No abstract

A new geological epoch, the "Anthropocene", has been defined as the period in which humans have had substantial geological and ecological influence on the planet. A positive future for this epoch can be referred to as the "good Anthropocene" and would involve effective management strategies and changes in human behavior that promote the sustainability and restoration of ecosystems. Recreational fisheries hold significant social, cultural, and economic value and can generate many benefits when managed sustainably and thus be an integral part of a "good Anthropocene". Here, we list ten commandments to facilitate persistence and long-term sustainability of recreational fisheries in the "good Anthropocene". This list includes fostering aquatic stewardship, promoting education, using appropriate capture gear, adopting evidence-based management approaches, promoting the concept of resilience, obtaining and using effort data in management, embracing the ecosystem approach, engaging in multilevel collaboration, enhancing accessibility, and embracing optimism. When used singly, or simultaneously, these ten commandments will contribute to the harmonization of sustainable fish populations and angling practices, to create recreational fisheries' "bright spots".

Steelhead Oncorhynchus mykiss are captured and released during spawning migrations by the commercial, subsistence (Indigenous), and recreational fishing sectors, though the consequences of these fisheries interactions on steelhead migration are poorly understood. This study evaluated injury, reflex impairment, behavior, and survival of released wild adult steelhead following capture in the subsistence dip-net, subsistence beach-seine, and recreational angling fisheries of the Bulkley River, British Columbia. Wild steelhead were captured using common handling practices employed in each fishery and were monitored postrelease using radiotelemetry. A greater proportion of steelhead captured by dip net and seine had impaired righting reflexes compared with angled fish, but only fish captured by dip net had notably higher incidence of injury (i.e., net marks, torn fins, flesh wounds, scale loss). Fish captured by dip and seine net had considerably faster peak migration rates (>4,000 m/d) than angled fish (<1,000 m/d), which likely reflects when the steelhead are encountered during their migration in these fisheries (earlier versus later stages). Air exposure (15-74 s) and water temperature (9.2-15.1°C) at the time of capture had significant negative relationships with 24-h fallback behavior (temperature only), intermediate-term (10-20 d after capture) migration rates, and peak migration rates in dip-net-captured steelhead. There were no significant effects of capture duration or fish length on injury, righting reflexes, or migratory behavior. Immediate mortality upon release was rare and occurred in only one fish captured by dip net. The 3-d survival was 88-97% for dip-net-caught steelhead, 96-100% for seine-caught steelhead, and 68-100% for angled steelhead. Despite inherent differences in timing and location between these fisheries, findings suggest that air exposure and water temperature can decrease steelhead migration rates. Fishers should look for opportunities to avoid or minimize these capture and handling conditions when releasing steelhead.

Multidisciplinary approaches to conservation and wildlife management are often effective in addressing complex, multi-factor problems. Emerging fields such as conservation physiology and conservation behaviour can provide innovative solutions and management strategies for target species and systems. Sensory ecology combines the study of ‘how animals acquire’ and process sensory stimuli from their environments, and the ecological and evolutionary significance of ‘how animals respond’ to this information. We review the benefits that sensory ecology can bring to wildlife conservation and management by discussing case studies across major taxa and sensory modalities. Conservation practices informed by a sensory ecology approach include the amelioration of sensory traps, control of invasive species, reduction of human–wildlife conflicts and relocation and establishment of new populations of endangered species. We illustrate that sensory ecology can facilitate the understanding of mechanistic ecological and physiological explanations underlying particular conservation issues and also can help develop innovative solutions to ameliorate conservation problems.

Physiologically, oxidative stress is considered a homeostatic imbalance between reactive oxygen species production and absorption. From an ecological perspective, oxidative stress may serve as an important constraint to life-history traits, such as lifespan, reproduction and the immune system, and is gaining interest as a potential mechanism underlying life-history trade-offs. Of late, there has been much interest in understanding the role of oxidative stress in the ecology of wild animals, particularly during challenging periods such as reproduction. Here, we used a long-term study population of a fish with sole-male parental care, the smallmouth bass, Micropterus dolomieu, to examine the associations among oxidative stress indicators and life-history variables in nest-guarding males. In addition, we investigated the potential role of oxidative stress as a physiological mediator of the life-history trade-off decision of paternal smallmouth bass to stay with or abandon their brood. We found that oxidative stress was significantly related to the life history of paternal smallmouth bass, such that older, larger fish with greater reproductive experience and larger broods nesting in cooler water temperatures had lower levels of oxidative stress. However, we found no significant correlation between oxidative stress and nesting success, suggesting that oxidative stress may not be involved in the decision of male smallmouth bass to abandon their brood. Wild fish have been relatively understudied in the emerging field of oxidative ecology, and this study makes noteworthy contributions by revealing interesting connections between the life histories of paternal smallmouth bass and their oxidative status.