title: Global proliferation of cephalopods.
abstract: Human activities have substantially changed the world's oceans in recent decades, altering marine food webs, habitats and biogeochemical processes [1]. Cephalopods (squid, cuttlefish and octopuses) have a unique set of biological traits, including rapid growth, short lifespans and strong life-history plasticity, allowing them to adapt quickly to changing environmental conditions [2-4]. There has been growing speculation that cephalopod populations are proliferating in response to a changing environment, a perception fuelled by increasing trends in cephalopod fisheries catch [4,5]. To investigate long-term trends in cephalopod abundance, we assembled global time-series of cephalopod catch rates (catch per unit of fishing or sampling effort). We show that cephalopod populations have increased over the last six decades, a result that was remarkably consistent across a highly diverse set of cephalopod taxa. Positive trends were also evident for both fisheries-dependent and fisheries-independent time-series, suggesting that trends are not solely due to factors associated with developing fisheries. Our results suggest that large-scale, directional processes, common to a range of coastal and oceanic environments, are responsible. This study presents the first evidence that cephalopod populations have increased globally, indicating that these ecologically and commercially important invertebrates may have benefited from a changing ocean environment.
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences and The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, 5005, Australia. Electronic address: zoe.doubleday@adelaide.edu.au.
authors.forename: Zoë A
authors.initials: ZA
authors.lastname: Doubleday
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences and The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, 5005, Australia.
authors.forename: Thomas A A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Prowse
authors.affiliation: Fisheries Department, Stanley, FIQQ 1ZZ, Falkland Islands.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arkhipkin
authors.affiliation: Oceanlab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Newburgh AB41 6AA, UK and CESAM & Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de Aveiro, Aveiro, 3810-193 Portugal.
authors.forename: Graham J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Pierce
authors.affiliation: Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, 7001, Australia.
authors.forename: Jayson
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Semmens
authors.affiliation: South Australian Research and Development Institute (Aquatic Sciences), West Beach, 5022, Australia.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Steer
authors.affiliation: Formally Department of Fisheries Western Australia, North Beach, 6920, Australia.
authors.forename: Stephen C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Leporati
authors.affiliation: Departamento do Mar, Instituto Português do Mar e Atmosfera, 1449-006 Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Sílvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lourenço
authors.affiliation: Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centre Oceanogràfic de les Balears, Palma de Mallorca, 07015, Spain.
authors.forename: Antoni
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Quetglas
authors.affiliation: Department of Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, 6140, South Africa.
authors.forename: Warwick
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sauer
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences and The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, 5005, Australia. Electronic address: bronwyn.gillanders@adelaide.edu.au.
authors.forename: Bronwyn M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Gillanders
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D049830:Cephalopoda / Q000502:physiology*; D017753:Ecosystem; D005398:Fisheries; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D011158:Population Growth