Marine Historical Ecology in Conservation: Applying the Past to Manage for the Future

THE STEPHEN BECHTEL FUND

IMPRINT IN ECOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

The Stephen Bechtel Fund has established this imprint to promote understanding and conservation of our natural environment.

The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous contribution to this book provided by the Stephen Bechtel Fund.

Marine Historical Ecology in Conservation

Marine Historical Ecology in Conservation

Applying the Past to Manage for the Future

Edited by JOHN N. KITTINGER, LOREN MCCLENACHAN, KERYN B. GEDAN, and LOUISE K. BLIGHT

Foreword by Daniel Pauly

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS

University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university presses in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advancing scholarship in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Its activities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philanthropic contributions from individuals and institutions. For more information, visit www.ucpress.edu.

University of California Press

© 2015 by The Regents of the University of California

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

    Marine historical ecology in conservation : applying the past to manage for the future / edited by John N. (Jack) Kittinger, Loren McClenachan, Keryn B. Gedan, Louise K. Blight.

        p.    cm.

    Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-520-27694-9 (cloth : alk. paper)

ISBN 978-0-520-95960-6 (e-book)

    1. Marine ecology.    2. Human ecology.    I. Kittinger, John Nils, editor, contributor.    II. McClenachan, Loren, 1977—editor, contributor.    III. Gedan, Keryn B., 1980—editor, contributor.    IV. Blight, Louise K., 1962—editor, contributor.

    QH541.5.S3M2828 20152014011259

    577.7—dc23

Manufactured in the United States of America

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10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48–1992 (R 2002) (Permanence of Paper).

Cover image: Once depleted, populations of the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) are showing signs of recovery due to effective conservation measures. Photograph by John Weller, www.johnbweller.com.

I dedicate this book to the three generations of incredible women in my family, whom I love and cherish without qualification. To my late maternal grandmother, Glenda Sue Cooper Pehrson, whose perseverance, independence, and fierce intelligence have always inspired me to achieve; to my mother, Sandra Pehrson Kittinger, whose warmth, love, and gentle guidance have been a constant source of renewal; and to my wife, Daniela Spoto Kittinger, for her compassion, friendship, and enduring love.

JACK KITTINGER

Jeremy Jackson first hooked me on the detective work of historical ecology and continues to inspire. Sonora Neal was born days after the 2011 meeting that motivated this book; her love for the ocean is already clear. I hope the world she grows up into includes an ocean full of big fish and people who value them.

LOREN MCCLENACHAN

I dedicate this book to Mark Bertness, my graduate advisor and friend, who, with fish totes, mud boots, and a shovel, inaugurated me into salt marsh ecology and the rich history—scientific, stratigraphical, and human—that accumulates there. Mark’s love of the coast, anthropology, and history first inspired me to explore the legacies of generations and civilizations in coastal ecosystems.

KERYN GEDAN

For my friend, mentor, and colleague David Ainley, whose Antarctic work and ever perceptive observations started me on the journey of thinking about intact marine ecosystems and the nature of long-term change.

