Congratulations to Carey McGilliard, a former Punt lab postdoctoral researcher, and her most recent accomplishment of Canadian Journal of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences Editor’s Choice Award for February.

Accounting for marine reserves using spatial stock assessments

Carey R. McGilliard, André E. Punt, Richard D. Methot Jr., Ray Hilborn

When marine reserves are implemented, increases in fish abundance and percentage of older fish are expected in the reserve. Assessments of the status of marine fish stocks typically represent the stock throughout its range and do not account for the spatial pattern caused by marine reserves, which may lead to incorrect estimates of overall population status. Simulation modeling is used to analyze the ability of assessments to estimate population status after the implementation of a marine reserve. Assessment methods that explicitly accounted for a marine reserve and fish movement patterns yielded the most accurate and precise estimates of population status.