Seabird-Fisheries Interactions: Evaluation with Dimensionless Ratios

Abstract

Marine bird populations interact with fisheries in a variety of ways, with diverse outcomes. Evaluation of these outcomes requires a means o comparison across cases, and a means of identifying the relative importance of concomitant processes at relevant space and time scales. We describe a general quantitative framework that permits comparison of quantitatie findings among studies of seabird-fisheries interactions. We then review the results of seabird-fisheries studies within this framework. We discuss the use of ad hoc ratios and dimensional analysis to make decisions about competing processes at relevant space and time scales.