Marine protected areas (MPAs) that ban fishing restore marine life within their boundaries and can also replenish nearby fisheries. However, some argue that after large MPAs are established, fishing effort is displaced to unprotected areas and economic loss is incurred by the fishing industry. We tested these assumptions by assessing the behavior and productivity of the Mexican industrial fishing fleet before and after the implementation of the largest fully protected MPA in North America (the 147,000–square kilometer Revillagigedo National Park). We found no decrease in catches and no causal link between the variation of the spatial footprint of the industrial fleet and the implementation of the MPA. Our findings add to growing evidence that well-designed MPAs benefit marine ecosystems and, in the long term, can also benefit the fisheries they support.

中文翻译：

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北美最大的完全受保护的海洋区域不伤害工业捕鱼

禁止捕鱼的海洋保护区 (MPA) 可以恢复其边界内的海洋生物，还可以补充附近的渔业资源。然而，一些人认为，在建立大型海洋保护区后，捕鱼活动将转移到未受保护的区域，并给渔业造成经济损失。我们通过评估实施北美最大的完全受保护的 MPA（147,000 平方公里的 Revillagigedo 国家公园）前后墨西哥工业捕鱼船队的行为和生产力来检验这些假设。我们发现渔获量没有减少，工业船队空间足迹的变化与 MPA 的实施之间没有因果关系。我们的发现增加了越来越多的证据表明精心设计的海洋保护区有益于海洋生态系统，并且从长远来看，