title: A fish-based index for assessing the ecological status of Polish transitional and coastal waters.
abstract: Fish assemblages are considered indicators of aquatic ecosystem quality. Based on how fish communities respond to anthropogenic pressures, we developed a multimetric fish index for evaluating the health of both coastal and transitional waters. Fish data were collected along the Polish coast in the years 2011, 2013 and 2014 using different types of gear. Redundancy analysis showed that the most important environmental factor affecting fish community was salinity. Responses to anthropogenic disturbances of 20 candidate metrics were tested by generalized linear models, taking into account salinity, sampling protocol and the proxy of human pressures described by the Baltic Sea Impact Index (BSII). Five selected metrics were combined in a Multimetric Index, which showed negative significant correlation with BSII. The index presented herein appeared to be a good tool for assessing the ecological state of highly impacted Polish transitional and coastal areas and complies with the Water Framework Directive requirements.
authors.affiliation: Department of Fisheries Resources, National Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kołłątaja 1, 81-332 Gdynia, Poland. Electronic address: ssmolinski@mir.gdynia.pl.
authors.forename: Szymon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Smoliński
authors.affiliation: Department of Logistics and Monitoring, National Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Poland.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Całkiewicz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004463:Ecology / Q000379:methods*; D017753:Ecosystem; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D005399:Fishes; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000379:methods; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D011044:Poland
keywords: Anthropogenic pressures; Baltic Sea; Ecological quality; Multimetric fish index; Water Framework Directive