that the examples provided here lead to more and better monitoring of technological innovations and engagement by the management and policy authorities with the recreational fishing sector. Doing so will ensure that management actions related to emerging and evolving recreational fishing technology are more proactive than reactive. publishedVersion

The premise of catch-and-release angling is that most fish survive fisheries interactions. Therefore, it is common for anglers, management agencies, and other organizations to share information on handling practices and other strategies that are believed to improve fish welfare and survival. Recent media coverage has sensationalized the use of carbonated beverages to treat bleeding fish, an intervention that is purported to stop bleeding but has yet to be validated scientifically. We captured Northern Pike (Esox lucius) via hook and line, experimentally injured their gills in a standardized manner, and treated them with either Mountain Dew, Coca Cola, or carbonated lake water and observed the duration and intensity of bleeding, as well as overall blood loss (using gill colour as a proxy) while the fish was held in a lake water bath. As a control, we had a group of experimentally injured fish that did not have liquid poured over their gills before the observation period. All treatments and the control were conducted at two different water temperatures (11-18 °C and 24-27 °C) to determine if the effects of pouring carbonated beverages over injured gills is temperature dependent. When compared to the control, we found that the duration and intensity of bleeding increased regardless of the type of carbonated beverages used in this study, and there was no effect of water temperature. Use of chilled versus ambient temperature beverages similarly had no influence on outcomes. As such, there is no scientific evidence to support the use of carbonated beverages for reducing or stopping blood loss for fish that have had their gills injured during recreational angling based on the context studied here. This study reinforced the need to scientifically test angler anecdotes and theories when it comes to best practices for catch-and-release fishing.

The energy landscapes paradigm describes how spatial variation in energetic costs of transport (locomotion) influences animal movement. We suggest a more holistic view of the energetic costs and gains that vary across landscapes. Firstly, the spatial distribution of potential energetic gain is a major factor in animal spatial ecology. In addition to food availability, metabolic performance determines the capacity of animals to capture and digest food, which can vary dramatically across space and time. Independent of movement, energetic costs and gains vary spatially with environmental factors like temperature. We therefore consider energy landscapes more broadly as the variation in animal energetic costs and gains over space and time. This is discussed conceptually, where we posit testable hypotheses on how factors like prey, predators, and temperature interact to affect animal energetics. We illustrate these ideas with empirical data on a marine fish in multiple landscapes showing variable patterns in energetic costs and potential gain due to their spatial ecology. The broader definition of ‘energy landscapes’ we propose provides a comprehensive framework for understanding animal spatial ecology, as well as the effects of changing environmental conditions on animal fitness, life history, and population dynamics in the spatial domain.

The Caribbean bonefish species Albula vulpes is an economically important nearshore marine sport fish that has notably declined in the Florida Keys over the past 20–30 years. The reasons for this decline are unclear, although habitat loss, water quality reductions, climate change, and other environmental drivers likely play a role. Infectious disease can also cause precipitous species-specific declines in wildlife populations, but virtually nothing is known about infection in bonefish. We analyzed communities of bacteria on the gills of bonefish from the Florida Keys, where declines are pronounced, and the islands of Eleuthera and Inagua in The Bahamas, where no such declines have been recorded. Bacterial community composition varied significantly among island location (Keys, Eleuthera, Inagua) and among sites within island locations (e.g., tidal creeks, coves, inlets). Seventeen times more bacterial taxa were over-represented in the Florida Keys than in The Bahamas, and several bacterial genera over-represented in the Florida Keys have been linked to environmental contamination and disease (e.g., Corynebacterium; Acholeplasma; Staphylococcus; and Streptococcus). These results show that gill bacterial community signatures may prove useful for investigating bonefish spatial ecology and that communities of microbes on bonefish gills contain differentially abundant and potentially pathogenic bacteria that covary with the overall “health” of the population.

Information on ecological systems often comes from diverse sources with varied levels of complexity, bias, and uncertainty. Accordingly, analytical techniques continue to evolve that address these challenges to reveal the characteristics of ecological systems and inform conservation actions. We applied multiple statistical learning algorithms (i.e., machine learning) with a range of information sources including fish tracking data, environmental data, and visual surveys to identify potential spawning aggregation sites for a marine fish species, permit (Trachinotus falcatus), in the Florida Keys. Recognizing the potential complementarity and some level of uncertainty in each information source, we applied supervised (classic and conditional random forests; RF) and unsupervised (fuzzy k-means; FKM) algorithms. The two RF models had similar predictive performance, but generated different predictor variable importance structures and spawning site predictions. Unsupervised clustering using FKM identified unique site groupings that were similar to the likely spawning sites identified with RF. The conservation of aggregate spawning fish species depends heavily on the protection of key spawning sites; many of these potential sites were identified here for permit in the Florida Keys, which consisted of relatively deep-water natural and artificial reefs with high mean permit residency periods. The application of multiple machine learning algorithms enabled the integration of diverse information sources to develop models of an ecological system. Faced with increasingly complex and diverse data sources, ecologists, and conservation practitioners should find increasing value in machine learning algorithms, which we discuss here and provide resources to increase accessibility.

