See my Google Scholar, ResearchGate, ORCiD, SagePolicyProfile, GitHub, and Twitter pages for more information. Please email me for pre-prints not posted here.

Peer-reviewed publications

^† indicates student mentee or employee in my lab

In review

Free CM, Kitchel ZJ, Seeley M, Shields A. Quota allocation policies in U.S. federal fisheries management and implications for climate resilience. Submitted to Fish and Fisheries.

Xu L, Embke HS, Free CM, Hansen GJA, Lynch AJ, Paukert CP, Sievert NA, Jensen OP.  Disentangling the historical impacts of warming and fishing on exploited freshwater fish populations. In first review at PNAS.

Fang Y^†, Carretta JV, Free CM. Estimates and drivers of protected species bycatch in the California set gillnet fishery. In first review at Biological Conservation. [pre-print]

Bennett A, Mason JG, Battista W, Free CM, Gephart JA, Kleisner KM, Rice ED, Robinson KF, Virdin J. The future of nutrition-sensitive fisheries governance under climate change: Prospects and limits of management and allocation interventions. In first revision at Environmental Research: Food Systems.

Published

40. Ma D, Halpern BS, Abrahms B, Allgeier J, García Molinos J, Free CM, Frazier M, Kaschner K, Weeks BC, Carter NH (in press) Strategic planning could reduce global mariculture impacts on marine biodiversity while expanding seafood production. In press at Nature Ecology & Evolution.

39. Smith JG, Lopazanski CJ^†, Free CM, Brun J, Anderson CR, Carr MH, Claudet J, Dugan JE, Eurich JG, Francis TB, Gill DA, Hamilton SL,  Kaschner K, Mouillot D, Raimondi PT, Starr RM, Ziegler SL, Malone DP, Marraffini ML, Parsons-Field AB, Spiecker B, Yeager M, Nickols KJ, Caselle JE (in press) Conservation benefits of a large marine protected area network across multiple ecosystems. In press at Conservation Biology.

38. Shaw MJ^†, Free CM, Mendsaikhan B, Ganzorig B, Jensen OP (2024) Length-based assessment of Hovsgol grayling (Thymallus nigrescens), lenok (Brachymystax lenok), and burbot (Lota lota) population status in Lake Hovsgol, Mongolia. Fisheries Management and Ecology: e12759. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

37. Viana DF, Gill D, Zvoleff A, Krueck NC, Zambroni-Mason J, Free CM, Shepon A, Grieco D, Schmidhuber J, Mascia MB, Golden CD (2024) Sustainable-use marine protected areas to improve human nutrition. Nature Communications 15: 7716. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

36. Feitosa LM^†, Burgess MG, Free CM, Gaines SD (2024) Synergies between price and life history enhance extinction risk in open-access fisheries. Fish and Fisheries 25(6): 972–984. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

35. Passarelli S**, Free CM**,  Shepon A, Beal T, Batis C, Golden CD (2024) Global estimation of dietary micronutrient inadequacies: a modeling analysis. The Lancet Global Health 12(10): e1590-e1599 [link] [PDF] [Altmetric] ** denotes shared first authorship

34. Gill DA, Lester SE, Free CM, Pfaff A, Iversen E, Reich BJ, Yang S, Ahmadia G, Andradi-Brown DA, Darling ES, Edgar GJ, Fox HE, Geldmann J, Trung Le D, Mascia MB, Mesa-Gutiérrez R, Mumby PJ, Veverka L, Warmuth LM (2024) A diverse portfolio of marine protected areas can better advance global conservation and equity. PNAS 121(10): e2313205121. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

33. Eurich JG**, Friedman WR**, Kleisner KM**,  Zhao LZ**, Free CM, Fletcher M, Mason JG, Tokunaga K, Aguion A, Dell’Apa A, Dickey-Collas M, Fujita R, Golden CD, Hollowed AB, Ishimura G, Karr KA, Kasperski S, Kisara Y, Lau JD, Mangubhai S, Osman L, Pecl GT, Schimdt JO, Allison EH, Sullivan PJ, Cinner JE, Griffis RB, McClanahan TR, Stedman RC, Mills KE (2024) Diverse pathways for climate resilience in marine fishery systems. Fish and Fisheries 25: 38-59. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric] ** denotes shared first authorship

32. Elsler LG, Oostdijk M, Gephart JA, Free CM, Zhao J, Tekwa EW, Bochniewicz EM, Giron-Nava A, Johnson AF (2023) Global trade network patterns are coupled to fisheries sustainability. PNAS Nexus 2(10): pgad301. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

