Why and How Could Indicators Be Used in an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management?

Fishery papers on ecosystem indicators, or ecological indicators, have flourished over the last ten years, and many were justified by referring to the ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF). However, the reasons why indicators are relevant to an EAF are not always clear. Still less clear are the ways indicators might be used to give management advice in the context of an EAF. In this presentation we recount the emergence of the indicator concept in the EAF context. The concept being overloaded with two many roles and interpretations, we propose to split it into three separate tools fulfilling the functions of control, audit, and communication. We suggest these could be articulated by a conceptual model linking the problems to be managed and the possible management actions. The approach is exemplified for the Bay of Biscay multispecies fisheries.