Stoll Joshua S, Fuller Emma, Crona Beatrice I
School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, Maine, United States of America.
Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries, Stonington, Maine, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2017 Jun 12;12(6):e0178266. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0178266. eCollection 2017.
Fishers worldwide operate in an environment of uncertainty and constant change. Their ability to manage risk associated with such uncertainty and subsequently adapt to change is largely a function of individual circumstances, including their access to different fisheries. However, explicit attention to the heterogeneity of fishers' connections to fisheries at the level of the individual has been largely ignored. We illustrate the ubiquitous nature of these connections by constructing a typology of commercial fishers in the state of Maine based on the different fisheries that fishers rely on to sustain their livelihoods and find that there are over 600 combinations. We evaluate the adaptive potential of each strategy, using a set of attributes identified by fisheries experts in the state, and find that only 12% of fishers can be classified as being well positioned to adapt in the face of changing socioeconomic and ecological conditions. Sensitivity to the uneven and heterogeneous capacity of fishers to manage risk and adapt to change is critical to devising effective management strategies that broadly support fishers. This will require greater attention to the social-ecological connectivity of fishers across different jurisdictions.
世界各地的渔民都在一个充满不确定性和不断变化的环境中作业。他们管理与此类不确定性相关风险并随后适应变化的能力，在很大程度上取决于个人情况，包括他们进入不同渔场的机会。然而，在个体层面上对渔民与渔场联系的异质性给予明确关注，在很大程度上被忽视了。我们通过根据渔民赖以维持生计的不同渔场构建缅因州商业渔民类型学，来说明这些联系的普遍性质，并发现有600多种组合。我们使用该州渔业专家确定的一组属性，评估每种策略的适应潜力，发现只有12%的渔民可以被归类为在面对不断变化的社会经济和生态条件时具备良好的适应能力。认识到渔民管理风险和适应变化的能力参差不齐且具有异质性，对于制定广泛支持渔民的有效管理策略至关重要。这将需要更加关注不同辖区内渔民的社会生态联系。
