Science, Policy & the $30,000 Fish Phaedra Doukakis, Ph.D. Institute for Ocean Conservation...

Science, Policy & the $30,000 Fish

Phaedra Doukakis, Ph.D.

Institute for Ocean Conservation Science, SoMAS, SUNY SB

October 9, 2009

SPECIES MANAGEMENT

GLOBAL

TRADE

CONSUMER CHOICE

SCIENCE

Science-Policy Interface

Where can science make the difference for

conservation?

Presentation Outline• Molecular genetic approaches

– Caviar trade regulation, species boundaries, species relationships

• Caspian Sea sturgeon fieldwork – Species biology and status

•Stock assessment, fisheries management

• Policy influence

“Living fossils”: lineage extending into the Jurassic.

Anadromous, Northern hemisphere

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Age at maturity -females (years)

S

paw

ning

per

iodi

city

- f

emal

es (

year

s)

S. albus

H. dauricusA. medirostris

A. transmontanus

A. fulvescens

A. baeriiA. o. oxyrhinchus

H. husoA. gueldenstaedtii

A. o. destoi

A. schrenckii

A. persicus

A. nudiventris

A. brevirostrum

P. spathula

A. stellatus

S. suttkusiA. ruthenus

S. platorynchus

Fish and Fisheries 6: 233-265

The most valuable fish on Earth

Guinness World Record Most Valuable Fish: A Russian sturgeon weighing 2,706 lb caught in

1924 yielded 540 lb of caviar, today worth nearly $1.35-2.7 million.

When market fluctuations cause you to change the title of your talk!

$8,000 per kilo= $50,000.00 per fish given size of fish now

Caviar: the eggs of a mature female

THE BEGINNING-ALBANY BEEF FROM THE HUDSON RIVER

Caspian & Black Sea

Hatcheries main management tool

More than 10 around the Caspian Sea; millions released annually

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

1960

1964

1968

1972

1976

1980

1984

1988

1992

1996

2000

2004

FAOSTAT data

Sturgeon& Paddlefish Capture

FAOSTAT data

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

1960

1964

1968

1972

1976

1980

1984

1988

1992

1996

2000

2004

Capture

Total

Aquaculture

Sturgeon& Paddlefish Total

A.gueldenstadtii

A.stellatus

H.huso

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

Year

Kg

. D

ay -1

. 10

0 g

illn

et -1

Effort calibrated data shows population decline

Decline of beluga (Huso huso ) in the Volga River

0

5

10

15

20

25

1967-1970

1971-1975

1976-1980

1981-1985

1986-1990

1991-1995

1996-1997

Ca

tch

(t)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Nu

mb

er

of

ind

ivid

ua

ls

mig

rati

ng

(th

ou

san

ds)

From Khodorevskaya et al. 1997, 2000; Khodorevskaya 1999

Catch and # Spawners over Time

GLOBAL OVERVIEW 2005 Fish and Fisheries 6: 233-265

• Most major sturgeon fisheries now catch 85% fewer fish than at their peak.

• Boom and bust: >1/3 of fisheries examined crashed within 7-20 years.

• Local extinctions in 19 of 27 species.

.

•In 1997 CITES was considering listing all sturgeons and paddlefishes.

•CITES works through trade regulation with trade quotas set based on sustainable take.

•Illegal harvest and trade problematic.

•Morphological inspection inaccurate for species id – need enforcement method.

Develop a molecular method to assist in CITES enforcement and

trade regulation

Yes! Cytb-based, species specific nucleotides, PCR and tree building

approaches for species ID

Position number

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

Species 1 T G C A T G C A T G C A T G C A T G C A

…Species 24

. C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Species 25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . A . . . . . .

Species specific

primer

|

A

|

C

|

G

|

T

|

A

|

C

|

G

|

T

|

A

|

C

|

G

|

T

|

A|

T

No! Basin of origin of commercial caviar

•Commercial species of sturgeon cannot be distinguished by basin of origin based on mtDNA (Molecular Ecology 8: S117-S127;. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 21(6): 457-460 )

•Restocking, geology, marker evolution explanations.

Using the species identification system

•Test on 95 lots of commercial caviar (1998).

•23% mislabeling.

•Endangered species & cheap caviar substitutes.

(Conservation Biology 12(4): 766-775).

•System can be developed; monitoring trade is necessary.

•Importing countries need to adopt method.

