Growing evidence suggests that climate change is altering storm frequency and intensity over the world’s oceans. Uniquely among fisheries climate risks, changing storminess poses risks over short temporal scales and direct social risks to fishers. However, little is known about fisher decision-making in the context of short-term weather-related risks and consequently their vulnerability to climate change. Improving our understanding of this climate threat is critical because fish provide livelihoods, food security, and cultural identity to billions of people globally. It is estimated that 38 million people directly harvest fish; 12% of the population (approximately 900 million) make their livelihoods in the fisheries supply chain; and 3.1 billion people rely on fish for 20% of their animal protein (FAO, 2016). The United Kingdom commercial marine capture fishery, particularly the fleet in Cornwall in southwest England, provides a useful case example for changing storminess and fisheries research. The UK is exposed to the North Atlantic storm track and the fishery is highly varied in terms of target species, fishing methods, and vessel characteristics, thereby offering wider insights at a global scale. By focusing on fishers’ short-term behavioural responses to storm-related weather conditions, this thesis seeks to improve understanding of fisheries climate vulnerability. The thesis findings can help inform the inclusion of changing storminess in fisheries climate vulnerability assessments and adaptation action.
In this thesis I draw on qualitative and quantitative research approaches to provide global, UK-wide and local insights relating to the risk posed by changing storminess to marine capture fisheries. First, a global review of changing storminess and the ecological and social effects of storms on fisheries was carried out to inform a research roadmap for this novel field. Second, skippers in Newlyn, Cornwall were interviewed to provide a rich, qualitative description of how weather conditions feature in fishers’ short-term fishing decisions. Third, a stated choice experiment was carried out with 80 skippers fishing in Cornwall to empirically estimate their preferences for weather conditions, fish price and catch, and to identify how they trade off physical risk and economic rewards in their daily trip decisions. Fourth, a novel fine spatial-temporal resolution dataset describing a decade of UK fisheries landings and weather conditions was analysed to describe the influence of weather conditions on fisheries productivity for vessels choosing to be at sea. Finally, the extent to which Newlyn skippers manage physical risk was assessed using semi-structured interview data by comparing their approach to the ISO 31000 risk management process.
The global review of changing storminess and capture fisheries found this field is in its infancy. Globally, the evidence suggests that the ecological and socio-economic impacts of storms on fisheries are extensive and potentially catastrophic. Existing research suggests that changing storminess is spatially heterogeneous within and between ocean basins. A research roadmap was proposed that included improving climate modelling of storms, exploring fishers’ behavioural response to storms, identifying the mechanisms by which storms affect fish and their habitat, investigating social-ecological linkages, and developing adaptation actions and assessments of the fisheries vulnerability to changing storminess.
Semi-structured interviews revealed that a complex interaction of meteorological and oceanographic variables affect the elements of fishers’ trade-offs. Newlyn skippers were found to have a binary perspective on safety. When skippers judged conditions to be unsafe, they generally chose not to be at sea. When conditions were considered safe, fishers were found to trade off physical risk, discomfort, and economic reward in their short-term fishing decisions. Fishers’ trade-offs were influenced by a number of individual fisher differences and social processes, such as economic need and fear of missing out. Working with crew was also important, due to a desire to protect their crew’s safety and comfort, but also because of the effect of crew capability on physical risk. Fishing methods and vessel characteristics were found to influence the effect of adverse weather on physical risk and trip profitability. For instance, purse seines were described as highly sensitive to large waves due to reduced vessel stability during net hauling, and bottom trawl skippers explained that larger waves reduce their catch due to reduced gear efficacy.
The stated choice experiment revealed that fishers operating in Cornwall have non-linear preferences for weather conditions. They initially preferred higher wind speed and wave height, before their preferences fell at an accelerating rate. Fishing gear, vessel length, presence of crew, vessel ownership, age, recent fishing success and reliance on fishing income all influenced the skippers’ decisions to go to sea. Skippers of larger boats and those that owned their boat were more likely to go to sea in worse weather conditions than those of smaller boats or those that did not own their boat. Skippers with greater economic need were more likely to take greater physical risk. Trade-offs also differed by fishing methods. Hand lining skippers were less averse to wind speed and wave height than those using other gears, purse seine skippers preferred small waves more than skippers using other gear types, but their aversion to wave height fell more rapidly.
Analysis of the novel national scale landings and weather data revealed that landings varied with wind speed and wave height in non-linear ways, differentiated by gear type. Landings either increased with, or were unaffected by, increasing wind speed and wave height with the exception of pots and traps, for which landings decreased with both weather variables. Midwater trawls and gillnets and entangling nets showed the most biologically significant increase in landings as wind speed and wave height increased. For the most economically important UK fishing method, bottom trawls, the effect of weather variables on landings on varied slightly with the smallest boats seeing a greater fall in landing at extreme weather levels and the second largest vessels experiencing no reduction in catch. Mean daily landings did not always increase with vessel size within gear type. For instance, the largest vessel length category for pots and traps, seines, and hooks and lines did not have the largest mean catch.
Comparing Newlyn skippers’ approach to risk management process theory demonstrated that they informally carried out each step of the ISO 31000 risk management process. As such, they were determined to be experts at managing risk. The skippers described their risk context, how they identify hazards, the way that they analyse the likelihood and consequence of the risks, evaluating these risks against their context, before treating the risk, predominantly using risk avoidance, risk reduction, and risk acceptance strategies. The analysis of risk likelihood of at-sea hazards using weather data, including digital forecasts, real time data, visual observation, and testing the conditions was central to their management of risk.
By taking a bottom-up approach, this thesis has revealed the importance of individual fisher behaviour in climate vulnerability. The findings provide insights for the concept of fishers’ sensitivity to climate risks, a key tenet in the concept of climate vulnerability, because fishers choose the risks they are sensitive to through the way they make trade-offs in their short-term decisions. The effect of weather conditions on landings indicates that UK skippers who take the physical risk of going to sea will not be sensitive to reduced catches, unless they use pots and traps or bottom trawls in the most extreme conditions. This provides insights into fishers’ trip catch expectations, and therefore how economic reward features in their decision trade-offs. The expertise shown by skippers in their approach to risk management may make them safer by mitigating the physical risks they face from storms when at sea and reducing the likelihood of accepting greater risk than intended. The findings in this thesis have implications for the design of fisheries vulnerability assessments. Designers of fisheries vulnerability assessments should seek to include exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity to changing storminess, with particular attention to individual heterogeneity in physical and economic risk sensitivity. Individual fisher heterogeneity should also be reflected in the way that changing storminess adaption policies, such as climate risk insurance instruments, are designed. The new knowledge presented in this thesis represents the first focused research efforts in the field of changing storminess and fisheries. It is hoped that by informing vulnerability assessments and adaptation actions, this thesis will contribute to improving the wellbeing of fishers and coastal communities in the UK and further afield as the climate changes.

