Whether caught by angling or fishing, or perhaps farmed – fish is an important source of food throughout the world. Sustainable production methods in aquaculture and eco-friendly commercial and recreational fisheries can help protect water bodies and populations and enhance their resiliency to external perturbations. Cutting-edge fisheries research provides a solid basis for decision-making and recommendations in this field.

Validated findings on various fisheries issues

To help incorporate this knowledge into practice, the new Zeitschrift für Fischerei (FischZeit) provides a German-language platform for scientific findings. The initiator and editor-in-chief of the new open access journal is Professor Dr. Robert Arlinghaus, fisheries scientist and winner of the Communicator Award 2020 by the German Science Foundation (DFG) and the Stifterverband.

“Our journal is designed to be a central source of reliable knowledge for all issues relating to fisheries, angling, aquaculture and fish-related water management in all types of water bodies from lakes to oceans,” stated Robert Arlinghaus, outlining the idea. He explicitly stressed that the journal should by no means be understood as a mouthpiece for specific fisheries policy interests. “It goes without saying that uncomfortable truths and problems with fisheries must also be explored and openly addressed. Only then can constructive approaches to the sustainable use of fish resources be developed,” emphasised Arlinghaus.
 

“At the present time, there is a tendency to publish new findings as quickly as possible, often with a populist slant or from a one-sided perspective. This makes it all the more important to have a recognised peer-review process, as envisaged for FischZeit,” added Dr. Jasminca Behrmann-Godel from the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Rural Affairs and Consumer Protection, who is a member of the Editorial Board.

In an effort to reach as many user groups and interested parties as possible, the editors made a conscious decision to publish the journal in German. In this way, knowledge that otherwise tends to be confined to English-language specialist literature should become accessible to a wider German-speaking readership. “By deciding to use German as the language of publication, FischZeit makes it easier for a large group of German-speaking readers to understand issues that can often be complex,” commented Behrmann-Godel. She hopes that FischZeit will become a popular source of information not only for staff responsible in the fisheries administration and other authorities and associations in Germany, but also for readers in other German-speaking countries.

Content selected according to scientific standards and relevance to practice

Contributions from the natural and social sciences are published after undergoing a clearly regulated, scientific peer-review process. Besides meeting standards of scientific quality, all manuscripts must have a clear focus on practical application, such as offering options for action and responses to challenges in fisheries management, aquaculture management or fish-related water management.

“FischZeit will only be able to achieve this goal with the support of dedicated contributors and reviewers. We therefore warmly invite researchers to fill the journal with their academic content and to submit manuscripts to the Editorial Board. Simply contact us, we’re happy to help,” stated Robert Arlinghaus.

New journal with a long tradition

The historical roots of FischZeit go back to Berlin and the IGB. After all, the institute and its predecessor institutions have a long tradition of publishing fisheries journals. Previous publications include the journals Zeitschrift für Fischerei und deren Hilfswissenschaften (1893-1971), Deutsche Fischerei-Zeitung (1954-1971), Zeitschrift der Binnenfischerei der DDR (1971-1990) and Fortschritte der Fischereiwissenschaft (1983-1997). Incidentally, the first mentioned journal fell victim to paper shortages in the 1970s – a fate that will not befall FischZeit: the journal is available online only; all contributions can be freely accessed at www.zeitschrift-fischerei.de.

More information:

Read the journal 

Submit a manuscript 

Contact person:

Prof. Dr. Robert Arlinghaus
Research group leader at Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) and
Professor of Integrative Fisheries Management at  Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Email: arlinghaus@igb-berlin.de
Phone: +49 30 64181-653
www.ifishman.de

Press contacts:

Nadja Neumann/Angelina Tittmann
Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)
Press officers
Email: pr@igb-berlin.de
Phone: +49 30 64181-975/-631

Frank Aischmann
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Email: frank.aischmann@hu-berlin.de
Phone: +49-30-2093-12713