Community - University Research for Recovery Alliance
 
 




New Initiatives

Lobster Reproductive Value and Sustainability

The American lobster (Homarus americanus) fishery is an important source of income for many fishers in rural Newfoundland. The industry has undertaken a number of management initiatives aimed at maintaining a sustainable fishery, notably v-notching, locally-supported closed areas, and the adoption of a maximum size limit in four Lobster Fishing Areas. We used an established concept in population biology called "reproductive value" to evaluate the effectiveness of these measures. Reproductive value considers current and expected future mortality and fecundity of lobsters in different life stages to quantify the value of the individual to the population. The goals of this research were:

  1. Calculate the reproductive value of lobsters in Newfoundland at each age and size throughout a lobster's life;
  2. Identify if differences exist in lobster size, growth, and mortality in locations throughout Newfoundland down to the southern end of the lobster's range (Virgina, USA);
  3. Identify the largest and smallest sizes of lobster that can be harvested to maximize reproductive value relative to landed value;
  4. Estimate the spatial scale at which small closed areas increase reproductive value of lobster populations; and
  5. Promote stewardship on the science basis of reproductive value relative to economic value.

At present, rising fuel and equipment costs, low prices, and retirements are threatening to undermine the collective ability and willingness of harvesters to continue to make investments in stewardship, thereby increasing the need for evidence of economic and biological effectiveness of conservation initiatives.

Funding provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Researchers and Partners

Lead Researcher:
David Schneider

Other researcher:
Kate Wilke

Research associate:
Cailin Xu

Students:
Jens Currie, M.Sc. Candidate, Biology
Jamie Raper, M.Sc. Candidate, Biology
Cathy Whiffen, B.Sc. Honours, Biology

Community Partners:
Harvey Jarvis, Jason Spingle, and Monty Way
Fish Food & Allied Workers Union (FFAW)

Material

Distribution and Abundance of American Lobster in Coastal Newfoundland, Passive and Active Processes

Victoria Burdett-Coutts (2010). M.Sc. thesis, Biology Department, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

The effects of v-notching on reproductive potential in American lobsters (Homarus americanus) in Newfoundland

An article by Kathryn Goetting, adapted from a thesis by Cathy Whiffen in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Bachelor of Science (Honours) at Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Lobsters in Western Newfoundland: Reproductive Relative to Economic Value - Community Consultation and Follow-up

April 6-8, 2011

A presentation by David Schneider, Professor of Ocean Science at Memorial University.

Lobsters in Western Newfoundland: Reproductive Relative to Economic Value

November 5, 2010

A presentation by David Schneider, Professor of Ocean Science at Memorial University.

Lobster Sustainability Measures in Newfoundland: Are They Effective?

A poster by Jennica Seiden, David Schneider, and Kate M. Wilke.

Lobster Sustainability Measures in Newfoundland: Are They Effective?

A summary report compiled by Jennica Seiden, Kate M. Wilke, and David Schneider.

Latitudinal variation in growth rates of American lobster (Homarus americanus) at the scale of the commercial range

July 2011

An article by Kate M. Wilke, adapted from a thesis by Jamie Lee Dawn Raper in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Closed-areas as a conservation tool: the effect on size of American lobster (Homarus americanus) in Newfoundland

Benthic Ecology Meeting, March 2010

A poster presentation by Kate M. Wilke and Jennifer Janes.

An investigation into different sampling techniques and geographic variation in size-fecundity parameters of the American lobster, H. americanus

October 2010

An article by Kate M. Wilke, adapted from a thesis by Jens Jacob Currie in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Science at Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Published Articles

Currie, J.J., Schneider, D.C., Wilke, K.M. (2010) Validation of a noninvasive technique for estimating fecundity in the American lobster Homarus americanus. Journal Of Shellfish Research 29: 1021-1024. (link to abstract)

Currie, J.J., Schneider, D.C. (2011) Spatial scaling from latitudinal gradients: Size-specific fecundity in the American lobster Homarus americanus. Marine Ecology Progress Series 439: 193-201. (link to abstract)

Xu, C., Schneider, D.C. (2012) Efficacy of conservation measures for the American lobster: Reproductive values a criterion. ICES Journal of Marine Science. (link to abstract)

Photos

Project Funders

Major CURRA Funders