Climate change is impacting fisheries globally, posing both risks and opportunities to those dependent on marine resources. Understanding how fishers perceive climate change, and what factors shape these perceptions, can provide insights into behavioural intentions and support required for climate change focused strategies and management. This study interviewed demersal fishers from a south-west UK fishing port to explore: 1) the future risks fishers identified that may affect their business and wider industry; 2) fishers’ beliefs and risk perceptions relating to climate change; and 3) the factors influencing these perceptions. Fishers identified a number of environmental, socio-economic and fisheries governance risks but climate change was rarely mentioned. While fishers overall had low risk perceptions of climate change, these perceptions were heterogeneous across the sample. Climate change scepticism and a high perceived self-efficacy to adapt to climate change were associated with lower risk perceptions. These findings provide new insights into how fishers perceive climate change and, importantly, greater understanding of the possible drivers of such perceptions. Findings suggest that undertaking climate-awareness raising initiatives in isolation to support adaptation strategies could be limited in success. Instead, wider focus should be applied to removing barriers to adaptation, managing wider risks and incorporating fishers into decision making to effectively support and motivate fishers’ adaptation.

The concept of ‘doughnut economics’ is attracting growing attention from policy-makers and has the potential to unify stakeholders around a holistic vision of sustainable development. The ‘safe and just’ space within the doughnut is framed at a global scale, based on human needs that represent a foundation for social wellbeing, and planetary boundaries reflecting biophysical limits. However, the geographical division of political power between and within nations means that its ability to stimulate change will depend upon its application at national and subnational scales. This paper examines the challenges facing local institutions in downscaling doughnut economics for planning, decision-making and leadership; draws on wider literature from previous efforts to localise sustainability governance to help illuminate these challenges; and outlines a future research agenda to support local governance for a safe and just space.