LOUISE BLIGHT

CONTENTS

Chapter Contributors

Viewpoint Contributors

Foreword

Daniel Pauly

Acknowledgments

1 Managing Human Legacies in a Changing Sea: An Introduction

John N. Kittinger, Louise K. Blight, Keryn B. Gedan, and Loren McClenachan

PART I. Recovering Endangered Species

Lead Section Editor: Louise K. Blight

2 What Recovery of Exploited Marine Animals Tells Us about Management and Conservation

Heike K. Lotze

3 Natural or Anthropogenic? Novel Community Reassembly after Historical Overharvest of Pacific Coast Pinnipeds

Jon M. Erlandson, Todd J. Braje, Robert L. DeLong, and Torben C. Rick

4 Using Disparate Datasets to Reconstruct Historical Baselines of Animal Populations

Francesco Ferretti, Larry B. Crowder, and Fiorenza Micheli

PART II. Conserving Fisheries

Lead Section Editor: John N. Kittinger

5 Improving Fisheries Assessments Using Historical Data: Stock Status and Catch Limits

Alan M. Friedlander, Joshua Nowlis, and Haruko Koike

6 Understanding Fisheries through Historical Reconstructions: Implications for Fishery Management and Policy

Dalal Al-Abdulrazzak, Dirk Zeller, and Daniel Pauly

7 Back to the Future: Integrating Customary Practices and Institutions into Comanagement of Small-scale Fisheries

John N. Kittinger, Joshua E. Cinner, Shankar Aswani, and Alan T. White

PART III. Restoring Ecosystems

Lead Section Editor: Keryn B. Gedan

8 Historical Information for Ecological Restoration in Estuaries and Coastal Ecosystems

Keryn B. Gedan, Denise L. Breitburg, Robin M. Grossinger, and Torben C. Rick

9 Estimates of Historical Ecosystem Service Provision Can Guide Restoration Efforts

Philine S. E. zu Ermgassen, Mark D. Spalding, and Robert D. Brumbaugh

10 Incorporating Historical Perspectives into Systematic Marine Conservation Planning

Natalie C. Ban, John N. Kittinger, John M. Pandolfi, Robert L. Pressey, Ruth H. Thurstan, Matt J. Lybolt, and Simon Hart

PART IV. Engaging the Public

Lead Section Editor: Loren McClenachan

11 Engaging Public Interest in the Ocean of the Past: The Promise of New Media

Catherine Marzin, Sian Evans, and Karen Alexander

12 Choice without Memory: Uncovering the Narrative Potential of Historical Ecology

J. B. MacKinnon

Index

CHAPTER CONTRIBUTORS

DALAL AL-ABDULRAZZAK

Fisheries Centre

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada

KAREN ALEXANDER

Department of Environmental Conservation

University of Massachusetts

Amherst, MA 01003, USA

SHANKAR ASWANI

Department of Anthropology

Rhodes University

Grahamstown 6140, South Africa

NATALIE C. BAN

School of Environmental Studies

University of Victoria

Victoria BC V8W 2Y2, Canada

LOUISE K. BLIGHT

WWF-Canada

409 Granville Street

Vancouver, BC V6C 1T2, Canada

and

Procellaria Research & Consulting

944 Dunsmuir Road

Victoria, BC V9A 5C3, Canada

TODD J. BRAJE

Department of Anthropology

San Diego State University

San Diego, CA 92182-6040, USA

DENISE L. BREITBURG

Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Edgewater, MD 21037, USA

ROBERT D. BRUMBAUGH

Global Marine Team

The Nature Conservancy

127 Industrial Road, Suite D

Big Pine Key, FL 33043, USA

JOSHUA E. CINNER

Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies

James Cook University

Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia

LARRY B. CROWDER

Center for Ocean Solutions

Stanford University

99 Pacific Street, Suite 555E

Monterey, CA 93940, USA

LARRY B. CROWDER (CONTINUED)

Hopkins Marine Station

Stanford University

120 Oceanview Blvd.

Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA

ROBERT L. DELONG

Marine Mammal Laboratory

Alaska Fisheries Science Center

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Seattle, WA 98115, USA

JON M. ERLANDSON

Museum of Natural and Cultural History

University of Oregon

Eugene, OR 97403-1224, USA

SIAN EVANS

Ffilmcompany, Inc.

30 Mayo Street

Belfast, ME 04915-6052, USA

FRANCESCO FERRETTI

Hopkins Marine Station

Stanford University

120 Oceanview Blvd.

Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA

ALAN M. FRIEDLANDER

Pristine Seas

National Geographic Society

Washington, DC 20036, USA

and

Fisheries Ecology Research Lab

Department of Biology

University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa

Honolulu, HI 96822, USA

KERYN B. GEDAN

Sustainable Development and Conservation Biology Program

Department of Biology

University of Maryland

College Park, MD 20742, USA

and

Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Edgewater, MD 21037, USA

ROBIN M. GROSSINGER

Historical Ecology Program

San Francisco Estuary Institute

Richmond, CA 94804, USA

SIMON HART

Institute for Integrative Biology

ETH Zurich

Zurich, Switzerland

JOHN N. KITTINGER

Conservation International

Gordon and Betty Moore Center for Science and Oceans

Honolulu, HI 96825, USA

and

Center for Ocean Solutions

Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

Stanford University

99 Pacific Street, Suite 555E

Monterey, CA 93940, USA

HARUKO KOIKE

Fisheries Ecology Research Lab

Department of Biology

University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa

Honolulu, HI 96822, USA

HEIKE K. LOTZE

Department of Biology

Dalhousie University

Halifax, NS B3H 4R2, Canada

MATT J. LYBOLT

Tetra Tech, Inc.

