Feeding habits of the dwarf weakfish (Cynoscion nannus) off the coasts of Jalisco and Colima, Mexico

Sciaenids from the Pacific coast of Mexico are used as a second-class fish species for human consumption (Aguilar-Palomino et al., 1996). The dwarf weakfish (Cynoscion nannus) (Castro-Aguirre and Arvizu-Martínez, 1976) is often caught as bycatch in the shrimp fishery but, because of its small size (<27 cm TL, total length), it is not considered a valuable resource. This species can be found in great numbers in waters between 100 and 812 m (Allen and Robertson, 1994; Fischer et al., 1995) associated with the soft-bottom regions off the coast of Jalisco and Colima (González-Sansón et al., 1997).

Technical efficiency in artisanal fisheries (AF) in Badagry local government area of Lagos State, Nigeria

This study examined the technical efficiency in artisanal fisheries in Lagos State of Nigeria. The study employed a two stage random sampling procedure for the selection of 120 respondents. The analytical techniques involved descriptive statistics and estimation of technical efficiency following maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) procedure available in FRONTIER 4.1. The MLE result of the stochastic frontier production function showed that hired labour, cost of repair and capital items are critical factors that influences productivity of artisanal fishermen with the coefficient of hired labour being highly elastic. This implies that employing more labour will significantly increase the catch in the study area. The predicted farm efficiency with an average value of 0.92 showed that there is a marginal potential of about 8 percent to increase the catch, hence the income of the fishermen. The study further examined the factors that influence productivity of fishermen in the study area. Year of education, mode of operation and frequency of fishing have important implication on the technical efficiency of fishermen in the study area.

Can lake sediments provide a record of tropical storms? The case of Laguna de Juanacatlan, Jalisco, Mexico [abstract]

EXTRACT (SEE PDF FOR FULL ABSTRACT): Laguna de Juanacatlan is a small (15 hectare) lake in the State of Jalisco, Mexico. Its sediments are predominantly varved and thereby offer the potential of a high resolution paleoclimatic record.