A. sinensisA. sturio

Polyodon

A. persicusA. naccariiA. gueldenstaedtiiA. baeriiA. brevirostrumA. fulvescensA. stellatusP. hermanniP. kaufmanniA. nudiventrisA. ruthenusH. husoH. dauricusS. suttkusiS. platorynchusS. albusA. mikadoiA. medirostrisA. schrenckiiA. transmontanus

A. oxyrinchus

Psephurus

A. persicusA. naccariiA. gueldenstaedtiiA. baeriiA. brevirostrumA. stellatusP. hermanniP. kaufmanniA. ruthenusH. husoH. dauricusA. fulvescensA. nudiventrisA. mikadoiA. medirostrisA. transmontanusA. schrenckiiA. sinensisA. sturioA. oxyrinchusS. suttkusiS. platorynchusS. albusPolyodonPsephurus

7598

85(80)

93

26

2

6

100100

1427

10017

1297

79(74)

67

61(59)

58(63)

100

100

100

1

2

38

77

3

4

5

41

Pesky speciesSystematics work: Copeia 2002(2): 287-301

Black Sea Caspian Sea

Adriatic Sea

Siberian Rivers

Sea of Azov

Morphologically similar

Persian(3)RussianNC2Persian2RussianI3RussianI7Persian3Persian5Persian11Persian6RussianNC3RussianNC4RussianNC7Persian7RussianK4RussianD(7)RussianD9Persian10Italian(2)RussianNC8RussianNC9RussianI5RussianD7RussianBlRussianDnRussianK3RussianI4RussianK(2)RussianC(2)RussianI8SiberianB(6)SiberianO2SiberianL(12)SiberianO1SiberianO3SiberianO6SiberianO5SiberianY(2)SiberianO4SiberianO(5)SiberianO10SiberianY(2))RussianNC1RussianI6RussianNC5RussianNC6RussianI9SiberianO8AstellatusHhuso

100

7486

61

96

7096

64

9174

74

91

89

87

72

89

99

100

100

6266

76

10087

7497100

8598

8569

95

95

89

95

100

100

Increased sampling and loci; too few samples to consider Italian sturgeon

Persian(3)RussianNC2Persian2RussianI3RussianI7Persian3Persian5Persian11Persian6RussianNC3RussianNC4RussianNC7Persian7RussianK4RussianD(7)RussianD9Persian10Italian(2)RussianNC8RussianNC9RussianI5RussianD7RussianBlRussianDnRussianK3RussianI4RussianK(2)RussianC(2)RussianI8SiberianB(6)SiberianO2SiberianL(12)SiberianO1SiberianO3SiberianO6SiberianO5SiberianY(2)SiberianO4SiberianO(5)SiberianO10SiberianY(2))RussianNC1RussianI6RussianNC5RussianNC6RussianI9SiberianO8AstellatusHhuso

100

7486

61

96

7096

64

9174

74

91

89

87

72

89

99

100

100

6266

76

10087

7497100

8598

8569

95

95

89

95

100

100

Two clades: Russian sturgeon in Caspian have Siberian-like genotype

30bp fixed differences

1 bp difference

Black Sea Caspian Sea

Adriatic Sea

Siberian Rivers

Sea of Azov

Siberian sturgeon aren’t supposed to be in the Caspian Sea??

?

•Caspian Sea Russian-Siberian sturgeon and true Russian sturgeon present.•Decreases mislabeling to 19%.

Law enforcement relevance

Morphology and MoleculesSystematics & Biodiversity 3(2): 203-218

Compare “pure” Siberian to Caspian Sea Siberian.

Pure Siberian sturgeon distinct from Russian and Russian-Siberian sturgeon in the Caspian

Sea.

Hybrid from aquaculture?

Persian(3)RussianNC2Persian2RussianI3RussianI7Persian3Persian5Persian11Persian6RussianNC3RussianNC4RussianNC7Persian7RussianK4RussianD(7)RussianD9Persian10Italian(2)RussianNC8RussianNC9RussianI5RussianD7RussianBlRussianDnRussianK3RussianI4RussianK(2)RussianC(2)RussianI8SiberianB(6)SiberianO2SiberianL(12)SiberianO1SiberianO3SiberianO6SiberianO5SiberianY(2)SiberianO4SiberianO(5)SiberianO10SiberianY(2))RussianNC1RussianI6RussianNC5RussianNC6RussianI9SiberianO8AstellatusHhuso

100

7486

61

96

7096

64

9174

74

91

89

87

72

89

99

100

100

6266

76

10087

7497100

8598

8569

95

95

89

95

100

100

Persian and Russian sturgeon don’t form monopyletic clades. Once subspecies

•No fixed morphological differences; valid species?•Persian sturgeon are considered separate from Russian sturgeon in management and at CITES.•Need better understanding of species structure and biology.

