PhD defence on the sustainability of a potential mesopelagic fishery

The mesopelagic zone is located between approximately 200 and 1000 m depth and stretches around the globe. The water layer is inhabited by a diverse community of fish, cephalopods, crustaceans, and gelatinous organisms. 

Driven by the increasing demand for food to supply the growing global human population, the vast estimates of global mesopelagic fish biomass have attracted attention for potential exploitation. However, the development of new commercial fisheries targeting mesopelagic resources should proceed no faster than the gathering of information necessary to manage this potential new fishery sustainably. 

In her PhD study at DTU Aqua, Berthe M.J. Vastenhoud has evaluated the ecological sustainability of a potential mesopelagic fishery and the economic viability of a potential Danish fishery targeting two mesopelagic fish species, Mueller’s pearlside (Maurolicus muelleri) and Glacier lantern fish (Benthosema glaciale). They are highly abundant in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean and commercially interesting due to their high fat content.

Berthe M.J. Vastenhoud has established a methodology and framework to assess the single-stock sustainability and economic viability of potential mesopelagic fishing. Generally, modelling approaches are challenged by the limited data available for these unexploited species, resulting in large uncertainties. Hence, the application of the methods and framework points out where uncertainty is highest and where more information, data, monitoring, and research are needed. 

Based on her research, Berthe M.J. Vastenhoud concludes that major knowledge gaps persist, making mesopelagic fishing a risky business at present, both in biological and economic terms.

About the defence

Berthe M.J. Vastenhoud will defend her PhD thesis "Fish stock assessment and fisheries dynamic modelling investigating sustainability of potential mesopelagic resource exploitation" on 14 June 2024, at 13:00. The defence can be followed online or at DTU Lyngby Campus (please see below).

Examiners 

• Associate Professor Carsten Hvingel, DTU Aqua (chair)
• Principal Investigator David G. Reid, University College Cork, Ireland
• Professor Clara Ulrich, French National Institute for Ocean Science, France

Chairperson at defence

• Anna Rindorf, DTU Aqua

Supervisors

• Principal supervisor: Professor J. Rasmus Nielsen, DTU Aqua
• Co-supervisor: Researcher Alexandros Kokkalis, DTU Aqua
• Co-supervisor: Senior Researcher Francois Bastardie, DTU Aqua
• Co-supervisor: Professor Ken H. Andersen, DTU Aqua 

Learn more

A copy of the thesis is available for reading at DTU Aqua. Please contact PhD Coordinator Susan Zumbach Johannesen, szjo@aqua.dtu.dk