Acronym NA
Category
Fisheries
Title Limfjord regime shift Programme National Programme
Instrument (FP6)
Contact Type (FP7)
Strand (Interreg)
NA
Theme (FP7)
Activity Area (FP6)
Regional Area (Interreg)
Action (COST)
NA
Specific Programme (FP7)
NA
Funding source National Coordinator Josianne G. Støttrup Coordinator email NA
Coordinator institution
DTU-AQUA - Technical University of Denmark; National Institute of Aquatic Resources (Denmark)
Institutions involved
NA
Start year 2005 End year 2010 Funding (€) € NA Website NA Summary The aim of the project was to reveal causes and mechanisms related to a regime shift in the Limfjord, including the relationship with nutrient loading and fish production in the Limfjord. Furthermore management scenarios for ensuring good environmental conditions and sustainable use of the living resources would be examined and discussed. DTU Aqua’s share of the project was through models to demonstrate a regime shift and to explore potential causes of this. The project made it possible to combine different types of data across sub-basins with different physical-chemical conditions and trophic groups and to explore various methods. We chose to use an Integrated Trend Assessment approach and a series of statistical tests were applied (sequential t-test analyses of regime shifts (STARS), principle component analyses (PCA), STARS on PCA scores and Chronological Clustering). A Traffic Light Plot was used to visualize changes in the ecosystem. A regime shift was identified starting in 1990 and fully developed by 1996. It impacted the whole food-chain structure in the fjord. Possible causes were identified as climatic causes (temperature, salinity and wind) and eutrophication (nutrient N, P loadings and bottom oxygen conditions). To a lesser extent fishery of demersal fish species could also have been a contributory factor. The regime shift caused a decrease in the fishery of large demersal fish, whereas there was a general increase in the stock size of pelagic and small demersal fish species, crustaceans (crabs, lobster), echinoderms, starfish and jellyfish. After the regime shift primary production in the water column decreased. In the present project it was not possible to determine if the decrease in large demersal fish stocks was caused by failure in recruitment or by over-fishing. At the management level it was pointed out that it was important to study sub-basins of the fjord due to the high variation of parameters between sub-basins. The fundamental changes that had occurred in the system further suggested that it may not be possible for the system to revert back to its original condition even if the nutrient loadings were brought back to their original levels. However, this needs to be further investigated.
Keywords
Fishing mortality;
Climate change;
Fish stocks;
Food web;
Environmental impact;
Impacts;
Marine Region
14
Skagerrak, Kattegat (27.IIIa)
1
Marine Region Map