759 S. Federal Hwy, Suite 314

Stuart, FL 34994, USA

J. B. MACKINNON

Independent author and science journalist

Vancouver, BC, Canada

CATHERINE MARZIN

Office of the National Marine Sanctuaries

1305 East-West Highway, 11th Floor

Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA

LOREN MCCLENACHAN

Environmental Studies Program

Colby College

Waterville, ME 04901, USA

FIORENZA MICHELI

Hopkins Marine Station

Stanford University

120 Oceanview Blvd.

Pacific Grove, CA 93950, USA

JOSH NOWLIS

Bridge Environment

9721 20th Avenue NE

Seattle, WA 98115, USA

JOHN M. PANDOLFI

Centre for Marine Science

Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies

School of Biological Sciences

University of Queensland

Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia

DANIEL PAULY

Fisheries Centre

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada

ROBERT L. PRESSEY

Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies

James Cook University

Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia

TORBEN C. RICK

Program in Human Ecology and Archaeobiology

Department of Anthropology

National Museum of Natural History

Smithsonian Institution

Washington, DC 20013-7012, USA

MARK D. SPALDING

Global Marine Team

The Nature Conservancy

Department of Zoology

University of Cambridge

Downing Street

Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, UK

RUTH H. THURSTAN

The Centre for Marine Science

Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies

School of Biological Sciences

University of Queensland

Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia

ALAN T. WHITE

Asia Pacific Program

The Nature Conservancy

923 Nuʻuanu Avenue

Honolulu, HI 96817, USA

DIRK ZELLER

Fisheries Centre

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada

PHILINE S. E. ZU ERMGASSEN

Department of Zoology

University of Cambridge

Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom

VIEWPOINT CONTRIBUTORS

KATIE ARKEMA

Senior Scientist

The Natural Capital Project

Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

Stanford University

Seattle, WA, USA

DANIEL J. BASTA

Director of the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries

National Ocean Service

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Washington, DC, USA

JOHANN BELL

Honorary Professorial Fellow

Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security

University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia

LOUISE K. BLIGHT

Senior Scientist

Procellaria Research & Consulting

Victoria, BC, Canada

BILLY CAUSEY

Superintendent

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Key West, FL, USA

WILLIAM CHEUNG

Associate Professor

Fisheries Centre

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC, Canada

CHARLES (BUD) EHLER

President

Ocean Visions Consulting, Paris, France

STEVEN D. EMSLIE

Professor

Department of Biology and Marine Biology

University of North Carolina, Wilmington

Wilmington, NC, USA

JAMES A. ESTES

Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

University of California, Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz, CA, USA

FRANCESCO FERRETTI

Postdoctoral Scholar

Hopkins Marine Station

Stanford University

Pacific Grove, CA, USA

ROD FUJITA

Director of Research and Development

Environmental Defense Fund

San Francisco, CA, USA

PAOLO GUIDETTI

Professor of Ecology

University of Nice

Nice, France

BEN HALPERN

Professor

Bren School of the Environment

University of California, Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, CA, USA