To understand and address the failures of reef governance, it is critical to understand the perceptions of diverse policy makers and practitioners about the challenges they face in achieving their goals. Examining the discourse of policy makers and practitioners can reveal the extent to which these perceptions capture the full spectrum of potential governance challenges, including those related to management, institutional structures and processes, the values and principles underpinning governance, and the social and environmental context. We conducted semistructured interviews with 110 policy makers and practitioners across multiple sectors, scales, and contexts in Barbados, St Kitts and Nevis, Belize, and Honduras. We used thematic qualitative analysis informed by theories of interactive governance and governability to examine the challenges perceived by governance actors. Perceived governance challenges were broadly consistent across countries, but differed by sector (V = 0.819, F6,60 = 1.502, p = 0.01) and by level (community compared with national) (V = 0.194, F1,10 = 2.178, = 0.026). Management inputs and outputs, challenges relating to the socioeconomic context, issues of leadership and power, and stakeholder engagement were commonly cited challenges (>75%). Few respondents discussed challenges relating to the ecological context, governance processes, or the values and principles underpinning governance. We argue that examining perceptions can inform efforts to improve governance and assess the appropriateness of particular management tools under context-specific governance constraints. Furthermore, expanding the narratives of governance challenges to encompass the subtle values and images underpinning governance, and the scale of the challenges faced, can help identify a wider set of opportunities for change.

