Science, Policy & the $30,000
Fish
Phaedra Doukakis, Ph.D.
Institute for Ocean Conservation Science,
SoMAS, SUNY SB
October 9, 2009
SPECIES
MANAGEMENT
SCIENCE
CONSUMER
CHOICE
GLOBAL
TRADE
Where can science make the
difference for conservation?
Science-Policy Interface
Presentation Outline
• Molecular genetic approaches
– Caviar trade regulation, species
boundaries, species relationships
• Caspian Sea sturgeon fieldwork
– Species biology and status
• Stock assessment, fisheries management
• Policy influence
“Living fossils”: lineage
extending into the Jurassic.
Anadromous, Northern hemisphere
7
S. albus
Spawning periodicity - females (years)
6
A. brevirostrum
5
H. dauricus
A. medirostris A. fulvescens
A. o. oxyrhinchus
A. baerii
A.
gueldenstaedtii
A. schrenckii
H. huso
4
A. persicus
P. spathula
3
S. platorynchus
A. transmontanus
A. nudiventris
A. o. destoi
S. suttkusi
A. ruthenus
A. stellatus
2
1
0
0
5
10
15
20
25
Age at maturity -females (years)
Fish and Fisheries 6: 233-265
30
The most valuable fish on Earth
Guinness World Record Most Valuable Fish: A Russian
sturgeon weighing 2,706 lb caught in 1924 yielded 540
lb of caviar, today worth nearly $1.35-2.7 million.
When market fluctuations cause
you to change the title of your talk!
$8,000 per kilo=
$50,000.00 per fish
given size of fish now
Caviar: the eggs of a mature female
THE BEGINNING-ALBANY BEEF FROM THE HUDSON RIVER
Caspian & Black Sea
Hatcheries main management tool
More than 10 around the Caspian Sea;
millions released annually
Sturgeon& Paddlefish Capture
35,000
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
19
60
19
64
19
68
19
72
19
76
19
80
19
84
19
88
19
92
19
96
20
00
20
04
0
FAOSTAT data
Sturgeon& Paddlefish Total
35,000
30,000
25,000
Capture
Total
Aquaculture
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
19
60
19
64
19
68
19
72
19
76
19
80
19
84
19
88
19
92
19
96
20
00
20
04
0
FAOSTAT data
Effort calibrated data shows
population decline
12
H.huso
A.gueldenstadtii
8
A.stellatus
6
4
2
Year
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
0
1990
Kg . Day -1 . 100 gillnet -1
10
Catch and # Spawners over Time
25
30
20
25
20
15
15
10
10
5
5
0
0
19671970
19711975
19761980
19811985
From Khodorevskaya et al. 1997, 2000; Khodorevskaya 1999
19861990
19911995
19961997
Number of individuals
migrating (thousands)
Catch (t)
Decline of beluga (Huso huso ) in the Volga River
GLOBAL OVERVIEW 2005
Fish and Fisheries 6: 233-265
• Most major sturgeon fisheries now catch
85% fewer fish than at their peak.
• Boom and bust: >1/3 of fisheries
examined crashed within 7-20 years.
• Local extinctions in 19 of 27 species.
.
•In 1997 CITES was considering listing all
sturgeons and paddlefishes.
•CITES works through trade regulation with
trade quotas set based on sustainable take.
•Illegal harvest and trade problematic.
•Morphological inspection inaccurate for
species id – need enforcement method.
Develop a molecular method to assist in
CITES enforcement and trade regulation
Yes! Cytb-based, species specific
nucleotides, PCR and tree building
approaches for species ID
Position
number
1 2 3 4 5 6
Species 1
T G C A T G C A T G C A T G C A T G C A
…Species
24
.
C .
.
. .
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
. .
.
.
.
Species 25
.
.
.
. .
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
A . . .
.
.
.
Species
specific
primer
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
A C G T A C G T A C G T A T
.
7 8 9 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
.
1 1 2
8 9 0
No! Basin of origin of commercial caviar
•Commercial species of sturgeon cannot be distinguished by
basin of origin based on mtDNA (Molecular Ecology 8: S117-S127;.
Journal of Applied Ichthyology 21(6): 457-460 )
•Restocking, geology, marker evolution explanations.
Using the species identification system
•Test on 95 lots of commercial caviar (1998).
•23% mislabeling.
•Endangered species & cheap caviar substitutes.
(Conservation Biology 12(4): 766-775).
•System can be developed; monitoring trade is
necessary.
•Importing countries need to adopt method.