and

Chair in Marine Conservation

Imperial College London

JOHN HENDERSCHEDT

Executive Director

Fisheries Leadership and Sustainability Forum

and

Vice Chair

North Pacific Fishery Management Council

Seattle, WA, USA

JOHN ODIN JENSEN

Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee member

and

Associate Professor of Maritime Studies and Ocean Policy

Sea Education Association

Research Associate Professor of History and Coastal Maritime Heritage

University of Rhode Island

Kingston, RI, US

JILL JOHNSON

Exhibit Developer, Sant Ocean Hall

National Museum of Natural History

Smithsonian Institution

Washington, DC, USA

RANDALL KOSAKI

Deputy Superintendent

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument

Honolulu, HI, USA

LOREN MCCLENACHAN

Assistant Professor

Environmental Studies Program

Colby College

Waterville, ME, USA

MATTHEW MCKENZIE

Associate Professor

Department of History

University of Connecticut

Storrs, CT, USA

FIORENZA MICHELI

Professor

Hopkins Marine Station

Stanford University

Pacific Grove, CA, USA

STEPHEN PALUMBI

Harold A. Miller Professor in Marine Sciences

Stanford University

Pacific Grove, CA, USA

TONY PALUMBI

Writer

San Mateo, California

DANIEL PAULY

Professor

Fisheries Centre

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC, Canada

TONY J. PITCHER

Professor, and Director

Policy and Ecosystem Restoration in Fisheries Research Unit

Fisheries Centre

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC, Canada

STEVE ROADY

Managing Attorney for Oceans

Earthjustice, Washington, DC

and

Adjunct Faculty Member

Nicholas School of the Environment

Duke University

RAFE SAGARIN

Program Manager

Institute of the Environment and Biosphere 2

University of Arizona

Tucson, AZ, USA

PETER F. SALE

Assistant Director

United Nations University

Institute for Water, Environment and Health

and

University Professor Emeritus

University of Windsor

Windsor, ON, Canada

JIM TOOMEY

Syndicated Cartoonist

Creator of Sherman’s Lagoon

Annapolis, MD, USA

ANDREA TREECE

Staff Attorney

Earthjustice, San Francisco, California

JOELI VEITAYAKI

Associate Professor and Head

School of Marine Studies

University of the South Pacific

Suva, Fiji

GEERAT J. VERMEIJ

Distinguished Professor

Department of Geology

University of California, Davis

Davis, CA, USA

DEAN WENDT

Dean of Research

California Polytechnic State University

San Luis Obispo, CA, USA

‘AULANI WILHELM

Superintendent

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument

Honolulu, HI, USA

FOREWORD

Marine Historical Ecology in Conservation, the title of this book, may be hard on potential readers, in that each of its two nouns and two adjectives can be seen as potential challenges:

• Ecology, because some find it difficult to distinguish the scientific discipline of ecology from the passion of environmentalism;

• Historical, because until recently, many academic ecologists suffering from physics envy were attempting to ban history and contingency from ecology;

• Marine, because we are air-breathing, terrestrial animals with a strong bias against the watery world that covers most of the surface of our ill-named planet; and finally,

• Conservation, because the word implies, for still too many, a departure from what scientists are supposed to do (describe our world, as opposed to changing it, or in this case, developing the tools to prevent it from being dismantled).

Why do we need marine historical ecology and conservation? The fact is that since Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, we have become quite good at inferring what existed—in terms of animals and plants—if only because we have (a) fossils and (b) a powerful theory which allows, nay demands, that we interpolate between the forms we know existed, because we have fossils, and the forms for which we have no direct evidence but which we can link to present forms, including us humans.

Thus, in a sense, we know most of what was there since the Cambrian, and this knowledge becomes more precise and accurate the closer we come to the present. However, we don’t know how much of what was there actually was there, and this may be seen as the defining feature of historical ecology and its potential use in marine conservation.

One way to view this is that while evolution’s central casting provides us with a reliable stable of actors (e.g., a wide range of dinosaurs in the Triassic or a flurry of mammals in the Pleistocene), it is for historical ecology to give them roles to play. (Note that these examples imply that historical ecology should mean the ecology of past systems and not only past ecology as recoverable through written documents, as one could assume when relying on a narrow interpretation of the word history.)

Thus, an ecosystem with, say, sea turtles in it will function in a radically different way if these turtles are very abundant (as they appear to have been, e.g., in the pre-Columbian Caribbean) than it will where sea turtles are marginal, as is now the case in the Caribbean.

The Earth’s ecosystems have all been modified by human activities, and this applies also to essentially all marine ecosystems, which whaling and hunting of other marine mammals, and later fishing, have reduced to shadows of their former selves in terms of the larger organisms they now support and the benefits they can provide us.

Some of these ecosystem modifications were unavoidable, as humans living on coastlines are largely incompatible with large populations of, say, sturgeons, sea turtles, or pinnipeds, and our appetite for fish implies that some fish populations will have to be reduced by fishing. But to a large extent, the depredations that we have imposed on the oceans have been entirely gratuitous: we need not have eradicated the great auk (Pinguinus impennis) or the Caribbean monk seal (Monachus tropicalis) to satisfy our seafood requirements, and thus it is perfectly reasonable to ask ourselves how we could prevent such catastrophes in the future (each species loss is a catastrophe) and whether we can rebuild now depleted populations of marine organisms so as to reduce the risk of this occurring again, and to have more to enjoy.

