Unravelling the multiple impacts of commercial wrasse fisheries

Unravelling the multiple impacts of commercial wrasse fisheries Three species of wrasses are being targeted commercial trap fisheries in Scandinavia and on the British Isles – suppling salmon farms with cleaner fish. These fisheries intensified considerably from 2010, which initiated several research projects to support sustainable management decisions. Wrasses can be particularly vulnerable to fishing because of their complex life histories and reproduction, including sex change, parental care and alternative male reproductive strategies. Understanding (and managing) the selectivity of the fishery on multiple levels is therefore important – species, sex, size, in addition to trait distributions (life history, morphological and behavioral traits). I will talk about the dynamic development this fishery, management and research over the last decade and present a new project that will investigate whether the wrasse fisheries can induce trophic cascades in the coastal food webs, contrasting MPAs with areas with areas that have been exposed to high fishing pressure. I will also reflect on our efforts in trying to improve survey methods for wrasse and other nearshore benthic species, including different types of passive gears, cameras and computer vision for individual identification.