Beyond age-structured single-species management: Optimal harvest selectivity in the face of predator–prey interactions

Abstract

In the single-species literature, it is widely acknowledged that conserving young fish for future harvesting is beneficial. This finding holds great significance in fisheries economics and has garnered substantial attention over the years. In this study, a full-blown age-structured predator–prey model is developed and used to demonstrate that multispecies considerations may shift the optimal selection of predators towards smaller individuals, providing valuable counteractive insights. These new results offer a fresh perspective highly relevant to regulation and choice of selectivity patterns.