•Better markers for species and populations.

•Polyploidy makes this challenging.

•Next generation sequencing for SNPS and microsats

1998 2008

Pre CITES Post CITES

•91 tins•Single digits.•Fewer species.•Pike!in preparation

10 years later

A.gueldenstadtii

A.stellatus

H.huso

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

Year

Kg

. D

ay -1

. 10

0 g

illn

et -1

Trade is regulated but populations still declining

•Last significant Caspian Sea river without a dam.•Last place to study natural migration.•Active, large fishery.

Ural River, Kazakhstan

Three year program (2005-08)

Sturgeon biology and status (beluga focus)Fisheries managementSpecies structure (Persian, Siberian, hybrids)

Survival of hatchery released fish?

Outreach component

Catch, use in hatcheries, tag

and release

Acoustic tags

Pop-up Archival Transmitting (Mk10-PAT) tags

Field catch-and release

Tagging hatchery reared fish

Partnerships formed

•Fishing is intense.

•Catch and release impossible.

•Satellite tagging project difficult.

•Extensive government corruption.

“… when law-enforcement officials realised that the study could prove what everyone in Atyraualready knew – that the poaching pressure was now so intense that no fish ever reached Uralsk, …they refused to allow Doukakis to tag any fish. So she reoriented what she cheerfully calls her “no-data project” and now is trying to…

Get visas for Kazakhstani scientists to come to the USA: stock assessment

workshop

Stock assessment project

• Evaluate the population status of Ural River beluga and determine levels of fishing pressure.– No understanding of current levels

of fishing compared to sustainable levels.

Stock assessment project

• Identify the life history stages best targeted for conservation: – Control harvest of adults and

subadults or increase hatchery production?

– Current management focus is on hatchery production; fishing nations are issued higher quotas with increased hatchery output.

Results

• Precautionary target fishing mortality rates are similar to those for other long-lived species such as sharks and marine mammals but are smaller than those for the productive teleost species that sustain large fisheries.

0

5

10

15

20

25

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

Fishing mortality

Me

an

ag

e (

yea

rs) Mean age of the

population declines with increasing F.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

1 11 21 31 41 51 61 71 81 91

Age, years

Sp

aw

nin

g w

eig

ht,

kg

F=0

F=0.05

F=0.1

F=0.15

F=0.2

Proportion of older and larger fish in the spawning stock declines with increasing F.

Compare with observed

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38

age

pe

rce

nt

1996 2006

Removal rate over 70%; 4-5 times › Fmax.

Fmax average age of the spawning stock: 24 yearsObserved: 21.8 (1996); 17.4 (2006)

Results

• Yield per recruit is maximized at age of entry at 31 years: raise minimum size limits or reduce illegal take of subadults.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

Fishing mortality

Yie

ld p

er

recr

uit,

kg

tmin =11

tmin=20

tmin=25

tmin=30

Results

• Elasticity analysis:– Improving the survival of subadult

and adult females would increase population productivity by 10 times that achieved by improving fecundity and egg to age 1 survival (i.e., hatchery supplementation).

Assessment: in Summary (in review Conservation Biology)

• Strong evidence of overfishing.• Need to focus on recovery.• Best option is to reduce adult and

subadult mortality (limit fishing).• Ask CITES to stop issuing trade quotas!• Stop building hatcheries and eliminate

incentive of hatchery production!

Policy Implications & Actions• CITES recognition of uncertainty regarding

species status; leveraging World Bank funds for additional genetics research.

• Shift burden of proof so that proper assessments are in place before permitting trade in Caspian Sea sturgeons.

• FAO assistance on assessment and TAC method.

• Appendix I transfer.

•Government commitment.

•National market control.

Real Change?

Acknowledgements

• People: Ellen Pikitch (SUNY SB); Elizabeth Babcock (U Miami); Alexei Sharov (Maryland Dept of Natural Resources); Vadim Birstein (Sturgeon Conservation International); Rob DeSalle, George Amato (American Museum of Natural History); Dan Erickson (ODFW); colleagues in the Caspian Sea.

• Funding: American Museum of Natural History, Hudson River Foundation, National Geographic Society Conservation Trust Grant, Packard Foundation, Pew Charitable Trusts, US EPA Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Fellowship, Yale University, donations to PIOS and IOCS