This is what marine historical ecology in conservation is for: to inform us about what these populations have been in the past, and under which conditions these populations could flourish so that we can start helping them do so. This is what the neat book you have in your hands is about.

Daniel Pauly

Vancouver

August 2013

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A volume of this scope and ambition is not possible without the guidance, encouragement, and contributions of a great many individuals. The editors—who had all recently completed their PhDs when embarking on this project—benefited in particular from several experienced mentors who directed us to key resources, were enthusiastic about our ideas for this project, and pushed us to expand our thinking about the nature and impact of this volume.

First, we thank the participants of our 2011 symposium at the International Marine Conservation Congress in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, including Dalal Al-Abdulrazzak, Rich Aronson, Tyler Eddy, Jon Erlandson, Francesco Ferretti, Jeremy B. C. Jackson, John O. Jenson, Divya Karnad, Randy Kosaki, Heike Lotze, and Dana Miller. This volume was developed out of the thoughtful presentations and inspired discussion throughout that symposium, with contributions from many of the symposium participants. Their enthusiasm for our symposium concept gave us the confidence that our book project was possible and would have an impact. Jon Erlandson, in particular, was a continual source of guidance, helping our group initiate and plan this volume. We also thank Jesse Ausubel from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, who advised Louise and Jack on next steps after we fortuitously first met at the History of Marine Animal Populations meeting in Dublin, Ireland, in November 2010. Louise gratefully acknowledges the Koerner Foundation for their support of her doctoral research, and she particularly thanks Steve Koerner for engaging conversations on the value of long-term baselines, and ideas about unlikely sources of historical data.

The editors are grateful for financial support from the Census of Marine Life, and in particular Kristen Yarincik (now with the Consortium for Ocean Leadership), for supporting our first editors’ meeting at the University of British Columbia Fisheries Centre in November 2011. We thank Daniel Pauly, Rashid Sumaila, and Dalal Al-Abdulrazzak for hosting that initial workshop, and for their guidance and expert input during the initial stage as we mapped out the book, potential contributors, and an ambitious timeline for completion. We are similarly grateful to Stanford University’s Center for Ocean Solutions, and Meg Caldwell and Larry Crowder, for supporting our second editors’ workshop at Stanford University in August 2012, which allowed us to refine a critical focus of this volume: its explicit focus on applied solutions. We also thank John Weller and Cassie Brooks for the stunning imagery that graces the cover of this book and for their important marine conservation work.

We thank Blake Edgar, Merrik Bush-Pirkle, and the dedicated team at the University of California Press. Blake understood our vision for this volume at the outset, and his team worked tirelessly to see it through. We also thank the three reviewers, whose recommendations increased the scope, clarity, and consistency of our work.

Finally, we gratefully acknowledge the many authors of chapters and viewpoint boxes in this volume. It goes without saying that this book would not have been possible without their active involvement. This group of scholars, conservation practitioners, managers, and innovative thinkers were true partners in the book’s development. We thank them for their excellent contributions.

ONE

Managing Human Legacies in a Changing Sea

An Introduction

JOHN N. KITTINGER, LOUISE K. BLIGHT, KERYN B. GEDAN, and LOREN MCCLENACHAN

  In 1938, Howard Granville Sharpe was working on his small ranch, 13 miles south of Carmel on the Big Sur coast in California, when he spied something strange in the kelp beds offshore. A longtime native of the area, Mr. Sharpe was no stranger to the Big Sur coast, yet he and his ranch hands were perplexed to find a group of sleek animals lazing around the kelp beds offshore of Bixby Creek. Two days later, he drove north to Stanford University’s Hopkins Marine Station, where he was politely rebuffed after reporting to the marine scientists there that he had discovered a species of sea otter (Enhydra lutris). Entreaties to the local press and scientists at the California Fish and Game Commission were met with similar amusement and skepticism.

