Essential Fish Habitat Mapping in the Mediterranean [electronic resource] / edited by Vasilis D. Valavanis.

Preface: European Commissions scientific Support to Policies Action EnviEFH: Environmental Approach to Essential Fish Habitat Designation -- Modelling of essential fish habitat based on remote sensing, spatial analysis and GIS -- A comparison of approaches for modelling the occurrence of marine animals -- Atmospheric forcing on chlorophyll concentration in the Mediterranean -- A review of cephalopodenvironment interactions in European Seas -- Influences of environmental variability on the population structure and distribution patterns of the short-fin squid Illex coindetii (Cephalopoda: Ommastrephidae) in the Eastern Ionian Sea -- Combining GIS and GAMs to identify potential habitats of squid Loligo vulgaris in the Northwestern Mediterranean -- Identification of deep-water pink shrimp abundance distribution patterns and nursery grounds in the eastern Mediterranean by means of generalized additive modelling -- Salinity and temperature as factors controlling the spawning and catch of Parapenaeus longirostris along the Moroccan Atlantic Ocean -- Identification of hake distribution pattern and nursery grounds in the Hellenic seas by means of generalized additive models -- Spatial patterns and GIS habitat modelling of fish in two French Mediterranean coastal areas -- Mapping abundance distribution of small pelagic species applying hydroacoustics and Co-Kriging techniques -- Identifying essential fish habitat for small pelagic species in Spanish Mediterranean waters -- European anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) landings and environmental conditions on the Catalan Coast (NW Mediterranean) during 20002005 -- Modeling and predicting potential spawning habitat of anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) and round sardinella (Sardinella aurita) based on satellite environmental information -- Habitat discrimination of juvenile sardines in the Aegean Sea using remotely sensed environmental data -- Modelling the presence of anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus in the Aegean Sea during early summer, based on satellite environmental data -- Distribution of swordfish in the eastern Mediterranean, in relation to environmental factors and the species biology -- Results of a short study of interactions of cetaceans and longline fisheries in Atlantic waters: environmental correlates of catches and depredation events -- Satellite observations of main oceanographic processes to identify ecological associations in the Northern Arabian Sea for fishery resources exploration -- Modelling potential habitat of the invasive ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi in Aegean Sea -- A GIS-based tool for storage, selection and visualization of time series 4D marine datasets.

Proper designation of Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) is a highly important spatial measure in any management of fishery resources. EFH is defined as those waters and substrates necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity, a definition that includes the physical, chemical and biological properties of marine areas and the associated sediment and biological assemblages that sustain fish populations throughout their full life cycle. This book presents latest advances in EFH mapping and modelling and introduces the environmental approach to EFH identification through the combined use of latest technologies and advanced techniques, such as Remote Sensing, Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Statistics. The contents of this book include overviews and comparisons of different approaches on species habitat modelling, methods to identify teleconnection patterns between large-scale meteo-oceanic phenomena and local environmental variation, and EFH maps for cephalopod, shrimp, hake, anchovy, sardine, and swordfish resources in the Mediterranean. The aims of this book are to provide accumulated knowledge on marine species essential habitat mapping and to be a source for further developments in the important topic of marine resource management.

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