Analytically tractable metapopulation models usually assume that every patch is identical, which limits their application to real metapopulations. We describe a new single species model of metapopulation dynamics that allows variation in patch size and position. The state of the metapopulation is defined by the presence or absence of the species in each patch. For a system of n patches, this gives 2 n possible states. We show how to construct and analyse a matrix describing transitions between all possible states by first constructing separate extinction and colonisation matrices. We illustrate the model's application to metapopulations by considering an example of malleefowl, Leipoa ocellata, in southern Australia, and calculate extinction probabilities and quasi-stationary distributions. We investigate the relative importance of modelling the particular arrangement of patches and the variation in patch sizes for this metapopulation and we use the model to examine the effects of further habitat loss on extinction probabilities.

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a b s t r a c tThe Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery (SESSF) is a complex multi-species fishery, with 34 stock units under quota management, for which a harvest strategy framework was developed in 2005. The framework involves the application of a set of tier-based harvest control rules (HCR) designed to provide a precautionary approach to management. The harvest strategy framework has been applied from 2005 to 2007, resulting in substantial reductions in quotas across the fishery. The experience in implementing the framework, both positive and negative, is described, and general lessons are drawn. Key lessons include the importance of formally testing such strategies using management strategy evaluation, the impact of external management drivers on implementation of the approach, the need to define strategies for setting "bycatch quotas" in multi-species fisheries, and the need for flexibility and pragmatism in the early stages of implementing such an approach.

Little, L. R., Wayte, S. E., Tuck, G. N., Smith, A. D. M., Klaer, N., Haddon, M., Punt, A. E., Thomson, R., Day, J., and Fuller, M. 2011. Development and evaluation of a cpue-based harvest control rule for the southern and eastern scalefish and shark fishery of Australia. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 68: 1699–1705. Many fishery management agencies are adopting harvest control rules (HCRs) to achieve harvest policies and management objectives. HCRs, however, often require data-intensive stock assessments to facilitate the harvest prescription. An HCR based on catch and catch per unit effort (cpue) was developed for the southern and eastern scalefish and shark fishery of Australia, for stocks that lack the data needed to conduct a full statistical catch-at-age assessment. The HCR produces a recommended biological catch and is characterized by two parameters, target cpue and target catch, both derived from historical data. Simulation tests showed that the HCR could guide the stock to the desired state from different initial levels of depletion. However, the selection of parameter values for the HCR was critical. Achieving fishery objectives was difficult when the target catch was a function of recent catch, rather than data from a predefined historical reference period. Problems may also arise when specifying the reference period on which the HCR parameters are determined. The cpue-based HCR is a valuable tool for managing fisheries where monitoring and assessment activities are relatively expensive, or in general, where data are scarce.

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