A few days later, Fish and Game officials agreed to travel south to Sharpe’s Rainbow Headlands ranch, where they were amazed to find the first family of sea otters observed in nearly a century in California. Professor Harold Heath from the Hopkins Marine Station later remarked, Had you reported dinosaurs or ichthyosaurs running down your canyon, swimming about, we couldn’t have been more utterly dumbfounded (Sharpe 1989).

With this observation, a new chapter of natural history was written on the California coast. Sea otters had occasionally been observed since the late 1800s but were widely believed to be regionally extinct after 200 years of hunting for the lucrative fur industry. Within a few decades of their rediscovery, however, otter populations spread northward up the coast, repopulating their previous range.

The recovery of otters was not met with universal enthusiasm. In an early case of shifted baselines, sea otters were viewed as a new arrival by coastal California residents whose perspectives of the coast were formed over a shorter period of time than the otters’ history of decline and recovery (see Box 2.1 by Jim Estes, in chapter 2). Urchin and abalone fishermen viewed the animals as competitors, which led to conflicts between otter-friendly coastal residents and those who viewed the species as a threat to their livelihood (Cicin-Sain et al. 1982). However, their return also heralded the regrowth of kelp forests, as dense aggregations of kelp-eating urchins fed the otters’ voracious appetites. Protection and active management fostered growth of both otter populations and kelp forests, ecosystems that today support a diversity of species and provide social benefits in the form of fisheries and tourism. Indeed, the iconic kelp forests now common along northern California shores can be almost entirely attributed to the recovery of otters (Estes and Palmisano 1974).

This story of the return of the sea otter mirrors other emerging stories of recovery in marine environments around the globe (Figure 1.1). In the Pacific Ocean, egg and feather hunters reduced the short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus) to near extinction by the early twentieth century, with an estimated 5 million birds taken from one colony alone. As with sea otters in California, it was thought that the species had been eradicated until a small breeding colony of about 10 birds was discovered on the Japanese island of Torishima in 1951. Because albatrosses spend the first several years of their life at sea, these few individuals had escaped the final depredations of the feather hunters and formed the core of a population that continues to grow to this day. Other examples of recovery include the striped bass (Morone saxatilis) along the east coast of the United States, which demonstrates that the effects of overfishing can be reversed. In some cases, human actions have aided recovery; for example, coastal marshes, which are fundamental to estuarine ecosystems and were badly abused in centuries past, are now the focus of intensive restoration efforts, revealing the value that society has begun to place on the important functions and benefits these systems convey. Across the Pacific, the renaissance of traditional management systems based on historical practices has increased the biomass of target reef fish populations and provided social benefits to the communities that rely on these fisheries resources.

If there are universal lessons to be learned in these recovery stories, they are that the seeds of recovery and resilience can be found in surprising places and that we have choices about the future of the oceans. The lessons embedded in these historical recoveries also empower our generation of conservation scientists and ocean enthusiasts with the means (and perhaps the responsibility) to create an alternative future—one with healthy ocean ecosystems and resilient coastal communities. As Peter Sale writes in Box 1.1, nature is indifferent to the path we choose to take, but people care deeply about the state of nature; the abundance of marine species and the services provided by intact ecosystems greatly affect our quality of life and, indeed, our long-term survival.

These examples also teach us that history matters. There have been great losses in the global oceans, but as societies change the way they interact with marine ecosystems, so too do we change the environmental outcomes of these interactions. Species that were former targets of hunters and fishers have gained protection. Habitats that were once dredged and filled have become recognized for their role in coastal defense and fisheries production. Historical information sources that were once ignored have gained new life as data sources to understand baselines and make well-informed conservation decisions. Active management of species and habitats has certainly not always guaranteed recovery, but increasing attention to the historical dynamics of decline and recovery continues to reveal how we can use the past to better manage for the future.

FIGURE 1.1 Four emerging stories of recovery in marine environments around the globe. (A) Progress toward salt pond restoration in San Francisco’s South Bay (from South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project Annual Report 2012). (B) Counts of breeding short-tailed albatross a Torishima Island, Japan, 1951–2011, following rediscovery (figure based on unpublished data from the Yamashina Institute and H. Hasegawa, Toho University, Japan; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2008, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels 2009). (C) Increased striped bass landings demonstrate population recovery along the U.S. Atlantic coast (from Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission 2014). (D) Fish biomass under community-based management is not statistically different ( P > 0.05) from no-take marine protected areas (MPAs) and is more effective than open-access areas and zones managed with rotating annual closures (partial protection) (data from Friedlander et al. 2013; based on 1,344 surveys at 143 locations: open to fishing, n = 94; no-take MPA, n = 9; community-based, n = 18; partial protection, n = 22).

