Managing Southern Ocean krill and fish stocks in a changing environment

Abstract

Management of Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba , and the mackerel icefish, Champsocephalus gunnari under the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) is discussed in relation to changes in their distribution and abundance arising from variation in circulation of the circumpolar current. It is concluded that on a Southern Ocean scale it is currently not possible to detect change but on a local scale, such as at South Georgia, major changes are detectable. These changes affect the krill fishery directly in terms of total catch and the way the fleets are deployed. Major local reductions in krill are thought to have a significant effect on natural mortality of the icefish.