Growing evidence suggests that climate change is altering storm frequency and intensity over the world’s oceans. Uniquely among fisheries climate risks, changing storminess poses risks over short temporal scales and direct social risks to fishers. However, little is known about fisher decision-making in the context of short-term weather-related risks and consequently their vulnerability to climate change. Improving our understanding of this climate threat is critical because fish provide livelihoods, food security, and cultural identity to billions of people globally. It is estimated that 38 million people directly harvest fish; 12% of the population (approximately 900 million) make their livelihoods in the fisheries supply chain; and 3.1 billion people rely on fish for 20% of their animal protein (FAO, 2016). The United Kingdom commercial marine capture fishery, particularly the fleet in Cornwall in southwest England, provides a useful case example for changing storminess and fisheries research. The UK is exposed to the North Atlantic storm track and the fishery is highly varied in terms of target species, fishing methods, and vessel characteristics, thereby offering wider insights at a global scale. By focusing on fishers’ short-term behavioural responses to storm-related weather conditions, this thesis seeks to improve understanding of fisheries climate vulnerability. The thesis findings can help inform the inclusion of changing storminess in fisheries climate vulnerability assessments and adaptation action.
In this thesis I draw on qualitative and quantitative research approaches to provide global, UK-wide and local insights relating to the risk posed by changing storminess to marine capture fisheries. First, a global review of changing storminess and the ecological and social effects of storms on fisheries was carried out to inform a research roadmap for this novel field. Second, skippers in Newlyn, Cornwall were interviewed to provide a rich, qualitative description of how weather conditions feature in fishers’ short-term fishing decisions. Third, a stated choice experiment was carried out with 80 skippers fishing in Cornwall to empirically estimate their preferences for weather conditions, fish price and catch, and to identify how they trade off physical risk and economic rewards in their daily trip decisions. Fourth, a novel fine spatial-temporal resolution dataset describing a decade of UK fisheries landings and weather conditions was analysed to describe the influence of weather conditions on fisheries productivity for vessels choosing to be at sea. Finally, the extent to which Newlyn skippers manage physical risk was assessed using semi-structured interview data by comparing their approach to the ISO 31000 risk management process.
The global review of changing storminess and capture fisheries found this field is in its infancy. Globally, the evidence suggests that the ecological and socio-economic impacts of storms on fisheries are extensive and potentially catastrophic. Existing research suggests that changing storminess is spatially heterogeneous within and between ocean basins. A research roadmap was proposed that included improving climate modelling of storms, exploring fishers’ behavioural response to storms, identifying the mechanisms by which storms affect fish and their habitat, investigating social-ecological linkages, and developing adaptation actions and assessments of the fisheries vulnerability to changing storminess.
Semi-structured interviews revealed that a complex interaction of meteorological and oceanographic variables affect the elements of fishers’ trade-offs. Newlyn skippers were found to have a binary perspective on safety. When skippers judged conditions to be unsafe, they generally chose not to be at sea. When conditions were considered safe, fishers were found to trade off physical risk, discomfort, and economic reward in their short-term fishing decisions. Fishers’ trade-offs were influenced by a number of individual fisher differences and social processes, such as economic need and fear of missing out. Working with crew was also important, due to a desire to protect their crew’s safety and comfort, but also because of the effect of crew capability on physical risk. Fishing methods and vessel characteristics were found to influence the effect of adverse weather on physical risk and trip profitability. For instance, purse seines were described as highly sensitive to large waves due to reduced vessel stability during net hauling, and bottom trawl skippers explained that larger waves reduce their catch due to reduced gear efficacy.
The stated choice experiment revealed that fishers operating in Cornwall have non-linear preferences for weather conditions. They initially preferred higher wind speed and wave height, before their preferences fell at an accelerating rate. Fishing gear, vessel length, presence of crew, vessel ownership, age, recent fishing success and reliance on fishing income all influenced the skippers’ decisions to go to sea. Skippers of larger boats and those that owned their boat were more likely to go to sea in worse weather conditions than those of smaller boats or those that did not own their boat. Skippers with greater economic need were more likely to take greater physical risk. Trade-offs also differed by fishing methods. Hand lining skippers were less averse to wind speed and wave height than those using other gears, purse seine skippers preferred small waves more than skippers using other gear types, but their aversion to wave height fell more rapidly.
Analysis of the novel national scale landings and weather data revealed that landings varied with wind speed and wave height in non-linear ways, differentiated by gear type. Landings either increased with, or were unaffected by, increasing wind speed and wave height with the exception of pots and traps, for which landings decreased with both weather variables. Midwater trawls and gillnets and entangling nets showed the most biologically significant increase in landings as wind speed and wave height increased. For the most economically important UK fishing method, bottom trawls, the effect of weather variables on landings on varied slightly with the smallest boats seeing a greater fall in landing at extreme weather levels and the second largest vessels experiencing no reduction in catch. Mean daily landings did not always increase with vessel size within gear type. For instance, the largest vessel length category for pots and traps, seines, and hooks and lines did not have the largest mean catch.
Comparing Newlyn skippers’ approach to risk management process theory demonstrated that they informally carried out each step of the ISO 31000 risk management process. As such, they were determined to be experts at managing risk. The skippers described their risk context, how they identify hazards, the way that they analyse the likelihood and consequence of the risks, evaluating these risks against their context, before treating the risk, predominantly using risk avoidance, risk reduction, and risk acceptance strategies. The analysis of risk likelihood of at-sea hazards using weather data, including digital forecasts, real time data, visual observation, and testing the conditions was central to their management of risk.
By taking a bottom-up approach, this thesis has revealed the importance of individual fisher behaviour in climate vulnerability. The findings provide insights for the concept of fishers’ sensitivity to climate risks, a key tenet in the concept of climate vulnerability, because fishers choose the risks they are sensitive to through the way they make trade-offs in their short-term decisions. The effect of weather conditions on landings indicates that UK skippers who take the physical risk of going to sea will not be sensitive to reduced catches, unless they use pots and traps or bottom trawls in the most extreme conditions. This provides insights into fishers’ trip catch expectations, and therefore how economic reward features in their decision trade-offs. The expertise shown by skippers in their approach to risk management may make them safer by mitigating the physical risks they face from storms when at sea and reducing the likelihood of accepting greater risk than intended. The findings in this thesis have implications for the design of fisheries vulnerability assessments. Designers of fisheries vulnerability assessments should seek to include exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity to changing storminess, with particular attention to individual heterogeneity in physical and economic risk sensitivity. Individual fisher heterogeneity should also be reflected in the way that changing storminess adaption policies, such as climate risk insurance instruments, are designed. The new knowledge presented in this thesis represents the first focused research efforts in the field of changing storminess and fisheries. It is hoped that by informing vulnerability assessments and adaptation actions, this thesis will contribute to improving the wellbeing of fishers and coastal communities in the UK and further afield as the climate changes.

