Fishery Conservation (WFB 4180)
Clemson University
Fall 2014
Instructor:
Dr. Yoichiro Kanno
Office location: 216 Lehotsky Hall
Office phone: 864-656-1645
Office hours: Walk-in, or by appointment
Email: ykanno@clemson.edu
Credit hours:
3 credit hours
Class times:
Tuesday & Thursday 11:05 am - 12:15 pm @ E146 Poole
Prerequisite:
None
Communications:
Course content (lecture slides, assignments, etc.) will be managed
through Blackboard LearnTM (http://bb.clemson.edu). I will also use
your Clemson email (userID@clemson.edu) as means of
communication outside of class.
Required textbooks:
Helfman, G.S. 2007. Fish Conservation: A Guide to Understanding and Restoring Global
Aquatic Biodiversity and Fishery Resources. Island Press.
Price $85 (paperback) or $170 (Hardcover).
Murphy, B.R., D.A. Willis, M.D. Klopfer, and B.D.S. Graeb. 2010. Case Studies in Fisheries
Conservation and Management: Applied Critical Thinking and Problem Solving.
American Fisheries Society. Price $50 (paperback)
Note: Both textbooks are available at the University Bookstore. Murphy et al. (2010) is also
available online at the American Fisheries Society (AFS) bookstore
(http://fisheries.org/shop). If you are an AFS member, you will get a 30% discount
(plus shipping) at the AFS online bookstore. Annual AFS student membership is $20.
So, it costs only slightly more to become an AFS student member and purchase one of
the required textbooks online.
Course description:
This course is designed to provide an overview of marine and freshwater fisheries resources
and their conservation challenges. The class will cover a wide range of species and habitats,
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from overexploited marine species to non-game freshwater fish. A strong emphasis is placed
on critical thinking, problem solving and communication skills. This emphasis is reflected on
interactive and participatory course assignments and grading, as shown below. Students
should have a genuine interest in pursuing professional careers in fisheries conservation and
management, or other natural resources management.
Course objectives:
As a result of this course, students will be able to:
 Grasp current state of marine and freshwater fisheries resources;
 Understand fundamental challenges in fisheries conservation;
 Apply critical thinking and problem solving skills to fisheries case studies
 Improve oral and written scientific communication skills;
Required personal equipment:
The learning module of this class is frequently participatory, involving in-class writing and
online search for scientific information. To this end, you are required to bring your personal
laptop in some classes (advance notice will be given).
Grading:
Class attendance & participation
Why conserve fish/fisheries
Case studies
Critical reading of journal articles
Mini lecture
10%
10%
30%
20%
30%
Assignments must be submitted by their deadline. Late submissions will not be accepted
and you will receive no points for missed assignments, unless prior arrangements are made
with instructor to accommodate particular circumstances.
The grading scale used will be:
A
B
C
D
F
100-90 %
80-89 %
70-79 %
60-69 %
< 60 %
Course Assignments:
Class attendance & participation: In this class, traditional lectures by the instructor will
probably comprise less than half of class time. The rest will involve student presentation,
discussion with teammates and entire class, and short writing. Thus, you will get the most out
of this class by actively participating in class activities and completing reading assignments
prior to class. To this end, I will take attendance frequently. In addition, while ‘participation’
is difficult to gauge and I understand that personal characteristics differ among students, I
will consider your active style of participation as a bonus in determining your score in this
course assignment.
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Why conserve fish/fisheries: As we will see, marine and freshwater fishery resources are
under severe stress. There is much effort and investment in conserving these resources. But
let’s step back and think about if and why we need to conserve these resources, including
those endangered species of seemingly little value to humans. Details to follow in class.
Case studies: We will examine some fisheries case studies in Murphy et al. (2010) to hone
your critical thinking and problem solving skills. A typical flow of work will involve that
students complete assigned readings prior to class, instructor present additional materials
during class, and students answer a set of questions and solve issues during or after class and
submit answers to the instructor. Fisheries conservation has several overarching principles
across taxa and habitats, but is also characterized with case-specific issues and solutions. The
use of case studies should help students understand contemporary and historical challenges.
