InFish is a professional network to raise the profile of inland fish to inform policy, advance conservation, and promote sustainable fisheries.
Please join us!
Recent relevant news/ publications
- Designing and managing protected and conserved areas to support inland water ecosystems and biodiversity (Moberg et al. 2024)
- Lake temperature and morphometry shape the thermal composition of recreational fishing catch (Wszola et al. 2024)
- From local to global: a framework to monitor river health (CGIAR Initiative on NEXUS Gains blog post)
- A One Health perspective on recreational fisheries (Cooke et al. 2024)
- How effective are ecological metrics in supporting conservation and management in degraded streams? (Mathers et al. 2024)
- Understanding the Threats to Fish Migration: Applying the Global Swimways Concept to the Lower Mekong (Cowx et al. 2024)
- Factors influencing fish migration in one of the world's largest inland fisheries (Sor et al. 2024)
- Computational approaches improve evidence synthesis and inform broad fisheries trends (Stokes et al. 2024)
- The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2024 (FAO 2024)
- Living Planet Index (LPI) for Migratory Freshwater Fishes (see also: executive summary)
- Inland recreational fisheries contribute nutritional benefits and economic value but are vulnerable to climate change (Lynch et al. 2024)
- The Mekong’s Forgotten Fishes (WWF 2024) + associated blog posts (Lee and Opperman)
- The Stream: September 2024 (Shoal)
- The Delta: #73 (Global Water Forum newsletter)
- WorldFish Waves: October 2024
Job / funding / award opportunities
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries – application deadline: 10 November 2024. Any questions can be directed to Luc De Meester (Luc.DeMeester-at-igb-berlin.de) or Jens Krause (jens.krause-at-igb-berlin.de).
- Tenure track group leader position (f/m/x) in Fish Movement Ecology – job reference number: 36/2024
- Tenure track group leader position (f/m/x) in Fish Ecophysiology – job reference number: 35/2024
- ROSES24 A.60 Earth Action: Ecological Conservation solicitation. Notices of intent due 14 February 2025; Proposals due 14 March 2025. Virtual meetings for potential proposers will occur 15 November 2024 (1-3 PM Eastern Time) and 13 January 2025 (1-3 PM Eastern Time).
- Miami University of Ohio, Ohio Eminent Scholar of Ecology (associate or full professor). Start date: August 2025. Contact Tom Crist (biology-at-miamioh.edu) with inquires. Screening is ongoing and will continue until the position is filled.
- University of Nevada – Reno, a PhD opportunity (spring 2025). Contact Jeff Falke (jfalke-at-unr.edu) for more information.
- University of Wisconsin, two postdoc opportunities in quantitative fisheries ecology and modeling. Start date: September 2024 – January 2025. Send materials to Kelly O’Ferrell (oferrell-at-wisc.edu).
- SNAPP (Science for Nature and People Partnership) 2024 Request for expert team proposals – accepting full proposals until 3 December 2024.
- University of Vermont – Lake Champlain Post-Doc – Contact Jason Stockwell (jason.stockwell-at-uvm.edu) with questions. Pre-proposals due 30 November 2024.
Inland Fisheries
Freshwater fish provide food, livelihoods, and ecosystem services to millions of people, especially in low-income countries, yet their value is generally not adequately considered in water use, energy, and development decisions. Freshwater fisheries around the world may appear to be very different, but their value to local communities and the threats to their sustainability are often similar.
The challenges to inland fisheries are also critical to the 60 million people who rely on freshwater fish for livelihoods – over half of whom are women. Fish is also an essential source of protein and other nutrients that cannot easily be replaced with other food sources.
InFish & SDG 1
The contribution of inland fisheries to resilient livelihoods, those which are buffered against difficult situations, is multifaceted and difficult to evaluate. Inland fisheries in Low-Income Food-Deficit countries are often part of a diversified livelihood strategy, exacerbating the tendency for them to be overlooked and undervalued. The challenge is in available data to highlight this role.
Grand Challenges
Even with long-standing management and extensive science support, North American inland fish and fisheries still face many conservation and management challenges. Addressing these grand challenges will promote open forums for engagement of diverse stakeholders in fisheries management, and better integrate the inland fish sector into the greater water and land use policy process.
Importance of InFish
Though reported capture fisheries are dominated by marine production, inland fish and fisheries make substantial contributions to meeting the challenges faced by individuals, society, and the environment in a changing global landscape. Inland capture fisheries and aquaculture contribute over 40% to the world’s reported finfish production from less than 0.01% of the total volume of water on earth.