In this volume, we define marine historical ecology broadly as the study of past human–environmental interactions in coastal and marine ecosystems, and the ecological and social outcomes associated with these interactions. Marine historical ecology developed out of the growing realization that humans have altered marine ecosystems over very long time scales, and that historical data often are needed to understand the true magnitude of human-induced changes. People working in marine historical ecology (including the authors who contributed to this book) come from a variety of fields, including marine biology, fisheries science, archaeology, geography, history, and more. These researchers also use information from diverse sources. Shell middens, oral histories, climate records, log books, restaurant menus, and handwritten letters in dusty museum basements all have had stories to tell about human–ocean relationships. Some marine historical studies stretch back a few decades, while others span millennia or longer (Box 1.2). All research in this area has a common goal of establishing a deeper understanding of how human societies have affected marine ecosystems through time.

While ecologists and biologists were instrumental in first describing many of the long-term anthropogenic changes to marine ecosystems, marine historical ecology has become increasingly more interdisciplinary in scope, and it will require an even greater collaborative effort to apply these findings to conservation and management. The interdisciplinary nature of this field has attracted numerous researchers and fostered cross-disciplinary collaborations, leading to more integrative approaches. For example, in the Gulf of Maine, fisheries scientists worked together with historians to estimate cod abundances in the 1850s (Rosenberg et al. 2005). In Hawaii, geographers, ecologists, and archaeologists collaborated to reconstruct the history of coral reef ecosystems and identify key social drivers associated with these changes (Kittinger et al. 2011). And a panel at the 2011 International Marine Conservation Congress brought together marine biologists, fisheries scientists, archaeologists, geographers, and others to explore ways in which history can help shape the management of marine ecosystems, launching this collaboration and edited volume. These multidisciplinary collaborations are increasingly common because they embody the potential for innovative ways of understanding long-term change, but also because interdisciplinary analyses can reframe these problems in new ways and offer new solutions to restore degraded ocean ecosystems and rebuild depleted resources.

Fueled by recognition of innovative scholarship and increased engagement by researchers and institutions, the past few decades have seen tremendous growth in this field. Marine historical ecology research now spans a growing variety of disciplines and has been published in the highest-impact scientific journals. In the past decade, scholars have also developed major initiatives in historical ecology that have significantly advanced the field, including the History of Marine Animal Populations (HMAP) project in the Census of Marine Life, the Integrated History and Future of People on Earth (IHOPE) project, and a series of working groups organized by Jeremy Jackson and others at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis in California. Large-scale regional initiatives have also been developed, such as the San Francisco Estuary Institute’s historical ecology project and the Mannahatta project in New York. This growth in the field demonstrates broad appeal, due in part to recognition that despite the limitations of historical data, discounting the long-term perspectives they provide can lead to inappropriate conservation actions and unintended negative consequences for ocean environments and coastal communities.

Increased interest in marine historical ecology in the research community corresponds with increased attention from the general public. Findings from marine historical ecology projects continue to gain a strong following at national and global scales. Nonfiction works in marine historical ecology have become popular books—for example, Jared Diamond’s Collapse, Mark Kurlansky’s Cod, Callum Roberts’s The Unnatural History of the Sea, and James MacKinnon’s The Once and Future World)—and environmental reporting and journalism has turned its attention to historical topics (Weiss et al. 2006). Marine education and outreach programs have also started including historical content, such as the Sant Ocean Hall at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., which features an exhibit on long-term changes to marine fish populations, and the U.S. National Marine Sanctuaries Program, which has brought historical ecology into its programmatic goals. Collectively, these examples point to a broad public interest in the ocean’s past and what it can tell us about current challenges in environmental sustainability.