Critical reading of journal articles: I believe that the act of writing is a powerful learning
process forcing us to pick words and use examples to assist our assimilation and retention
of new knowledge. I also believe that critical reading of scientific articles is an important
step in scientific learning. To this end, I will ask students to complete short in-class
writing exercises based on assigned journal articles. Prior to class, I will assign one
article and students are expected to read it carefully. I will briefly review and explain the
article at the beginning of the next class and then ask several questions from the article.
Students will work in a group and hand in your answers during class. Late submissions
after class period will not be accepted.
Mini lecture: Communicating information is a fundamental skill that is required to be
successful in any discipline. Each student will deliver one lecture based on a chapter in
Helfman (2007) in a 2-3 person team in order to hone your scientific communication and
presentation skills. The team will prepare a 25- to 30-minute presentation through prior
consultation with the instructor. A team member will be graded by the instructor, other team
members and other students (audience) based on the content presented (what) and
communication skills (how). Detailed instructions are provided separately.
Attendance policy:
Anticipated absences must be discussed with the instructor in advance. I understand that
some emergencies in life cannot be planned or avoided. In this case, students should seek
prompt communication with the instructor before or soon after the absence and I will make
arrangements to accommodate your needs in whatever way is possible and appropriate. When
instructor does now arrive on time, please wait 15 minutes before leave the classroom.
Academic honesty:
Academic honesty is fundamental to the activities and principles of a university. All
members of the academic community must be confident that each person's work has been
responsibly and honorably acquired, developed, and presented. Any effort to gain an
advantage not given to all students is dishonest whether or not the effort is successful. The
academic community regards academic dishonesty as an extremely serious matter, with
serious consequences that range from probation to expulsion. When in doubt about
plagiarism, paraphrasing, quoting, or collaboration, consult the course instructor.
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Clemson University Academic Integrity Statement:
“As members of the Clemson University community, we have inherited Thomas Green
Clemson’s vision of this institution as a high seminary of learning. Fundamental to this vision
is a mutual commitment to truthfulness, honor, and responsibility, without which we cannot
earn the trust and respect of others. Furthermore, we recognize that academic dishonesty
detracts from the value of a Clemson degree. Therefore, we shall not tolerate lying, cheating,
or stealing in any form.”
Civility Statement:
Because this class needs to be a participatory community if students are to fulfill their
potential for learning, people who disrupt the community by their words or actions (rude,
sarcastic, obscene or disrespectful speech or disruptive behavior) will be removed from the
class. In order to achieve our educational goals and to encourage the expression, testing,
understanding and creation of a variety of ideas and opinions, respect must be shown to
everyone.
Special Needs:
Students with disabilities who need accommodations should make an appointment with Dr.
Arlene Stewart, Director of Disability Services, to discuss specific needs within the first
month of classes. Students should present a Faculty Accommodation Letter from Student
Disability Services when they meet with instructors. Student Disability Services is located in
Suite 239 Academic Success Building (656-6848; sds-l@clemson.edu). Please be aware that
accommodations are not retroactive and new Faculty Accommodation Letters must be
presented each semester.
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Tentative course schedule:
Note: Schedule subject to change.
Week
Date
Topics
1
Aug. 21
2
Aug. 26
Aug. 28
3
Sep. 2
Sep. 4
4
Sep. 9
Sep. 11
5
Sep. 16
Sep. 18
6
Sep. 23
Sep. 25
7
Sep. 30
Oct. 2
8
Oct. 7
Oct. 9
9
Oct. 14
Oct. 16
10
Oct. 21
Oct. 23
Assignment (for next class)
Introduction – syllabus overview,
status of marine & freshwater fisheries
“Empty Oceans, Empty Nets” film
Read Introduction of Murphy et al.
