Forage Fish Outcome:Factors Influencing Progress
Several factors could impact our ability to better understand the role of forage fish in the Chesapeake Bay. These factors have directly informed the management actions our partners will take to achieve the Forage Fish outcome.
Public, Government Agency and Non-governmental Organization Engagement
Recent and ongoing forage research must be synthesized and shared with government agencies, non-governmental organizations and the public.
Partner Coordination
- Selecting one or more environmental indicators to track and assess the status of the Chesapeake Bay’s forage base will require collaboration among Chesapeake Bay Program partners.
- Ensuring both invertebrate and vertebrate species are represented in our work will require consensus around the objectives of and management approaches guiding this outcome.
Scientific and Technical Understanding
Additional monitoring is needed to determine the presence, abundance and diversity of forage species in shallow-water estuarine habitats. These monitoring needs could be met with a Chesapeake Bay-wide survey or a coordinated effort of small-scale citizen scientists. At present, no comprehensive studies of these habitats exist, and there is little information on the benthic species found here.