Climate change is impacting fisheries globally, posing both risks and opportunities to those dependent on marine resources. Understanding how fishers perceive climate change, and what factors shape these perceptions, can provide insights into behavioural intentions and support required for climate change focused strategies and management. This study interviewed demersal fishers from a south-west UK fishing port to explore: 1) the future risks fishers identified that may affect their business and wider industry; 2) fishers’ beliefs and risk perceptions relating to climate change; and 3) the factors influencing these perceptions. Fishers identified a number of environmental, socio-economic and fisheries governance risks but climate change was rarely mentioned. While fishers overall had low risk perceptions of climate change, these perceptions were heterogeneous across the sample. Climate change scepticism and a high perceived self-efficacy to adapt to climate change were associated with lower risk perceptions. These findings provide new insights into how fishers perceive climate change and, importantly, greater understanding of the possible drivers of such perceptions. Findings suggest that undertaking climate-awareness raising initiatives in isolation to support adaptation strategies could be limited in success. Instead, wider focus should be applied to removing barriers to adaptation, managing wider risks and incorporating fishers into decision making to effectively support and motivate fishers’ adaptation.

SummaryPoor connectivity between diverse resource users and complex wider governance networks is a challenge in environmental governance. Organizations that ‘broker’ interactions among these relationships are expected to improve governance outcomes. Here, we used semi-structured interviews and social network analysis to identify actors in positions to broker coral reef-related information to and from resource users and to assess the performance of these brokers. Representatives (n = 262) of actor groups were interviewed, including local and national government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), community organizations and resource user groups from 12 communities across four Caribbean countries, to map information-sharing networks and to identify brokers. Broker performance was assessed through separate interviews with coral reef resource users (n = 545). The findings show that marine NGOs were the highest-functioning brokers. Where such local-level organizations were absent, government agencies in reef management roles acted as brokers, but their performance was lower. Actors in brokerage positions did not always effectively share information, with broker performance being positively correlated with network brokerage scores. The results further our understanding of the roles of brokers in different governance contexts. Identifying those in brokerage positions and supporting their roles in connecting local resource users to wider governance networks could encourage functional brokerage and enhance reef management outcomes.

Failure to address unsustainable global change is often attributed to failures in conventional environmental governance. Polycentric environmental governance—the popular alternative—involves many centres of authority interacting coherently for a common governance goal. Yet, longitudinal analysis reveals many polycentric systems are struggling to cope with the growing impacts, pace, and scope of social and environmental change. Analytic shortcomings are also beginning to appear, particularly in the treatment of power. Here we draw together diverse social science perspectives and research into a variety of cases to show how different types of power shape rule setting, issue construction, and policy implementation in polycentric governance. We delineate an important and emerging research agenda for polycentric environmental governance, integrating diverse types of power into analytical and practical models.

Studies of commercial fishing have shown that it is a hazardous occupation with high rates of injury and fatal accidents. Research has also identified a range of other health risks faced by fishers, yet the general health outcomes of fishers have not been compared to those of workers in other industries. This study aimed to assess self-reported health outcomes among workers in the fishing industry, and to compare this to those working in other industries. Drawing on 2011 census data for England and Wales we used generalised linear models to compare self-reported measures of 1) general health and 2) limiting long-term illness across industry categories, calculating odds ratios adjusted for age, geographic region and socio-economic profile of local authorities. of the population working in 87 industry classes, those in category ‘03 Fishing and aquaculture’ had the fifth highest rate of poor general health (2.8% reported ‘bad’ or ‘very bad’ health) and the sixth highest rate of reporting limiting long-term illness (10.3% reported their activities to be limited ‘a lot’ or ‘a little’). Odds ratios adjusted for age, geographic region and socio-economic profile of local authorities showed that only two other industries demonstrated statistical evidence for higher odds of poor general health or limiting long-term illness than workers in fishing and aquaculture. This study demonstrates that fishing is among the industries with the poorest general health and limiting long-term illness outcomes in the UK, demonstrating the need for tailored occupational health services to support UK fishing communities.

Climate change-driven alterations in storminess pose a significant threat to global capture fisheries. Understanding how storms interact with fishery social-ecological systems can inform adaptive action and help to reduce the vulnerability of those dependent on fisheries for life and livelihood.