31. Free CM, Bellquist LF, Forney KA, Humberstone J, Kauer K, Lee Q, Liu OR, Samhouri JF, Wilson JR, Bradley D (2023) Static management presents a simple solution to a dynamic fishery and conservation challenge. Biological Conservation 285: 110249. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

30. Free CM, Smith JG, Lopazanski CJ^†, Brun J,  Francis TB, Eurich JG, Claudet J, Dugan JE, Gill D, Hamilton SL, Kaschner K, Mouillot D, Ziegler SL, Caselle JE, Nickols KJ (2023) If you build it, they will come: coastal amenities facilitate human engagement in marine protected areas. People and Nature 5(5): 1592-1609. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

29. Smith JG, Free CM, Lopazanski CJ^†, Brun J, Anderson CR, Carr MH, Claudet J, Dugan JE, Eurich JG, Francis TB, Hamilton SL,  Kaschner K, Mouillot D, Raimondi PT,  Starr RM, Ziegler SL, Nickols KJ, Caselle JE (2023) A marine protected area network does not confer community structure resilience to a marine heatwave across coastal ecosystems. Global Change Biology 29(19): 5634-5651. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

28. Free CM, Anderson SC, Hellmers EA, Muhling BA, Navarro MO, Richerson K, Rogers LA, Satterthwaite WH, Thompson AR, Burt JM, Gaines SD, Marshall KN, White JW, Bellquist LF (2023) Impact of the 2014-16 marine heatwave on US and Canada West Coast fisheries: surprises and lessons from key case studies. Fish and Fisheries 24: 652-674. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

27. Teneva L, Free CM, Hume A, Agostini VN, Klein CJ, Watson RA, Gaines SD (2023) Small island nations can achieve food security benefits through climate-adaptive blue food governance by 2050. Marine Policy 151: 105577. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

26. Free CM, Mangin T, Wiedenmann J, McVeigh H^†, Smith C^†, Gaines SD (2023) Harvest control rules used in US federal fisheries management and implications for climate resilience. Fish and Fisheries 24(2): 248-262. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

25. Passarelli S**, Free CM**, Allen LH, Batis C, Beal T, Biltoft-Jensen AP, Bromage S, Cao L, Castellanos-Guitiérrez A, Christensen T, Crispim SP, Dekkers A, De Ridder K, Kronsteiner-Gicevic S, Lee C, Li Y, Moursi M, Moyersoen I, Schmidhuber J,  Shepon A, Viana DF, Golden CD (2022) Estimating national and subnational nutrient intake distributions of global diets. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 116(2): 551-560. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric] ** denotes shared first authorship; Editor’s Choice

24. Free CM, Cabral RB, Froehlich HE, Battista W, Ojea E, O’Reilly E, Palardy JE, Garcia Molinos J, Siegel K, Arnason R, Juinio-Meñez MA, Fabricius K, Turley C, Gaines SD (2022) Expanding ocean food production under climate change. Nature 605: 490-‌496. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

23. Free CM, Moore SK, Trainer VL (2022) The value of monitoring in efficiently and adaptively managing biotoxin contamination in marine fisheries. Harmful Algae 114: 102226. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

22. Free CM, Vargas Poulsen C^†, Bellquist LF, Wassermann SN, Oken KL (2022) The CALFISH database: a century of California’s non-confidential fisheries landings and participation data. Ecological Informatics 69: 101599. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

21. Ovando D, Free CM, Jensen OP, Hilborn R (2022) A history and assessment of catch-only stock assessment models. Fish and Fisheries 23: 616-630. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

20. Mason JG**, Eurich JG**, Lau JD**, Battista W, Free CM, Mills KE, Tokunaga K, Zhao LZ, Dickey-Collas M, Valle M, Pecl GT, Cinner JE, McClanahan TR, Allison EH, Friedman WR, Silva C, Yáñez E, Barbieri MÁ, Kleisner KM (2021) Attributes of climate resilience in fisheries: from theory to practice. Fish and Fisheries 23: 522-544. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric] ** denotes shared first authorship

19. Golden CD**, Koehn JZ**, Shepon A**, Passarelli S**, Free CM**, Viana DF**, Matthey H, Eurich JG, Gephart JA, Fluet-Chouinnard E, Nyboer EA, Lynch AJ, Kjellevold M, Bromage S, Charlebois P, Barange M, Vannuccini S, Cao L, Kleisner KM, Rimm EB, Danaei G, DeSisto C, Kelahan H, Fiorella KJ, Little DC, Allison EH, Fanzo J, Thilsted SH (2021) Aquatic foods to nourish nations. Nature 598: 315-320. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric] ** denotes shared first authorship

