News

Annual Meeting

Symposium Summary: Managing Centrarchid Fisheries in River and Streams

Sponsors: Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership, Black Bass Committee of Southern Division, Centrarchid Technical Committee of North Central Division This symposium highlighted the expanding network of research surrounding riverine black bass and Rock Bass populations during 33 talks and 1 poster by presenters from around the country.  The Arkansas Chapter of AFS, Centrarchid Technical Committee of... Read More

Symposium Summary: Management Strategy Evaluation, Decision Analysis, and Ensemble Modeling: Tools for Addressing Assessment and Management Uncertainty

Sponsor: AFS Marine Fisheries Section An effective management strategy evaluation (MSE) includes defining multiple research and management objectives and associated performance metrics to quantify the effects of the management strategies, a discussion of and detailed accounting for error and uncertainty in the modeled system, the inclusion of a range of stakeholders for defining the issues... Read More

Symposium Summary: Fisheries Research and Conservation in the “Scapes”: Needs, Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities

Aquatic ecologists, fisheries biologists, and resource managers recognize that many ecological patterns and conservation problems require broad and synthetic approaches. The “scape” perspective is a point-of-view that combines a broader scale, an integrative context, and specific types of analyses. To investigate this perspective, Sean Hitchman, Martha Mather, and Jordan Hofmeier organized a symposium entitled “Fisheries... Read More

Symposium Summary: Fisheries Management from the Great Lakes to the Gulf: Sea Grant’s Role in Research, Outreach, and Building Partnerships along the Mississippi River

Sponsor: AFS Estuaries Section In honor of the 50th anniversary of Sea Grant, this symposium sponsored by AFS Estuaries Section focused on inter-jurisdictional management issues along the Mississippi River and the research and outreach contributions made by Sea Grant programs and partners. Louisiana Sea Grant Director Robert Twilley and Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Director Brian Miller... Read More

Symposium Summary: An Examination into Influencing the Future of Angling Participation to Sustain Conservation Support

Sponsors: AFS Socioeconomics Section, Fisheries Management Section, and Fisheries Administration Section Despite continued population growth, the number of people participating in angling has stagnated and, in some cases, declined in recent years. This lack of growth threatens to erode away the multitude of diverse and substantial benefits society reaps from angling participation and threatens funding... Read More

Symposium Summary: Effects of Drought on Aquatic Resources, Fisheries Management, and Mitigation Strategies

Sponsors: AFS Estuaries Section, Fish Habitat Section, and Water Quality Section Prolonged and intense drought as a result of climate change is becoming a more frequent occurrence in many parts of the world with varying impacts to freshwater and marine fisheries resources. Coupled with increased human water demands, reservoir, river, and estuarine systems face unprecedented... Read More

Symposium Summary: Effects of Diploid Grass Carp and State Grass Carp Stocking Policies on Aquatic Ecosystems

Sponsor: Mississippi Interstate Cooperative Resource Association State policies regarding the use of Grass Carp are inconsistent and at times conflicting between neighboring states. Most states prohibit all Grass Carp or restrict their use to certified triploids (i.e., sterile) only; however, seven states in the Mississippi River Basin continue to allow stocking of diploid (i.e., fertile)... Read More

Symposium Summary: Coupled Interactions between Natural and Human Systems – On the Interplay between Aquatic Ecosystem Health, Human Behavior and Decision-Making, and Aquatic Invasive Species

Understanding the interdependence between healthy aquatic ecosystems and human social, economic, and cultural benefits is necessary to maximize the benefits of ecosystem management and to address trade-offs among ecosystem services, economic benefits, and human and ecosystem health.  In this symposium, 11 presentations highlighted various aspects of coupled natural and human systems.  Topics varied greatly and... Read More