A key stage underpinning marine spatial planning (MSP) involves mapping the spatial distribution of ecological processes and biological features as well the social and economic interests of different user groups. One sector, merchant shipping (vessels that transport cargo or passengers), however, is often poorly represented in MSP due to a perceived lack of fine-scale spatially explicit data to support decision-making processes. Here, using the Republic of Congo as an example, we show how publicly accessible satellite-derived automatic identification system (S-AIS) data can address gaps in ocean observation data for shipping at a national scale. We also demonstrate how fine-scale (0.05 km2 resolution) spatial data layers derived from S-AIS (intensity, occupancy) can be used to generate maps of vessel pressure to provide an indication of patterns of impact on the marine environment and potential for conflict with other ocean user-groups. We reveal that passenger vessels, offshore service vessels, bulk carrier and cargo vessels and tankers account for 93.7% of all vessels and vessel traffic annually, and that these sectors operate in a combined area equivalent to 92% of Congo's exclusive economic zone—far exceeding the areas allocated for other user groups (conservation, fisheries and petrochemicals). We also show that the shallow coastal waters and habitats of the continental shelf are subject to more persistent pressure associated with shipping, and that the potential for conflict among user groups is likely to be greater with fisheries, whose zones are subject to the highest vessel pressure scores than with conservation or petrochemical sectors. Synthesis and applications. Shipping dominates ocean use, and so excluding this sector from decision-making could lead to increased conflict among user groups, poor compliance and negative environmental impacts. This study demonstrates how satellite-derived Automatic Identification System data can provide a comprehensive mechanism to fill gaps in ocean observation data and visualise patterns of vessel behaviour and potential threats to better support marine spatial planning at national scales.

Marine management has typically prioritised natural science methodological traditions as an evidence base for decision-making; yet better integration of social science methods are increasingly shown to provide a more comprehensive picture to base management decisions. Specifically, perceptions-based assessments are gaining support, as they can provide efficient and holistic evaluation regarding management issues. This study focuses on coral reefs because they are particularly threatened ecosystems, due to their ecological complexity, socio-economic importance, and the range of environmental drivers that impact them. Research has largely concentrated on assessing proximate threats to coral reefs. Less attention has been given to distal drivers, such as socio-economic and governance factors. A common understanding of threats related to coral reef degradation is critical for integrated management that takes account of peoples’ concerns. This study compares perceptions of drivers of reef health among stakeholders (n = 110) across different sectors and governance levels, in four Caribbean countries. Interview data identified 37 proximate and 136 distal drivers, categorised into 27 themes. Five sub-groups of themes connecting proximate and distal drivers were identified. Perceptions of two of these narratives, relating to ‘fishing and socioeconomic issues’ and ‘reef management and coastal development’, differed among respondents from different countries and sectors respectively. However, the findings highlight a shared perception of many themes, with 18 of the 27 (67%) mentioned by > 25% of respondents. This paper highlights the application of perceptions data for marine management, demonstrating how knowledge of proximate and distal drivers can be applied to identify important issues at different context-specific scales.

Motivated by growing concern as to the many threats that islands face, subsequent calls for more extensive island nature conservation and recent discussion in the conservation literature about the potential for wellbeing as a useful approach to understanding how conservation affects people's lives, this paper reviews the literature in order to explore how islands and wellbeing relate and how conservation might impact that relationship. We apply a three-dimensional concept of social wellbeing to structure the discussion and illustrate the importance of understanding island-wellbeing interactions in the context of material, relational and subjective dimensions, using examples from the literature. We posit that islands and their shared characteristics of 'islandness' provide a useful setting in which to apply social wellbeing as a generalizable framework, which is particularly adept at illuminating the relevance of social relationships and subjective perceptions in island life - aspects that are often marginalized in more economically focused conservation impact assessments. The paper then explores in more depth the influences of island nature conservation on social wellbeing and sustainability outcomes using two case studies from the global north (UK islands) and global south (the Solomon Islands). We conclude that conservation approaches that engage with all three dimensions of wellbeing seem to be associated with success.

Marine spatial planning (MSP) is increasingly promoted as part of an ecosystem-based approach to marine resource management. Impacts of MSP may be particularly great in inshore fisheries, yet despite their vulnerability, assessing potential impacts of spatial measures on inshore fisheries is limited by data scarcity, and the comparability of patterns of fishing activity produced by different data sources is poorly understood. This study contributes to the debate around information needs for MSP by describing the distribution of lobster potting activity at four ports in Northumberland, UK, using two sources of spatial data: observed fishing vessel sightings by patrol vessels and perceived fishing activity elicited through interviews with local fishers. The comparability of the distributions of potting activity mapped by the two datasets was explored using Mantel tests and overlap of fishing hotspots identified. Fishing activity at all ports tended towards an aggregated or patchy distribution, with hotspots located in inshore areas in close proximity to vessels[U+05F3] home ports. The two datasets were correlated at each port, though the strength of correlation varied among ports, being greater in ports with more highly aggregated fishing activity. Results suggest that vessel sightings are likely to better represent variable intensity of fishing activity, while interview data may more accurately capture the absolute extent of grounds important to fishers. This study highlights some of the merits and limitations of two available data sources currently used to inform fisheries management and marine conservation planning, and outlines an approach to assessing the consistency of datasets in describing the spatial distribution of activity. Given the limitations of individual datasets, we recommend triangulation of available data to inform MSP, alongside qualitative data on fishers' behaviour.