18. Free CM, Jensen OP, Hilborn R (2021) Evaluating impacts of forage fish abundance on marine predators. Conservation Biology 35(5): 1540-1551. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

17. Safiq A^†, Free CM, Caracappa J, Valenti J, Jensen OP (2021) Perceptions of ecosystem-based fisheries management among state natural resource agency scientists in the Northeastern United States. Fisheries 46(2) 66-75. [link] [PDF]

16. Costello C, Cao L, Gelcich S, Cisneros-Mata MÁ, Free CM, Froehlich HE, Golden CD, Ishimura G, Maier J, Macadam-Somer I, Mangin T, Melnychuk MC, Miyahara M, de Moor CL, Naylor R, Nøstbakken L, Ojea E, O’Reilly E, Parma AM, Plantinga AJ, Thilsted SH, Lubchenco J (2020) The future of food from the sea. Nature 588: 95-100. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

15. Free CM, Mangin T, García Molinos J, Ojea E, Burden M, Costello C, Gaines SD (2020) Realistic fisheries management reforms could mitigate the impacts of climate change in most countries. PLoS One 15(3): e0224347. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

14. Free CM, Jensen OP, Anderson SC, Gutierrez NL, Kleisner KM, Longo C, Minto C, Osio GC, Walsh JC (2020) Blood from a stone: performance of catch-only methods in estimating stock biomass status. Fisheries Research 223: 105452. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

13. Golden A, Free CM, Jensen OP (2019) Angler preferences and satisfaction in a high-threshold bucket-list recreational fishery. Fisheries Research 220: 105364. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

12. Free CM, Thorson JT, Pinsky ML, Oken KL, Wiedenmann J, Jensen OP (2019) Impacts of historical warming on marine fisheries production. Science 363(6430): 979-983. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

11. Wiedenmann J, Free CM, Jensen OP (2019) Evaluating the performance of data-limited methods for setting catch targets through application to data-rich stocks: A case study using Northeast U.S. fish stocks. Fisheries Research 209: 129-142. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

10. Free CM, Jensen OP, Wiedenmann J, Deroba JJ (2017) The refined ORCS approach: a catch-based method for estimating stock status and catch limits for data-poor fish stocks. Fisheries Research 193: 60-70. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

9. Gill DA, Mascia MB, Ahmadia GN, Glew L, Lester SE, Barnes M, Craigie I, Darling E, Free CM, Geldmann J, Holst S, Jensen OP, White AT, Basurto X, Coad L, Gates RD, Guannel G, Mumby PJ, Thomas H, Whitmee S, Woodley S, Fox HE (2017) Capacity shortfalls hinder the performance of marine protected areas globally. Nature 543: 665-669. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

8. Tsogtsaikhan P, Mendsaikhan B, Jargalmaa G, Ganzorig B, Weidel BC, Filosa CM, Free CM, Young T, Jensen OP (2017) Age and growth comparisons of Hovsgol grayling (Thymallus nigrescens Dorogostaisky, 1923), Baikal grayling (T. baicalensis Dybowski, 1874), and lenok (Brachymystax lenok Pallas, 1773) in lentic and lotic habitats of Northern Mongolia. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 33(1): 108-115. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

7. Free CM, Jensen OP, Mendsaikhan B (2015) A mixed-method approach for quantifying illegal fishing and its impact on an endangered fish species. PLoS One 10(12): e0143960. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

6. Norghauer JM, Free CM, Landis RM, Grogan J, Malcolm JR, Thomas SC (2015) Herbivores limit the population size of big-leaf mahogany trees in an Amazonian forest. Oikos 125(1): 137–148. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

5. Free CM, Jensen OP, Mason SA, Eriksen M, Williamson NJ, Boldgiv B (2014) High-levels of microplastic pollution in a large, remote, mountain lake. Marine Pollution Bulletin 85(1): 156–163. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

4. Free CM, Landis RM, Grogan J, Schulze MD, Lentini M, Dünisch O (2014) Management implications of long-term tree growth and mortality rates: A modeling study of big-leaf mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) in the Brazilian Amazon. Forest Ecology and Management 330: 46–54. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

3. Smith MA, Walker NJ, Free CM, Kirchhoff MJ, Drew GS, Warnock ND, Stenhouse IJ (2014) Identifying marine Important Bird Areas using at-sea survey data. Biological Conservation 172: 180–189. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

2. Grogan J, Landis RM, Free CM, Schulze MD, Lentini M, Ashton MS (2014) Big-leaf mahogany Swietenia macrophylla population dynamics and implications for sustainable management. Journal of Applied Ecology 51(3): 664–674. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric] * June 2014 Editor’s Choice.

