Without doubt, stone tidal weirs contribute to marine biodiversity. In comparison with intertidal zoneswithout stone tidal weir, those with stone tidal weirs have host diverse marine species.
Once stone tidal weirs are abandoned, the less fish is caught. As the attention of local people shifts to destructive modern fishery, all aspects connected to cultural diversity would also be disappeared. In order to maintain coastal communities sustainable, they must not lose their biocultural diversity; stone tidal weirs could be served as an icon of such diversity as well. The UNESCO UNITWIN university network researches and studies how stone tidal weirs in safeguarding biocultural diversity.
The underwater cultural heritage of stone tidal weirs seems to have been an artificial womb for marine species and it is It one of the oldest fish catching methods for human beings. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis are necessary to research the role of stone tidal weirds as marine ecosystems. As for the latter, both archaeological and historical research is the most helpful.
When stone tidal weirs are studied, interdisciplinary collaboration between social science and natural science is really necessary. In the US, archaeology and anthropology are included in social science. Oceanographers or marine biologists provide natural scientific data upon biodiversity, while social scientists combine natural scientific data with social scientific one and use them for design and planning purposes.