Fisheries worldwide are facing overexploitation, yet the social dimensions of fishers' behavior remain under-studied, and there is demand for an improved understanding of social processes that influence fisheries' dynamics. Fishers draw on social relationships to acquire information relating to fishing opportunities, contributing to knowledge that underpins decision making and behavior. In this study we use quantitative social network analysis (SNA) to compare the structure of information-sharing networks and explore links between information flow and fishing success at four ports in the Northumberland (UK) potting fishery. In our results we describe the different information-sharing networks existing at each port, and show the following: a high proportion of fishers reported sharing information, though fewer than a third of reported ties were reciprocated; subgroups existed in which greater information sharing occurred; and networks displayed varying levels of cohesiveness. Fishers commonly shared information with others whom they perceived to be successful, and reciprocal relationships were more common among fishers of similar success. Furthermore, fishers more central in networks had more sources of incoming information through social relationships, shared information with fewer peers, and were more successful than those who were less central. We conclude that engaging in information-sharing networks can provide benefits for Northumberland fishers, although advantages gained through social networks may not be equally distributed. Although informationsharing networks may contribute to fishing success, i.e. high lobster landings, these outcomes may not be compatible with long-term fisheries management objectives. Nevertheless, understanding the social dynamics of information sharing can help inform management strategies by identifying central fishers in information-sharing networks, who have access to a range of information on others' fishing behavior. Such fishers may be able to assist managers in collecting information on the distribution of fishing opportunities, the state of the fishery, and the ways in which fishers use their knowledge to adapt to change and management interventions. © 2014 by the author(s).

Knowledge of informal rules governing fishers' behavior is important to help formulate policies suited to local conditions and supported by resource users. Fishers' behavior may be influenced by informal property rights or territoriality, yet drivers of such behavior in UK fisheries have seldom been explored. This study presents findings from interviews with lobster fishers (n = 44) at six ports in Northumberland, UK. The study aimed to investigate the existence, importance, and drivers of territoriality in this fishery, contributing to the debate over whether informal rules and norms may benefit modern fisheries management. The findings showed evidence of group territorial behavior based more on social norms than on economic calculations, but declining in response to changes in fleet structure, technological developments, legal sanctions, and community cohesiveness. Territoriality was being replaced by a new norm of "first come first served"; if this norm fails, spatial planning regulations may need to be introduced. © 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

Degraded coral reef ecosystems yield limited goods and services, which is expected to have significant socio-economic impacts on isolated tropical island communities with strong reliance on coral reefs. This study investigates socio-economic changes, specifically in fresh fish consumption and fishing activities, associated with environmental degradation at five fishing grounds (qoliqoli) in the Lau Islands (Fiji). Semi-structured interviews with fishers and senior household members revealed that the importance of fishing was low relative to other occupations, and consumption of fresh fish has declined over the last decade. Reduced fishing and choice of fresh fish is largely attributable to an increased need to derive income as well as new income-generating opportunities. A possible consequence of reduced reliance on marine resources was limited awareness of recent environmental degradation caused by climate-induced coral bleaching and outbreaks of coral-feeding crown-of-thorns starfish. Limited use and reduced awareness of the local marine environment in the short term may erode social memory and local ecological knowledge, reducing opportunities to fall back on marine resources. This may also compromise long-term economic and social stability. Conversely, low reliance on marine resources may confer greater flexibility to adapt to future ecological change in the marine environment. Importantly, changes in fish consumption and exploitation of marine resources were linked to socio-economic factors rather than a consequence of recent degradation of marine environments. Greater knowledge of the dynamics driving change in marine resource use is necessary to understand how societies respond to ecological and socio-economic change, and to identify opportunities for adaptive sustainable ecosystem management. © 2007 Springer-Verlag.