1. Powers SP, Hernandez FJ, Condon RH, Drymon JM, Free CM (2013) Novel pathways for injury from offshore oil spills: Direct, sublethal and indirect effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on pelagic Sargassum communities. PLoS One 8(9): e74802. [link] [PDF] [Altmetric]

Technical reports, software, and datasets

Software

1. NCEAS CRF Working Group (2023) Climate-Resilient Fisheries Planning Tool. Available at: https://climateresilientfisheries.net/

R packages

4. Free CM et al. (2021) wcfish: U.S. West Coast fisheries data. Available at: https://github.com/cfree14/wcfish

3. Free CM et al. (2021) nutriR: Nutritional intake functions for R. Available at: https://github.com/cfree14/nutriR

2. Free CM (2018) datalimited2: More stock assessment methods for data-limited fisheries. Available at: https://github.com/cfree14/datalimited2

1. Free CM (2017) freeR: Miscellaneous functions in R. Available at: https://github.com/cfree14/freeR

R Shiny web applications

7. Free CM (2024) Nutritional Value Score (NVS) exploration tool. Available at: https://cfree.shinyapps.io/nutritional_value_scores/

6. Free CM (2023) Subnational nutrient intake inadequacies. Available at: https://emlab-ucsb.shinyapps.io/global_intake_inadequacies/

5. Free CM (2022) nutriR: Subnational nutrient intake explorer. Available at: https://emlab-ucsb.shinyapps.io/nutriR/

4. Free CM, Millage KD (2021) NutriCast: A web-based tool to explore forecasted nutritional gains from marine fisheries and mariculture reforms under climate change. Available at: https://emlab-ucsb.shinyapps.io/nutricast/

3. Free CM (2020) FishCast: Impact of climate change and management reforms on marine fishers. Available at: https://emlab-ucsb.shinyapps.io/fishcast2/

2. Free CM (2019) RAM Legacy Stock Boundary Database Viewer. Available at: https://cfree.shinyapps.io/ramlsb_viewer/

1. Free CM (2017) Refined ORCS Approach. Available at: https://cfree.shinyapps.io/refined_orcs_approach/

Technical reports

18. Free CM, Kitchel ZJ, Seeley M, Shields A (2024) Quota allocation policies in US federal fisheries management and implications for climate resilience. Environmental Defense Fund, New York, New York. [link] [PDF]

14. Free CM (2022) Assessment of associated landed species and bycatch discards in the California halibut gill net and trawl fisheries. California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Sacramento, CA.

13. Free CM, Mangin T, McVeigh H, Smith C, Gaines SD (2022) Harvest control rules used in U.S. federal fisheries and implications for climate resilience. Environmental Defense Fund, Boston. [PDF]

12. Gaines S, Cabral R, Free CM, Golbuu Y, et al. (2019) The expected impacts of climate change on the ocean economy. World Resources Institute, Washington, D.C. [link] [PDF]

11. Costello C, Cao L, Gelcich S, et al. (2019) The future of food from the sea. World Resources Institute, Washington, D.C. [link] [PDF]

10. Free CM, Wiedenmann J (2019) Application of CUSUM control charts to fourteen California fisheries. Prepared for MRAG Americas for the Ocean Conservancy. [PDF]

9. Jensen OP, Free CM (2018) Development and testing of effort-tailored superensemble and two-stage catch-only models for estimation of stock status. UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome, Italy. [PDF]

8. Jensen OP, Free CM (2017) Testing and comparison of data-limited assessment models for estimating global and regional stock status. UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome, Italy. [PDF]

7. Free CM, Grogan J, Schulze MD, Landis RM, Brienen RJW (2017) Current Brazilian forest management guidelines are unsustainable for Swietenia, Cedrela, Amburana, and Copaifera: A response to da Cunha and colleagues. Forest Ecology and Management 386: 81-83. [link] [PDF]

6. Grogan J, Schulze M, Paz Pires I, Free CM, Landis RM, Pinelo Morales G, Johnson A (2016) How sustainable is mahogany management? ITTO Tropical Forest Update 25(1): 5-9. [link] [PDF]

5. Hernandez M, Free CM (2015) Digital Atlas of Mongolian Fish. Available at: http://marine.rutgers.edu/~cfree/atlas-of-mongolian-fish/

4. Grogan J, Free CM, Johnson A, Pinelo Morales G, Alegria R (2014) Assessment of the conservation status of big-leaf mahogany, Spanish cedar, and three secondary timber species populations in the forestry concessions of the Maya Biosphere Reserve, Petén, Guatemala. CATIE-Finnfor. [PDF] [summary] * Featured in the November 25, 2015 NY Times. 

