Green Room

o Global study used to 'backcast' fishing trendso Findings may help efforts to conserve stocksFrom grainy pictures of 1950s sports fishermen proudly displaying their catches to the centuries-old logbooks of whaling vessels, historical records have helped scientists to piece together a picture of a time when there really were plenty more fish in the sea.In a ground-breaking project, experts from around the world have pored over records and trawled tax accounts and literary texts to help reconstruct the state of the world's oceans before the advent of industrial-scale fishing.They hope the study, which will be presented tomorrow, will allow for more realistic assessments of existing fisheries and better conservation of fish stocks.Poul Holm, an environmental historian at Trinity College Dublin and global chair of the project, said: "We now know that the distribution and abundance of marine animal populations change dramatically over time. Climate and humanity forces changes, and while few marine species have go

Green Room

The critical role of ocean history in the ocean future

Tue 26 May 09 from BBC News

Overfishing began 1000 years ago: study

Europeans started over-exploiting freshwater fish at least 1000 years ago, according to historical studies that could help manage depleted modern fish stocks worldwide.

Sun 24 May 09 from ABC Science

Study unlocks history of the seas

Medieval fishermen first took to the open seas in about AD1,000 as a result of a sharp decline in large freshwater fish.

Sun 24 May 09 from BBC News

Experts uncover secrets of the seas' past

o Global study used to 'backcast' fishing trendso Findings may help efforts to conserve stocksFrom grainy pictures of 1950s sports fishermen proudly displaying their catches to the centuries-old ...

Tue 26 May 09 from Guardian.co.uk

A sea change: How freshwater fish slump forced medieval men to brave the oceans

Medieval fishermen first went to sea 1,000 years ago because of a large decline in freshwater fish, according to scientists.

Mon 25 May 09 from Daily Mail

A sea change: How freshwater fish slump forced medieval men to the oceans, Mon 25 May 09 from Daily Mail

Ocean life in olden days is detailed

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 27 (UPI) -- Census of Marine Life historians meeting in Vancouver, Canada, say they have reconstructed images of past sea life that boggle the imagination.

Wed 27 May 09 from UPI

Ocean life in olden days is detailed, Wed 27 May 09 from RedOrbit

Ocean's History Being Unlocked By Researchers

Image 1: This Byzantine image from the 11th century shows night fishing with a lamp and a net. Credit: International Journal of Nautical Archaeology / CoMLImage 2: This reproduction from an ...

Mon 25 May 09 from RedOrbit

Ocean Life Of Ages Past Boggle Modern Imagination With Incredible Sizes, Abundance And Distribution

Using such diverse sources as old ship logs, literary texts, tax accounts, newly translated legal documents and even mounted trophies, researchers are piecing together images -- some flickering, ...

Sun 24 May 09 from ScienceDaily

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