Developing and Evaluating Ecosystem-Based Reference Points for Atlantic Menhaden

Efforts to develop ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) have often focused on forage fishes because they support large fisheries and are major prey for other fishes, marine mammals, and seabirds.  Management of Atlantic Menhaden provides a relevant case study that demonstrates the challenges and tradeoffs inherent in managing for multiple ecosystem services provided by forage fish.  To support ongoing management efforts, we built an Ecopath with Ecosim model of the Northwest Atlantic Continental Shelf as a tool for developing and evaluating ecosystem-based reference points for Atlantic Menhaden.  Model simulations were conducted to derive alternative biomass and mortality reference points that were matched to multiple, competing management objectives representing different stakeholder viewpoints.  Evaluations of different management strategies quantified tradeoffs in ecosystem structure (e.g., relative biomasses of different groups) and fishery yields of Atlantic Menhaden and their predators associated with each set of reference points.  Effects of simulated management scenarios were compared to scenarios reliant on the current single-species reference points and other recommended reference points for forage fish management.  Our results highlight the utility of system- and species-specific analyses that can lead to strategic management decisions, thus facilitating an incremental progression to EBFM from the single-species management of a dominant forage fish.