Remote seamounts are key conservation priorities for pelagic wildlife

Abstract

The pelagic ocean is Earth's largest habitat, constituting 99% of the global biosphere by volume, directly or indirectly supporting most marine life, and supplying the majority of fish consumed by humans (Game et al., 2009;Pauly et al., 2002). However, the world's pelagic fauna is globally declining largely as a result of unsustainable fishing (Pauly & Zeller, 2016). Industrial fishing has reduced the populations of tunas and their relatives by 60% and of oceanic sharks and rays by 71% over the past half century (Juan-Jordá et al., 2011;Pacoureau et al., 2021). Declines in pelagic wildlife weaken ecosystem functioning, drive biodiversity loss, and undermine food security and economic stability for many of the world's people.Remote regions of the ocean that remain less impacted by humans are refuges for mobile and heavily targeted species. These regions harbor wildlife assemblages with higher diversity, greater abundance, larger size, and increased biomass, and can yield valuable insights into ecological processes (Campbell et al., 2020;Juhel et al., 2019;Thompson & Meeuwig, 2022). Remote regions offer a glimpse of what the ocean was like prior to largescale anthropogenic impact, a source from which the rest of the ocean can be regenerated, and a benchmark for marine protected areas (MPAs) and fisheries management.