Anthropogenic and ecology research indicators of top commercial fish species in the Baltic Sea: Review

Abstract. In many parts of the world, morality caused as a result of fishing actives is the only influencer affecting the status of top commercial stocks. This however is not the case in the Baltic Sea, which has a multitude of other processes that influence fish stock dynamics. This paper compartmentalises 248 publications that consider the cumulative effects and trade-offs some of the biggest anthropogenic and ecology stressors (temperature change, hypoxia, eutrophication, nutrient pollution acidification, low salinity and food-web dynamics) have on the ecology of top commercial fish species in the Baltic Sea (cod, sprat, whiting, herring, flounder and plaice). The results illustrate the extent of academic research that can be applied to commercial fisheries knowledge in the Baltic Sea and identifies which pressures have the greatest negative impacts for which species. In addition, the findings demonstrate how well individual fish stocks have adapted to the changing environmental conditions of the Baltic Sea. In doing so, the review illustrates the next challenges and underlines what fish will likely dominate in the future and which will struggle. With increased natural hazards, top commercial fish species have reacted differently, depending on the region and adaptive capabilities. In most cases, species in the Clupeidae family have adapted the best to their new surroundings, flatfish resilience is varied, whilst fish in the Gadidae family are finding the Baltic Sea too hostile.