Apes 3

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Bait Fish

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are small fish caught for use as bait to attract large predatory fish. See forage fish.

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Biodiversity

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is the variation of life forms within an area. In the context of fisheries the number and variety of organisms found within a fishery.

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Biomass

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the total weight of a fish species in a given area. Can be measured as the total weight in tons of a stock in a fishery, or are be measured per square metre or square kilometre. The most successful species worldwide, in terms of biomass, may be the Antarctic krill, with about five times the total biomass of humans.

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Biotoxins

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natural toxins produced by organisms, often for use as a defence mechanism.

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Brackish Water

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water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater with fresh water, as in estuaries

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Bycatch

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bycatch is the harvest of marine life and seabirds during fishing operations when other fish were the target. For example, bycatch might consist of a species which was not the targeted species, such as a shark caught on a tuna longline. Or it might consist of fish of the targeted species, but not of the targeted age or size. Some shrimp fisheries have a bycatch five times the weight of the caught shrimp. See also incidental catch.

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Commercial Fishery

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An umbrella term covering fisheries resources and the whole process of catching and marketing fish, molluscs and crustaceans. It includes the fishermen and their boats, and all activities and resources involved in harvesting, processing, and selling.

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Crustaceans

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A group of freshwater and saltwater animals having no backbone, with jointed legs and a hard shell made of chitin. Includes crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp and krill.

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Dead zone

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an area in an ocean or large lake where oxygen levels are extremely low, often due to eutrophication. Dead zones have been increasing since the 1970s.

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Dredging

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dredge designed to catch scallops, oysters or sea cucumbers are towed along the bottom of the sea by specially designed dredge boats.

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Driftnet

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a gillnet suspended by floats so that it fishes the top few metres of the water column. Drift nets can be many kilometres long. Because drift nets are not anchored to the sea bottom or connected to a boat, they are sometimes lost in storms and become ghost nets.

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Estuary

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a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Healthy estuaries can have high rates of biological productivity.

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Exclusive economic zones

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law of the sea over which a state has special rights to the exploration and use of marine resources. Generally a state's EEZ extends to a distance of 200 nautical miles (370 km) out from its coast.

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Farmed fisheries

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are fisheries where the fish are farmed using aquaculture techniques. They can be contrasted with wild fisheries.

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Founder effect

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the loss of genetic variation when a new colony is established by some individuals moving to a new area that is unoccupied. As a result the new population may be distinctively different from its parent population.

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Gillnet

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fishing nets constructed so that fish are entangled or enmeshed, usually in the gills, by the netting. According to their design, ballasting and buoyancy, these nets can be used to fish on the surface, in midwater or on the bottom. The mesh size of the net determines the size of fish caught, since smaller fish can swim through the mesh. See also drift net.

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Halocine

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a zone in which salinity changes rapidly.

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Hatchery

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the process of cultivating and breeding a large number of juveniles in an enclosed environment. The juveniles are then released into lakes, rivers or fish farm enclosures.

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IUCN

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the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species. Their system divides threatened species into three categories: critically endangered (CR), endangered (EN), and vulnerable (VU). They also list extinctions that have occurred since 1500 AD and taxa that are extinct in the wild

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Mud Flap

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are coastal wetlands that form when mud is deposited by the tides or rivers, sea and oceans. They are found in sheltered areas such as bays, bayous, lagoons, and estuaries.