Purple sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus is fished from British Columbia, Canada to Punta Baja, Mexico. The North American population has been divided into northern and southern fishery stocks at the break of Point Conception, but little is known about its southernmost distribution along the Mexican Pacific coast of the Baja California peninsula. In this study purple sea urchin populations in six sites along the Baja California peninsula were analyzed using mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid restriction fragment length polymorphism (mtDNA RFLP). A homogeneous distribution of three common haplotypes among all sites was observed. A significant FST value, however, indicated genetic structure mainly due to the haplotype array in San Miguel, Isla Todos Santos and Punta Baja sites, which were characterized by having high haplotype diversity and several unique haplotypes. Homogeneous distribution of haplotypes along the peninsula could have been influenced by the unidirectional California Current system, flowing north to south. Unique haplotypes in Punta Baja and the structure found could be the result of local oceanographic features specific to this major upwelling zone. It may be necessary to consider the Punta Baja populations individually when managing the purple sea urchin fishery in Baja California, as they show signs of being a unique stock.
Fish live in communities, and most fisheries catch multiple species, yet fishery management predominately focuses on single species. In many multispecies fisheries, a variety of species are generally caught together at similar rates. Failure to account for this adequately in management has resulted in serial depletion and alterations to the ecosystem. Ideally, multispecies fisheries management should strive to produce good yields from specific valuable stocks and avoid adverse impacts of fishing on marine ecosystems. Moreover, multispecies management should aim to build resilience to changes in stock productivity and distribution driven by climate change. Here, we present tools and pathways that seven fisheries are adopting to achieve these goals. These case studies – from Mexico, Cuba, and Chile – differ in data richness, governance structure, and management resources. The management systems are also in various stages of evolution from unmanaged to complete management of a single species but transitioning to multispecies management. While various analytical tools and decision-making processes are described in the case studies, a common feature is the use of participatory stakeholder processes to build capacity and socialize the importance of multispecies management. We use lessons from these cases to recommend a multispecies management approach to overcome the limitations of current practices (typically single-species catch limits or large spatial restrictions), using the participatory processes and data-limited assessments to create stock complexes that simplify multispecies management (i.e., the “fish baskets” approach). Indicator species for each fish basket are identified to support the development of fishery performance indicators, reference values, harvest control rules, and management measures to create an adaptive management cycle to enhance the fishery’s resilience to impacts induced by climate change and other factors.
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