How Important Shark and Ray Areas improve conservation in Mediterranean and Black Seas

NEW PAPER ALERT | Important Shark and Ray Areas can inform conservation planning in the Mediterranean and Black Seas In this paper, solutions from systematic conservation planning scenarios with 73 chondrichthyan species in the Mediterranean and Black Seas were compared between approaches that ignore or include ISRAs. Including ISRAs led to higher costs for fisheries but protected a similar surface area (∼27% in both scenarios), while achieving better conservation outcomes. We highlight ways of reducing fishing costs while maintaining ISRA-based solutions. Systematic conservation planning using Important Areas gives decision makers a tool to balance cost with improved conservation quality, ultimately enhancing protected area network effectiveness by prioritizing critical habitats. Read the full paper in the journal iScience here: https://lnkd.in/gX8AeXaw #shark #ray #chimaera #research #publication #marine #conservation #ISRA