Modelling the oceanic habitats of two pelagic species using recreational fisheries data

Abstract

AbstractDefining the oceanic habitats of migratory marine species is important for both single species and ecosystem‐based fisheries management, particularly when the distribution of these habitats vary temporally. This can be achieved using species distribution models that include physical environmental predictors. In the present study, species distribution models that describe the seasonal habitats of two pelagic fish (dolphinfish, Coryphaena hippurus and yellowtail kingfish, Seriola lalandi), are developed using 19 yr of presence‐only data from a recreational angler‐based catch‐and‐release fishing programme. A Poisson point process model within a generalized additive modelling framework was used to determine the species distributions off the east coast of Australia as a function of several oceanographic covariates. This modelling framework uses presence‐only data to determine the intensity of fish (fish km−2), rather than a probability of fish presence. Sea surface temperature (SST), sea level anomaly, SST frontal index and eddy kinetic energy were significant environmental predictors for both dolphinfish and kingfish distributions. Models for both species indicate a greater fish intensity off the east Australian coast during summer and autumn in response to the regional oceanography, namely shelf incursions by the East Australian Current. This study provides a framework for using presence‐only recreational fisheries data to create species distribution models that can contribute to the future dynamic spatial management of pelagic fisheries.