title: Evidence of climate-driven ecosystem reorganization in the Gulf of Mexico.
abstract: The Gulf of Mexico is one of the most ecologically and economically valuable marine ecosystems in the world and is affected by a variety of natural and anthropogenic phenomena including climate, hurricanes, coastal development, agricultural runoff, oil spills, and fishing. These complex and interacting stressors, together with the highly dynamic nature of this ecosystem, present challenges for the effective management of its resources. We analyze a compilation of over 100 indicators representing physical, biological, and economic aspects of the Gulf of Mexico and find that an ecosystem-wide reorganization occurred in the mid-1990s. Further analysis of fishery landings composition data indicates a major shift in the late 1970s coincident with the advent of US national fisheries management policy, as well as significant shifts in the mid-1960s and the mid-1990s. These latter shifts are aligned temporally with changes in a major climate mode in the Atlantic Ocean: the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO). We provide an explanation for how the AMO may drive physical changes in the Gulf of Mexico, thus altering higher-level ecosystem dynamics. The hypotheses presented here should provide focus for further targeted studies, particularly in regard to whether and how management should adjust to different climate regimes or states of nature. Our study highlights the challenges in understanding the effects of climatic drivers against a background of multiple anthropogenic pressures, particularly in a system where these forces interact in complex and nonlinear ways.
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Mandy
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Karnauskas
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Schirripa
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 101 Pivers Island Road, Beaufort, NC, 28516, USA.
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Craig
authors.affiliation: Atlantic Meteorological and Oceanographic Laboratory, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, 4301 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.|Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Geoffrey S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.affiliation: Atlantic Meteorological and Oceanographic Laboratory, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, 4301 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Kelble
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Juan J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Agar
authors.affiliation: Marine Science Institute, University of Texas, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX, 78373, USA.
authors.forename: Bryan A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Black
authors.affiliation: Atlantic Meteorological and Oceanographic Laboratory, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, 4301 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.|Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: David B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Enfield
authors.affiliation: Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lindo-Atichati
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.|Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Barbara A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Muhling
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 101 Pivers Island Road, Beaufort, NC, 28516, USA.
authors.forename: Kevin M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Purcell
authors.affiliation: Southeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Paul M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.affiliation: Atlantic Meteorological and Oceanographic Laboratory, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, 4301 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL, 33149, USA.
authors.forename: Chunzai
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
keywords: Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation; fisheries management; human dimension; indicator; large marine ecosystem; regime shift