Managing Freshwater Fish in a Changing Climate: Resist, Accept, or Direct

Climate change is altering the distribution, phenology (e.g., timing of spawning), and community dynamics of freshwater fishes. Managers have three options for responding to these changes: “Resist” change to maintain or restore historic abiotic and biological conditions; “Accept” change and manage within the new conditions; or “Direct” change to produce new conditions considered desirable by humans. I discuss how the inland fisheries management approaches of stocking, regulations, habitat improvement, and community manipulations can be applied within the Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) framework. I also discuss ways to choose among these options and how ecological tipping points can be used to determine when Resist is no longer a feasible option and managers must shift to Accept or Direct options.