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Provides an introduction to population biology and the ecological theory and assessment of environmental impact of aquaculture in aquatic environments. The unit examines processes influencing the population biology of aquatic animals, the methods by which the parameters of growth, recruitment and mortality are estimated, and the effects of human exploitation on wild aquatic populations (using fisheries case examples). The potential alternative to exploiting wild populations, intensive aquaculture, is then examined. Key ecological and environmental issues associated with aquaculture are discussed, including methods to describe complex patterns of distribution and abundance, the response of populations to environmental disturbances, the impact of aquaculture and the design of environmental impact studies for aquaculture operations.
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