The Oceanbio Lab of the Division of Biological Sciences, CAS, won the best poster award in the international symposium on “Small Pelagic Fish: New Frontiers in Science for Sustainable Management” on November 7-11, 2022, in Lisbon, Portugal. The poster titled “Monitoring catch and effort and linking fleet movement of the sardine fishery in Fisheries Management Area 7, Philippines” was presented by Kim P. Nunez (MS Biology student) and is coauthored by Dr. Wilfredo L. Campos, Ms. Alexanra Bagarinao-Regalado, Dr. Antonio Mendoza, Dr. Plutomeo Nieves, and Dr. Jesus T. Racuyal.
Ms. Bagarinao-Regalado, a faculty member of the Division of Biological Sciences, also gave an oral presentation of their research titled “Spatial dynamics of Sardinella lemuru in central Philippine waters inferred from georeferenced sardine catches,” coauthored by Dr. Wilfredo Campos and Kim P. Nuñez.
There were six workshops and seven session themes:
1. Trophodynamic process
2. Life cycle closures
3. Understanding population- and ecosystem-level shifts
4. Responses to climate variability and change at decadal to centennial time scales
5. Progress in pelagic surveys
6. Reconciling ecological roles and harvest goals
7. Advancing social-ecological analyses and sustainable policies for human communities dependent on SPF
They highlighted the need for understanding the drivers and dynamics of small pelagic fish in ecosystems across a range of spatial and temporal scales. The exchange of information and ideas drawn from comparing populations across the globe provides insights to improve management strategies.
The conference was organized by the North Pacific Marine Science Organization, also called PICES, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA).
Ms. Bagarinao-Regalado and Nuñez’s participation in the SPF symposium were each supported by a grant from FAO. Additional financial support was provided by the University of the Philippines Office of International Linkages to Ms. Nunez and by UP-OVPAA to Ms. Bagarinao-Regalado. (Oceanbio Lab, DBS, CAS)