| 7. Biodiversity and Management |
| 7d. Assessment of biodiversity and ecosystem services |
| Marine ecosystems can be heavily affected by fisheries, climate change and other human impacts. As United Nations Millennium Ecosystem assessments reported, the average trophic level of landed fishes has shifted from higher trophic level to lower trophic levels ("fishing down the food web") and the average depth of fishing has increased. In addition there is evidence of a marked decline in abundance of large predatory fish. However, the consequences of such human impacts on whole food web structure and ecosystem functioning are still unclear. More information on trophic cascades and the role of biodiversity on ecosystem services to evaluate human effects are needed. The main aim of this sub-session is to investigate assessment of biodiversity in marine ecosystems and human impact on ecosystem services. |
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