{"id":4017,"date":"2025-05-16T10:17:29","date_gmt":"2025-05-16T10:17:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/?p=4017"},"modified":"2025-05-16T10:17:33","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T10:17:33","slug":"chip-shop-fishes-like-cod-play-a-vital-role-in-seabed-health-and-climate-regulation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/?p=4017","title":{"rendered":"Chip-Shop Fishes Like Cod Play a Vital Role in Seabed Health and Climate Regulation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A new study highlights the critical role of commercially fished species, such as Atlantic cod, in maintaining seabed ecosystems and regulating Earth\u2019s climate. Researchers from the Convex Seascape Survey found that 185 fish species, including 120 targeted by fisheries, contribute to bioturbation, a process vital for carbon storage. The findings, published in&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1016\/j.marenvres.2025.107158\"><em>Marine Environmental Research<\/em>,<\/a>&nbsp;underscore the climate risks posed by overfishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The study, led by the University of Exeter, assessed how fishlike cod, European eel, and common skate churn seabed sediments (bioturbation), which helps sequester carbon and supports marine biodiversity. Atlantic cod and eel scored highest (100\/125) for their bioturbation impact, yet many such species are now critically endangered due to overfishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>PhD student Mara Fischer, the lead author, explained:&nbsp;<em>&#8220;Ocean sediments store vast amounts of carbon. Fish bioturbation influences how the seabed absorbs greenhouse gases, but their role has been overlooked until now.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Co-author Professor Callum Roberts warned that overfishing has decimated key species, disrupting seabed functions. For example, the critically endangered common skate, which lays only 40 eggs biennially, has nearly vanished from some regions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>&#8220;Fish are constantly digging up the seabed\u2014it\u2019s astonishing this wasn\u2019t factored into climate models before,&#8221;<\/em>\u00a0said Julie Hawkins, a study co-author.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Roberts added:\u00a0<em>&#8220;Losing these ecosystem engineers could have irreversible consequences for ocean health and climate resilience.&#8221;<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The research calls for urgent conservation measures to protect bioturbating fish, emphasizing their dual role in marine ecosystems and climate mitigation. The Convex Seascape Survey, a collaboration between the University of Exeter and Blue Marine Foundation, aims to further explore ocean-based climate solutions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new study highlights the critical role of commercially fished species, such as Atlantic cod, in maintaining seabed ecosystems and regulating Earth\u2019s climate. Researchers from the Convex Seascape Survey found that 185 fish species, including 120 targeted by fisheries, contribute to bioturbation, a process vital for carbon storage. The findings, published in&nbsp;Marine Environmental Research,&nbsp;underscore the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1117],"tags":[1738,1425],"class_list":["post-4017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-environmental-science","tag-chip-shop-fishes","tag-environmental-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4017"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4018,"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4017\/revisions\/4018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scientificworld.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}