Changes in Patterns of Seasonality Shown by Migratory Fish under Global Warming: Evidence from Catch Data of Taiwan’s Coastal Fisheries

Ching-Hsien Ho, Hsueh-Jung Lu, Jia-Sin He, Kuo-Wei Lan and Jyun-Long Chen
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Ching-Hsien Ho: Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 20224, Taiwan
Hsueh-Jung Lu: Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 20224, Taiwan
Jia-Sin He: Coastal and Offshore Resources Research Center, Fisheries Research Institute, Council of Agriculture, No. 6, Yugang N. 3rd Rd., Cianjhen District, Kaohsiung 80672, Taiwan
Kuo-Wei Lan: Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 20224, Taiwan
Jyun-Long Chen: Marine Fisheries Division, Fisheries Research Institute, Council of Agriculture, No.199, He 1st Rd, Keelung 20246, Taiwan

Sustainability, 2016, vol. 8, issue 3, 1-13

Abstract: In this study, we analyzed the fish species composition data of coastal capture fisheries in Taiwan between 1963 and 2010. The purpose of the analysis was to understand the long-term changes in marine ecosystems. A ratio-to-moving average method was used in conjunction with adjusted seasonal indices to determine the seasonality of individual catch items and to examine the trends shown by the species with the same seasonality. Over the 48-year timespan of the data, 31 species, i.e. , 64% of the total number of species, were identified as seasonal migrants. The catch ratio for species showing a single peak in the spring increased steadily over time; however, those species with a single peak in the winter decreased. The catch ratio for those species with dual peaks in both summer and fall varied greatly before 1978. Increasing trends began in the 1980s and accelerated until 1998. As a result of this increase, the previous concentration of the fishing season in the winter months became highly diffuse. Additionally, the winter and/or spring species continued to decrease year after year as the summer and/or autumn species gradually came to dominate the catch. This change in fishing seasonality is likely not an anthropogenic effect. However, the change coincides with trends in sea surface temperature fluctuations. Such variation may not only cause structural change in marine ecosystems but can also significantly impact the economy and the livelihoods of those associated with the fishing trade.

Keywords: China Coastal Current (CCC); Kuroshio Current (KC); seasonality; sea surface temperature (sst); species composition; time series analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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