3. Grogan J, Schulze M, Lentini M, Zweede J, Landis RM, Free CM (2013) Managing big-leaf mahogany in natural forests. ITTO Tropical Forest Update 22(1): 12-19. [link] [PDF]

2. Smith MA, Walker N, Free CM, Kirchhoff M, Warnock N, Weinstein A, Distler T, Stenhouse IJ (2012) Marine Important Bird Areas in Alaska: Identifying globally significant sites using colony and at-sea survey data. National Audubon Society, Audubon Alaska, Anchorage, AK. [PDF]

1. Free CM, Landis RM, Grogan J (2011) User Manual for the Big-Leaf Mahogany Growth and Yield Model. US Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry. [PDF]

In preparation

Near submission

Bastien-Olvera BA, Granella F, Emmerling J, Tavoni M, Verschuur J, Free CM, Cheung WWL, Aburto-Oropeza O, Brander L, Ricke K. The social cost of carbon for the oceans. Near submission to Science.

Burns ES^†, Warren T, Pitt J, Granados-Dieseldorff P, Welch J, Luckhurst B, Thomas LR^†, Free CM. Low-capacity, adaptive management strategies improve the population status of vulnerable aggregating reef species. Near submission to Conservation Letters.

Zahner JA^†, Branch TA, Free CM. Trends in operational harvest control rules for marine fisheries. Near submission to Fish and Fisheries.

Free CM, Moore SM, Holland D, Shelton A. Predicting domoic acid depuration timelines in the US West Coast Dungeness crab fishery. Near submission to Harmful Algae.

In preparation

West Coast fisheries

Free CM, Bellquist LF, et al. Impacts of historical warming and marine heatwaves on the fisheries of the North American West Coast.

Matthews K, Giraldo Ospina A, Caselle JE, Free CM. Impacts of climate change, fisheries management, and market dynamics on the distribution of California fishing grounds.

Giraldo Ospina A, Free CM, Caselle JE. Climate-driven shifts in the protection of nearshore species within California’s marine protected area network.

Dungeness crab

Free CM, Oken KL, Richerson K. Estimates of California spiny lobster, Dungeness crab, and rock crab population status using an open-source depletion estimator.

Free CM, Oken KL, Richerson K. HABs, crabs, and whales, oh my: projected shifts in the co-occurrence of Dungeness crab with fishing communities, humpback whales, and harmful algae under climate change.

Free CM, Oken KL, Richerson K. Adjusting size-sex-season (3S) management for Dungeness crab under scenarios of changing population dynamics.

Free CM, Oken KL, Richerson K. Impacts of climate change on Dungeness crab population dynamics and identification of climate-adaptive harvest strategies.

HABs and biotoxins

Free CM, Krainer S. Biotoxin depuration rates from seafood species: a meta-analysis of analytic approaches and results.

Marine mammals

Fang Y, Free CM. Status and trends of U.S. marine mammal populations.

Marine protected areas

Kelkar M^†, Couture J, Ferraro D^†, Bradley D, Free CM. Empirical studies on climate resilience in MPAs demonstrate effectiveness in limited contexts.

Nutrition

Friesen V, Beal T, Free CM, Dewey K, Costlow L, Nordhagen S, Golden CD, Vasta F, Masters WA, Mbuya M, Bai Y, Pittenger Adams K. Global impact of large-scale food fortification.

McLaren S, Joy E, Fortnezi, van Zanten H, Beal T,  Free CM, Herrero M,  Ponsioen T. Integrated nutrition and environmental impact assessment to support decision-making in Indonesia.

Other

Smeltz TS^†, Free CM, Harris BP, Jensen OP, Grabowski JH, Sethi SA. Avoiding tradeoffs between global seafood production and seafloor impacts through fisheries innovation.

Rubio I^†, Aguión A, Salgueiro-Otero D, Free CM, Tidd A, Ojea E. Commercial species’ shifts underline vulnerabilities of fishing countries in the face of climate change.