FOUR CRITICAL CHALLENGES IN MARINE CONSERVATION

Marine historical ecology is increasingly oriented toward real-world applications, and researchers and practitioners are exploring tangible policy, management, and conservation strategies based on knowledge of the past. At the same time, marine conservation programs and practitioners worldwide struggle to meet the immense challenges of safeguarding biological diversity and maintaining the ecosystem services upon which society depends.

In this book, we use four parts to focus on four key challenges that confront marine conservation: (1) recovering endangered species, (2) conserving fisheries, (3) restoring ecosystems, and (4) engaging the public. These four distinct areas represent specific challenges and opportunities, where marine historical ecology is distinctly poised to help address the implementation gap—or the distance between conservation science and policy actions and desired social and environmental outcomes. By providing real-world examples of applied approaches, as well as options for potential use and application, each of these sections advances concepts and tools that can be implemented in management and policy. Taken together, the sections offer a blueprint for using marine historical ecology to confront the challenges of ocean conservation in a rapidly changing world.

Recovering Endangered Species

Endangered species protection and recovery has always been a central part of modern efforts to conserve and manage nature, in terms of public perception, science, and on-the-ground action. Similarly, estimating historical baselines for endangered species has long been a focus of marine historical ecology. These efforts have demonstrated that human exploitation has reduced the population abundance of many large marine animals over long time scales and has compromised the role of top predators and keystone species in ocean ecosystems. Some species, such as the great auk (Pinguinus impennis) and Steller’s sea cow (Hydromalis gigas), are now gone forever, while others, such as the northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris), have dramatically recovered from near extinction. The fate of some species, such as certain whales, still hangs in the balance. In this section, authors examine ways in which historical ecological research can contribute to modern efforts to recover marine species, many of which have endured centuries of exploitation. These authors go beyond documenting decline and show how historical reconstructions can help set realistic recovery targets, highlighting actions that have aided species in need of protection, or even helped turn endangered species back from the brink of extinction.

Conserving Fisheries

Fisheries worldwide face critical challenges in sustainability, and marine historical ecology has played an important role in defining the extent of changes in fish populations globally. Daniel Pauly’s now famous concept of shifting baselines was first conceived in the context of fisheries, and since that time considerable historical evidence has helped define the current status of, and trends in, fisheries. Fisheries sustainability, however, means moving beyond quantifying impacts and scales of loss and toward developing a portfolio of potential solutions. In this section, authors advance novel ways to apply historical data to the challenge of managing fisheries and describe a series of cases where these nonconventional datasets and approaches are resulting in real-world successes. For example, coastal and island communities are integrating historically based management practices into place-based resource stewardship efforts, preserving fish populations and ensuring ecological benefits from marine ecosystems. Additionally, stock assessment practices, which are difficult in data-poor fisheries contexts across the globe, are being modified to include historical data, providing more accurate baselines of fish populations and historically based recovery targets. These examples and others in this section point to a broad range of applied roles for marine historical ecology in fisheries conservation and management.

Restoring Ecosystems

Restoring ecosystems to a healthy and resilient state is a fundamental goal of marine conservation, and marine historical ecology has played an important role in helping scholars and practitioners understand the nature of healthy ecosystems as they existed in the past. Authors in this section show us how historical information on the distribution and condition of habitats, as well as the historical production of social benefits from these systems (known as ecosystem services), can guide modern restoration efforts. For example, historical reconstructions can illuminate past ecosystem states and current population trends, highlighting the key drivers or processes (such as predation) that may be acted on to achieve positive change. Historical studies can also provide environmental baselines against which to measure the effectiveness of conservation actions. Finally, this section also examines how marine historical ecology can reveal the dynamic nature of marine ecosystems and ecosystem responses to past eras of environmental change (especially in studies over evolutionary and geologic timescales; Box 1.2). Such efforts are increasingly relevant to restoration efforts striving to protect ecosystem integrity and resilience in the face of a globally changing environment.

Engaging the Public

The real-world application of results from marine historical ecology would be impossible without public engagement, because decisions about endangered-species recovery, fisheries conservation, and ecosystem restoration ultimately play out in a public sphere. Stories about the historical abundance of marine animals, the past bounty of fisheries, and the healthy functioning of intact ecosystems inspire wonder about the potential of the natural world to sustain and support humans and other life and, in doing so, influence policy debates. However, challenges also exist in this realm—for example, the uptake of