ISWE is delighted to be collaborating with Bangor University colleagues from the School of Ocean Sciences on a new research project focussing on the history and future of herring in seas around Wales.
Until the early-20th century, herring were a fundamentally important component of the marine ecosystem of the Irish Sea, and a prominent feature in the lives of Welsh coastal communities.
Funded by a UKRI cross-council interdisciplinary research grant, the historical marine ecology project brings together historians with marine scientists to identify historical archives and information relating to herring, and explore ways of making use of this historical knowledge to inform sustainable ocean management in the future.
The project will focus on locating historical herring spawning areas off the coast of Wales, analysing historical variations in herring populations and behaviours, and developing an understanding of the significance of herring to the social, economic and cultural histories of coastal and inland communities connected to the Irish Sea.
The project is led by Dr Alec Moore (PI), with Prof. Jan Hiddink, Dr Shaun Evans, Dr Lee Raye, Dr Georgina Hunt and Emily Phillips.