(pp. 1-8)
Why should we conserve fish or
fisheries?
Fish taxonomic diversity and
characteristics of vulnerable species
(Chap. 2 & 4 of Helfman)
What’s for Dinner? Environmentally
Conscious Seafood Choices (Case 2 of
Murphy et al.)
No class – Dr. Kanno attending a
meeting in Shepherdstown, WV
Overfishing (Chap. 10 of Helfman) –
Mini lecture by a student group
Sea turtle conservation (guest lecture
by Dr. Kate McFadden)
No class – Dr. Kanno attending a
meeting in Fort Collins, CO
Highly migratory marine species:
Bluefin tuna (Case 1 of Murphy et al.)
Coral reef fish (Chap. 12 of Helfman)
– Mini lecture by a student group
Is the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
network in the Philippines enough?
(Paper 1*)
Debate over shark abundance (Case 15
of Murphy et al.)
Promise of aquaculture and hatcheries
(Chap. 14 of Helfman) – Mini lecture
by a student group
Fisheries-driven evolution in fish size
(Paper 2*)
Sea lions: a new kind of nuisance
(Case 18 of Murphy et al.)
Habitat modification and loss (Chap. 5
of Helfman) – Mini lecture by a
student group
Field trip to Experimental Forest
Short writing: why fish or fisheries
conservation matters
Read and complete writing
assignment of Case 2 (Murphy et
al.)
Glance at Chap. 10 of Helfman
Degraded water quality (Chap. 7 of
Helfman) – Mini lecture by a student
group
Read Paper 3*
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Glance at Chap. 1 of Helfman
Read Case 1 (Murphy et al.)
Glance at Chap. 12 of Helfman
Read Paper 1*
Read Case 15 (Murphy et al.)
Glance at Chap. 12 of Helfman
Read Paper 2*
Read Case 18 (Murphy et al.)
Glance at Chap. 5 of Helfman
Glance at Chap. 7 of Helfman
11
12
13
Oct. 28
Why do rivers need to meander?
(Paper 3*)
Oct. 30
Nov. 4
Alien species (Chap. 8-9 of Helfman)
– Mini lecture by a student group
No class – Fall Break
Nov. 6
Guest lecture (freshwater fisheries)
Read Case 11 (Murphy et al.)
Nov. 11
Stock or not? Management of high
elevation wilderness lakes (Case 11 of
Murphy et al.)
Dams and impoundments (Chap. 6 of
Helfman) – Mini lecture by a student
group
Forest-stream connection: “River
Webs” film
How important are forests to streams,
and vice versa? (Paper 4*)
Trade in live fishes (Chap. 13 of
Helfman) – Mini lecture by a student
group
No class – Thanksgiving Break
Glance at Chap. 6 of Helfman
Nov. 13
14
Nov. 18
Nov. 20
15
Nov. 25
Nov. 27
16
Dec. 2
Dec. 4
Glance at Chap. 8-9 of Helfman
Read Paper 4*
Glance at Chap. 13 of Helfman
Read Case 30 (Murphy et al.)
Should we eliminate catch-and-release
angling? (Case 30 of Murphy et al.)
Future perspective & wrap-up (Chap.
16 of Helfman)
*The papers listed below are available on the Blackboard.
Paper 1: Weeks et al. (2009) Effectiveness of marine protected areas in the Philippines for
biodiversity conservation. Conservation Biology 24: 531-540.
Paper 2: Conover & Munch (2002) Sustaining fisheries yields over evolutionary time scales.
Science 297: 94-96.
Paper 3: Fukushima (2001) Salmonid habitat-geomorphology relationships in low-gradient
streams. Ecology 82: 1238-1246.
Paper 4: Baxter et al. (2004) Fish invasions restructures stream and forest food webs by
interrupting reciprocal prey subsidies. Ecology 85: 2656-2663.
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