Divergent responses of pelagic and benthic fish body-size structure to remoteness and protection from humans Letessier T.B. auteur aut IRD Mouillot D. auteur aut IRD Mannocci Laura auteur aut IRD Jabour Christ H. auteur aut IRD Elamin M.E. auteur aut IRD Elmain S.M. auteur aut IRD Friedlander A.M. auteur aut IRD Hearn A. auteur aut IRD Juhel J.B. auteur aut IRD Ring Kleiven A. auteur aut IRD Moland E. auteur aut IRD Mouquet N. auteur aut IRD Nillos-Kleiven P.J. auteur aut IRD Sala E. auteur aut IRD Thompson C.D.H. auteur aut IRD Velez L. auteur aut IRD Vigliola Laurent auteur aut IRD Meeuwig J.J. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf born digital access Animal body-size variation influences multiple processes in marine ecosystems, but habitat heterogeneity has prevented a comprehensive assessment of size across pelagic (midwater) and benthic (seabed) systems along anthropic gradients. In this work, we derive fish size indicators from 17,411 stereo baited-video deployments to test for differences between pelagic and benthic responses to remoteness from human pressures and effectiveness of marine protected areas (MPAs). From records of 823,849 individual fish, we report divergent responses between systems, with pelagic size structure more profoundly eroded near human markets than benthic size structure, signifying greater vulnerability of pelagic systems to human pressure. Effective protection of benthic size structure can be achieved through MPAs placed near markets, thereby contributing to benthic habitat restoration and the recovery of associated fishes. By contrast, recovery of the world's largest and most endangered fishes in pelagic systems requires the creation of highly protected areas in remote locations, including on the High Seas, where protection efforts lag. specialized ATLANTIQUE PACIFIQUE OCEAN INDIEN 040PECHE 036MILMAR Science 383 6686 976-982 2024 0036-8075 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010091558 10.1126/science.adi7562 0036-8075 [F B010091558] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010091558 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/intranet/publi/2024-08/010091558.pdf Accès réservé (Intranet de l'IRD) IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2024-07-30 2025-11-06 fdi:010091558 fre