2023 Volume 43 Issue 2 Pages 189-230
Fisheries science is one of the disciplines of studying marine and riverine organisms, but it is different from usual biology in that it focuses on how to utilize organisms sustainably as renewable resources. In terms of sustainable use of fishery resources, it is important to make necessary decisions as soon as possible. However, large uncertainty involved with the fisheries data usually leads to inconclusive argument, resulting in inadequate decision making and the risk of collapsing the resource without doing possible measures. In the latter half of the 20th century, an emphasis on fisheries management science moved away from optimality to robustness. In order to achieve robustness against various uncertainties, biometric statistical methods utilizing the power of modern high-speed computers were actively incorporated into the assessment and risk management of fishery resources. This paper introduces how biometric statistical methods have been applied in recent years in fisheries science, especially in the context of recent development of the MSY-based fisheries management in Japan.
