Using Traits-Based Approaches to Facilitate Climate Adaptation in Fisheries Management
Climate change is driving ocean species into new habitats with implications for fisheries management. Predicting how ocean predators will respond to climate shifts is especially challenging because their populations depend on how prey are impacted. Researchers used albacore tuna—which prey on hundreds of species and support valuable fisheries globally— as a case study to test whether traits-based methods help predict what predators will eat and where they will go under anticipated climate change. As part of the project, the research team developed the “Pelagic Species Traits Database”- a freely available resource with information on traits for 530 ocean species. Pairing the database with monitoring data for the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem, they discovered that predators like albacore adjust their diet to track prey with consistent traits (habitat, behavior, morphology, nutrition) across different ocean conditions. Their research demonstrates that a traits-based approach can help simplify complex predator-prey interactions, serving as a valuable tool for understanding predator resource use and distribution as the environment changes. The researchers hope that their open-access database will allow other scientists to expand the use of traits-based approaches in marine ecosystems.
Read the papers:
- Trait-based indicators of resource selection by albacore tuna in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem
- The Pelagic Species Trait Database, an open data resource to support trait-based ocean research
- Trait-based analyses reveal global patterns in diverse diets of albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga)
- Trait-based approaches to global change ecology: from description to prediction
Citations:
- Gleiber, M.R., Hardy, N.A., Morganson, C.J., Nickels, C.F., Muhling, B.A., Portner, E.J., Brodeur, R.D., Wells, B.K., Auth, T.D., Santora, J.A., Madigan, D.J., Glaser, S.M., Hazen, E.L., Crowder, L.B., Green, S.J. (2024). Trait-based indicators of resource selection by albacore tuna in the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem. Ecological Indicators. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.111473
- Gleiber, M.R., Hardy, N.A., Roote, Z., Krug-MacLeod, A.M., Morganson, C.J., Tandy, Z., George, I., Matuch, C., Brookson, C.B., Daly, E.A., Portner, E.J., Choy, C.A., Crowder, L.B., Green, S.J. (2024) The Pelagic Species Trait Database, an open data resource to support trait-based ocean research. Scientific Data 11. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02689-9
- Hardy, N.A., Matuch, C., Roote, Z., George, I., Muhling, B.A., Jacox, M.G., Hazen, E.L., Bograd, S.J., Crowder, L.B., Green, S.J. (2023). Trait-based analyses reveal global patterns in diverse diets of albacore tuna (Thunnus alagunga). Fish and Fisheries. https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12807
- Green, S.J., Brookson, C.B., Hardy, N.A., Crowder, L.B. (2022). Trait-based approaches to global change ecology: moving from description to prediction. Proceedings B 289. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2022.0071
Resources:
- The Pelagic Species Trait Database, Borealis. https://doi.org/10.5683/SP3/0YFJED
- Database on ocean species traits supports climate-ready fisheries https://communities.springernature.com/posts/database-on-ocean-species-traits-supports-climate-ready-fisheries
- Researchers release global database to understand climate impacts on ocean predators https://www.ualberta.ca/folio/2024/03/research-reveals-traits-that-make-fish-prey-tasty-to-tuna.html