Pesky species
Systematics work: Copeia 2002(2): 287-301
85(80)
2
93
6
79(74)
3
67
4
98
6
100
27 100
14
97
12
61(59)
5
58(63)
2
100
41
75
2
100
17
1
100
38
100
77
A. persicus
A. naccarii
A. gueldenstaedtii
A. baerii
A. brevirostrum
A. stellatus
P. hermanni
P. kaufmanni
A. ruthenus
H. huso
H. dauricus
A. fulvescens
A. nudiventris
A. mikadoi
A. medirostris
A. transmontanus
A. schrenckii
A. sinensis
A. sturio
A. oxyrinchus
S. suttkusi
S. platorynchus
S. albus
Polyodon
Psephurus
A. persicus
A. naccarii
A. gueldenstaedtii
A. baerii
A. brevirostrum
A. fulvescens
A. stellatus
P. hermanni
P. kaufmanni
A. nudiventris
A. ruthenus
H. huso
H. dauricus
S. suttkusi
S. platorynchus
S. albus
A. mikadoi
A. medirostris
A. schrenckii
A. transmontanus
A. sinensis
A. sturio
A. oxyrinchus
Polyodon
Psephurus
Morphologically similar
Siberian
Rivers
Sea of
Azov
Adriatic
Sea
Black Sea
Caspian
Sea
Increased sampling
and loci; too few
samples to consider
Italian sturgeon
86
66
100
100
74
62
61
76
87
89
100
96
100
70
74
96
97
64
69
74
85
74
85
91
98
91
95
72
95
100
100
89
95
99
100
87
89
Persian(3)
RussianNC2
Persian2
RussianI3
RussianI7
Persian3
Persian5
Persian11
Persian6
RussianNC3
RussianNC4
RussianNC7
Persian7
RussianK4
RussianD(7)
RussianD9
Persian10
Italian(2)
RussianNC8
RussianNC9
RussianI5
RussianD7
RussianBl
RussianDn
RussianK3
RussianI4
RussianK(2)
RussianC(2)
RussianI8
SiberianB(6)
SiberianO2
SiberianL(12)
SiberianO1
SiberianO3
SiberianO6
SiberianO5
SiberianY(2)
SiberianO4
SiberianO(5)
SiberianO10
SiberianY(2))
RussianNC1
RussianI6
RussianNC5
RussianNC6
RussianI9
SiberianO8
Astellatus
Hhuso
Two clades: Russian
sturgeon in Caspian
have Siberian-like
genotype
86
66
100
100
74
62
61
76
87
89
100
96
100
70
74
96
97
64
69
100
100
74
85
30bp fixed
differences
74
85
91
98
91
95
72
95
89
95
99
100
1 bp difference
87
89
Persian(3)
RussianNC2
Persian2
RussianI3
RussianI7
Persian3
Persian5
Persian11
Persian6
RussianNC3
RussianNC4
RussianNC7
Persian7
RussianK4
RussianD(7)
RussianD9
Persian10
Italian(2)
RussianNC8
RussianNC9
RussianI5
RussianD7
RussianBl
RussianDn
RussianK3
RussianI4
RussianK(2)
RussianC(2)
RussianI8
SiberianB(6)
SiberianO2
SiberianL(12)
SiberianO1
SiberianO3
SiberianO6
SiberianO5
SiberianY(2)
SiberianO4
SiberianO(5)
SiberianO10
SiberianY(2))
RussianNC1
RussianI6
RussianNC5
RussianNC6
RussianI9
SiberianO8
Astellatus
Hhuso
Siberian sturgeon aren’t
supposed to be in the
Caspian Sea??
Siberian
Rivers
?
Sea of
Azov
Adriatic
Sea
Black Sea
Caspian
Sea
•Caspian Sea Russian-Siberian
sturgeon and true Russian
sturgeon present.
•Decreases mislabeling to 19%.
Law enforcement relevance
Morphology and Molecules
Systematics & Biodiversity 3(2): 203-218
Hybrid from
aquaculture?
Compare “pure” Siberian to Caspian Sea Siberian.
Pure Siberian sturgeon distinct from Russian and
Russian-Siberian sturgeon in the Caspian Sea.
Persian and Russian
sturgeon don’t form
monopyletic clades.
Once subspecies
86
66
100
100
74
62
61
76
87
89
100
96
100
70
74
96
97
64
69
74
85
74
85
91
98
91
95
72
95
100
100
89
95
99
100
87
89
Persian(3)
RussianNC2
Persian2
RussianI3
RussianI7
Persian3
Persian5
Persian11
Persian6
RussianNC3
RussianNC4
RussianNC7
Persian7
RussianK4
RussianD(7)
RussianD9
Persian10
Italian(2)
RussianNC8
RussianNC9
RussianI5
RussianD7
RussianBl
RussianDn
RussianK3
RussianI4
RussianK(2)
RussianC(2)
RussianI8
SiberianB(6)
SiberianO2
SiberianL(12)
SiberianO1
SiberianO3
SiberianO6
SiberianO5
SiberianY(2)
SiberianO4
SiberianO(5)
SiberianO10
SiberianY(2))
RussianNC1
RussianI6
RussianNC5
RussianNC6
RussianI9
SiberianO8
Astellatus
Hhuso
•No fixed morphological differences; valid
species?