Understanding the nature of migratory behaviors within animal populations is critical to develop and refine conservation and management plans. However, tracking migratory marine animals across life stages and over multiple years is inherently difficult to achieve, especially for highly migratory species. In this paper, we explore the use of acoustic telemetry to characterize the spatial ecology of Atlantic tarpon (Megalops atlanticus), elucidate the ecology of this poorly studied species, and ultimately inform conservation and management. Using the data from twenty-two acoustically tagged Atlantic tarpon, we found a diversity of tarpon migratory patterns, including spatial and temporal overlap for some individuals. We also reveal fine scale movements within specific ecosystems, as well as a range of distributions and connectivity across coastal waters of the southeastern United States of America. For tarpon with tracking durations greater than one month (n = 13), we found heterogeneous space use and migratory connectivity with some tarpon remaining close to their capture location while others migrated hundreds of kilometers. In addition, we were able to identify a northern and southern limit for one migratory tarpon that had detections spanning over 365 days. We share analyses on Atlantic tarpon data, including model-driven approaches and network analysis, to investigate movement strategies and space use, which may be pertinent to other studies involving highly migratory species. The project was a collaborative effort involving several acoustic telemetry networks which enabled the monitoring of broad- and fine-scale movements for extended periods of time that would normally be difficult to achieve with other monitoring techniques. Although challenges exist with applying acoustic telemetry to monitor highly migratory species, we also discuss its value in enabling researchers to assess movements and space use beyond the focal species, such as cross-ecosystem comparisons and multi-species interactions.

Accelerometry is growing in popularity for remotely measuring fish swimming metrics, but appropriate sampling frequencies for accurately measuring these metrics are not well studied. This research examined the influence of sampling frequency (1-25 Hz) with tri-axial accelerometer biologgers on estimates of overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA), tail-beat frequency, swimming speed and metabolic rate of bonefish Albula vulpes in a swim-tunnel respirometer and free-swimming in a wetland mesocosm. In the swim tunnel, sampling frequencies of ≥ 5 Hz were sufficient to establish strong relationships between ODBA, swimming speed and metabolic rate. However, in free-swimming bonefish, estimates of metabolic rate were more variable below 10 Hz. Sampling frequencies should be at least twice the maximum tail-beat frequency to estimate this metric effectively, which is generally higher than those required to estimate ODBA, swimming speed and metabolic rate. While optimal sampling frequency probably varies among species due to tail-beat frequency and swimming style, this study provides a reference point with a medium body-sized sub-carangiform teleost fish, enabling researchers to measure these metrics effectively and maximize study duration.

Recreational catch-and-release angling is a popular activity. Anglers often use landing nets to shorten fight times, reduce stress on the line and rod, restrict fish movement to facilitate dehooking of fish, and protect fish from undue harm from handling or dropping. Landing nets are constructed using a variety of netting materials that could have varied consequences when coming in contact with fish. Salmonid fishes are among the most targeted fishes in the world but little is known about how landing nets contribute to postcapture tissue damage. We compared handling time and instances of fin fraying, scale loss, and mucous loss sustained by Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) landed by four net mesh types (i.e., large rubber, nylon, polypropylene, and rubber coated) or bare wet hands in a recreational fishery. The polypropylene mesh resulted in the greatest extent of fin fraying whereas the bare wet hands method, nylon mesh, and rubber coated mesh resulted in the most scale loss. Interestingly, ex...

Numerous studies have investigated the impacts of catch-and-release on the post-release behaviour of fish during periods characterized by warm air and water temperatures. Comparatively little is known about the post-release behaviour of fish caught while ice fishing. Largemouth bass (LMB), a popular sportfish in North America, is sometimes encountered during ice fishing and is often released due to angler conservation ethic or to comply with regulations. To examine the impacts of ice angling on the post-release behaviour of LMB, we exposed them to a range of handling practices and assessed their skin temperatures prior to release, as well as short-term post-release swimming activity using biologgers equipped with a tri-axial accelerometer, temperature and pressure sensors. Skin temperature of LMB had a significant positive relationship with windchill temperature. Generally, the longer that LMB were exposed to air or placed on the ice, the colder their skin became. Overall, water depth and water temperature selected by LMB increased with time during the post-release period. Overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA), a proxy for locomotory activity, decreased as time progressed in the release period, while ODBA decreased with increasing depth and water temperatures. LMB with warmer skin temperatures had lower locomotory activity compared to those with colder skin temperatures. Further, the effect of skin temperature on locomotory activity became more amplified with increasing depth and warming water temperatures selected by LMB post-release. Anglers practicing catch-and-release angling during the winter should adopt best handling practices by reducing the time fish are removed from the water when windchill temperatures are sub-freezing to avoid alteration in post-release behaviour.