WGAGFA (formerly the Working Group on Application of Genetics in Fisheries and Mariculture – WGAGFM) works on management themes spanning from commercial fisheries to ecosystems, recreational exploitation, and mariculture.
The group also looks at a number of applications for genetic methods. Examples include identifying populations, tracing the origin of fish and fish products, tracing things like migratory behaviours and habitat use, determining the dynamics of non-indigenous species, and evaluating the effects of aquaculture escapees. Technological developments that have enabled genomic bar-coding are also considered, with advice given on application in species and ecosystem management.
WGAGFA focuses on knowledge generated from applications of molecular genetic and genomic tools to identify, trace, restore, and manage local populations of fish and shellfish. The group also hindcasts and forecasts how drivers – for example physical, climatic, and fisheries ones – affect distributions.