•Persian sturgeon are considered separate
from Russian sturgeon in management and at
CITES.
•Need better understanding of species
structure and biology.
•Better markers for
species and
populations.
•Polyploidy makes this
challenging.
•Next generation
sequencing for SNPS
and microsats
10 years
later
•91 tins
•Single
digits.
•Fewer
species.
•Pike!
in preparation
1998
Pre CITES
2008
Post CITES
12
Trade is regulated but
populations still declining
H.huso
A.gueldenstadtii
8
A.stellatus
6
4
2
Year
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
0
1990
Kg . Day -1 . 100 gillnet -1
10
Ural River, Kazakhstan
•Last significant Caspian Sea river without
a dam.
•Last place to study natural migration.
•Active, large fishery.
Three year program (2005-08)
Sturgeon biology and status (beluga focus)
Fisheries management
Species structure (Persian, Siberian, hybrids)
Survival of hatchery released fish?
Outreach
component
Catch, use in
hatcheries, tag and
release
Acoustic tags
Pop-up Archival Transmitting (Mk10-PAT) tags
Field catch-and release
Tagging hatchery reared fish
Partnerships formed
•Fishing is intense.
•Catch and release impossible.
•Satellite tagging project difficult.
•Extensive government corruption.
“… when law-enforcement officials realised that
the study could prove what everyone in Atyrau
already knew – that the poaching pressure was
now so intense that no fish ever reached Uralsk,
…they refused to allow Doukakis to tag any fish.
So she reoriented what she cheerfully calls her
“no-data project” and now is trying to…
Get visas for Kazakhstani scientists to come
to the USA: stock assessment workshop
Stock assessment project
• Evaluate the population status of Ural
River beluga and determine levels of
fishing pressure.
– No understanding of current levels of
fishing compared to sustainable levels.
Stock assessment project
• Identify the life history stages best
targeted for conservation:
– Control harvest of adults and subadults
or increase hatchery production?
– Current management focus is on
hatchery production; fishing nations
are issued higher quotas with increased
hatchery output.
Results
• Precautionary target fishing mortality
rates are similar to those for other longlived species such as sharks and marine
mammals but are smaller than those for
the productive teleost species that
sustain large fisheries.
25
Mean age of the
population
declines with
increasing F.
Mean age (years)
20
15
10
5
0
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Fishing mortality
40
Spawning weight, kg
35
F=0
30
25
F=0.05
20
15
F=0.1
10
F=0.15
5
F=0.2
0
1
11
21
31
41
51
Age, years
61
71
81
91
Proportion of
older and larger
fish in the
spawning stock
declines with
increasing F.
Compare with observed
Fmax average age of
the spawning
stock: 24 years
Observed: 21.8
(1996); 17.4 (2006)
18
16
14
percent
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
10
12
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
28
30
32
34
36
38
age
1996
2006
Removal rate over 70%; 4-5 times › Fmax.
Results
• Yield per recruit is maximized at age of entry at
31 years: raise minimum size limits or reduce
illegal take of subadults.
40
tmin=30
35
Yield per recruit, kg
tmin=25
30
tmin=20
25
tmin =11
20
15
10
5
0
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
Fishing mortality
0.4
0.5
Results
• Elasticity analysis:
– Improving the survival of subadult and
adult females would increase
population productivity by 10 times
that achieved by improving fecundity
and egg to age 1 survival (i.e.,
hatchery supplementation).
Assessment: in Summary
(in review Conservation Biology)
• Strong evidence of overfishing.
• Need to focus on recovery.
• Best option is to reduce adult and
subadult mortality (limit fishing).
• Ask CITES to stop issuing trade quotas!
• Stop building hatcheries and eliminate
incentive of hatchery production!
Policy Implications & Actions
• CITES recognition of uncertainty regarding
species status; leveraging World Bank funds
for additional genetics research.
• Shift burden of proof so that proper
assessments are in place before permitting
trade in Caspian Sea sturgeons.
• FAO assistance on assessment and TAC
method.
• Appendix I transfer.
Real Change?
•Government commitment.
•National market control.
Acknowledgements
• People: Ellen Pikitch (SUNY SB); Elizabeth Babcock (U
Miami); Alexei Sharov (Maryland Dept of Natural
Resources); Vadim Birstein (Sturgeon Conservation
International); Rob DeSalle, George Amato (American
Museum of Natural History); Dan Erickson (ODFW);
colleagues in the Caspian Sea.
• Funding: American Museum of Natural History, Hudson
River Foundation, National Geographic Society
Conservation Trust Grant, Packard Foundation, Pew
Charitable Trusts, US EPA Science to Achieve Results
(STAR) Fellowship, Yale University, donations to PIOS
and IOCS