Hard-bottom habitats support commercially important fish species: a systematic review for the North Atlantic Ocean and Baltic Sea

PeerJ. 2023 Jan 17:11:e14681. doi: 10.7717/peerj.14681. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

Hard-bottom habitats span a range of natural substrates (e.g., boulders, cobble) and artificial habitats (e.g., the base of wind turbines, oil platforms). These hard-bottom habitats can provide a variety of ecosystem services, ranging from the enhancement of fish biomass and production to providing erosion control. Management decisions regarding the construction or fate of hard-bottom habitats require information on the ecological functions of these habitats, particularly for species targeted in ecosystem-based fisheries management. This study provides a systematic review of the relationships of various hard-bottom habitats to individual commercially harvested species that are managed jointly across the Atlantic by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). We systemically reviewed peer-reviewed publications on hard-bottom habitats including both natural and artificial reefs, after applying various exclusion criteria. Most studies were conducted on near-shore hard-bottom habitats, and habitat importance varied according to fish species and region. We quantified the frequency with which studies demonstrate that natural and artificial hard-bottom habitats function as spawning grounds, settlement and nursery areas, and foraging grounds, as well as provide stepping-stones during migration, or new home ranges. Hard-bottom habitats generally support higher fish densities than surrounding habitat types, although not all fish species benefit from hard-bottom habitats. Of the commercially important species, cod (Gadus morhua) was the most frequently studied species, with enhanced biomass, density, feeding, and spawning on hard-bottom habitats compared to unstructured habitats. Moreover, hard-bottom habitats appear to be of particular importance for spawning of herring (Clupea harengus). Collectively, data indicate that loss of hard-bottom habitats may translate into less-favourable conditions for spawning and biomass of diverse commercial species, including cod and herring.

Keywords: Essential fish habitat; Fish abundance; Reefs; Spawning grounds.

Publication types

  • Systematic Review
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Atlantic Ocean
  • Biomass
  • Ecosystem*
  • Fishes
  • Gadus morhua*

Grants and funding

Hugo Flávio was supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) Action 15121 “Advancing marine conservation in the European and contiguous seas” (Katsanevakis et al. 2017), by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, and by the Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark through the Danish Marine Coastal Fisheries Management Program (Marin Fiskepleje). Funding to David Eggleston was provided by NSF grant OCE-1155609 and NC State University. Jon C. Svendsen was supported via projects funded by (1) European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and the Danish Fisheries Agency (33113-B-16-057 and 33113-B-19-142), (2) the Danish Rod and Net Fish License Funds (39 133), (3) the Velux Foundation, (4) Vattenfall and (5) the EU Interreg project MarGen. Josianne Støttrup was supported by the project “Importance of reef habitats for fish, harbour porpoise and fisheries management” (33113-B-16-057) funded by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund. Support for all co-authors’ travel to ICES working group meetings was provided by the National Institute of Aquatic Resources, Technical University of Denmark, MarCons, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, and North Carolina State University. There was no additional external funding received for this study. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.