Understanding of krill population structure and distribution patterns is critical for effective conservation and management, especially it is urgent need to reveal the relationships among geographical ‘populations’ of Antarctic krill in the Area 48 and its subareas, and adjacent waters.
The most recent research progress in Antarctic krill genomics has provided a new research tool to achieve this goal. Combination of genomics and physical oceanography has the potential to reveal the population connectivity of krill.
Therefore, the following researches will help to improving the understanding of the relationship among krill geographical stocks. Firstly, multiple sources of data collection should be conducted, including krill samples, acoustic data, and environmental data. Secondly, based on the most recent genomics resources, krill genetic characteristics should also be analyzed to evaluate gene flow and migration rate among different geographical groups. Thirdly, oceanographic numerical models could be used to carry out to understand the spatial and temporal distribution characteristics and transport among different areas of krill.
The ultimate goal of such researches is to better understand krill distribution patterns and the causative mechanisms behind them, which will provide information to support spatial overlap analysis between the krill fishery and predators and optimize spatial scale for evaluate the precautionary harvest rate, which are crucial for CCAMLR management strategies.