A fisheries co-management case study from The Gambia

User involvement in fisheries management has been around for some time, but few analytical papers have been published on the subject in Africa. Most of these initiatives fall under the rubric of co-management. But what is the concept of co-management in theory and how does it work in practice? In reviewing a comprehensive artisanal fisheries development project, we will attempt to answer this question in the context of The Gambia.

A Review of Recent Developments in the World Sea Cucumber Fisheries

Sea cucumbers (Holothuridae and Stichopodidae) have been harvested commercially for at least 1,000 years. The world fisheries for sea cucumbers, however, are not well documented and in general are poorly managed. Depending upon the species exploited, there are two processing procedures for the sea cucumber product. Some species are eaten raw, while most commercial species are processed into a dry product called beche-de-mer or trepang. This dry product is exported to a central market such as Hong Kong and then re-exported to the consumers. In this review, recent statistics on the world sea cucumber fisheries, collected from different services, are detailed for each major fishing area. Case studies for each fishing area are also presented. Recent major changes in the Indo-Pacific fishery include the participation of new producer countries, the shift in the species being exploited, and an increase in the Chinese market. The expansion of the largely monospecific temperate North Pacific fisheries is also described. Statistics from Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and the Food and Agriculture Organization provide valuable information on the producer and importer countries. Particular attention is paid to the reciprocal trade of beche-de-mer between Hong Kong and Singapore. An evaluation of the world sea cucumber landings and beche-de-mer production is presented. Recent developments include an expansion of the Hong Kong market due to increased demand by China, the importance of Indonesia as a major world producer, and an increase in the fisheries of Tropical Pacific nations. This increase is best documented for New Caledonia and Fiji. Ways to improve the access and the reliability of the statistics for the sea cucumber fishery are discussed, as is the potential for management of artisanal fisheries.

The Commercial, Subsistence, and Recreational Fisheries of American Samoa

Domestic fisheries in American Samoa landed 587,000 lb of fish and invertebrates in 1991 worth $993,000. Most of the catch (78%) and value (80%) was taken by the shoreline subsistence fishery that occurs on the coral reefs surrounding the islands. Artisanal fisheries for offshore pelagic fishes (primarily skipjack tuna, Katsuwonus pelamis; and yellowfin tuna, Thunnus albacares) and bottomfishes (snappers, emperors, groupers) accounted for 16% and 3%, respectively, of the domestic catch. Recreational tournament catches for pelagic fishes represented the remainder (3%). While sportfishing is becoming increasingly important, other domestic fisheries have declined in recent years. The shoreline subsistence fishery has dropped by about 25% over the past decade owing to socioeconomic factors and possibly overexploitation. Artisanal fisheries have also declined precipitously in recent years owing to hurricane-related damages, attrition of fishermen, and competition with imports. Artisanal fisheries show some potential for growth, but may be constrained by marketing issues, vessel capabilities, and limited stock sizes (for bottomfish) or local availability of high-value (pelagic) fishes. In contrast to the small-scale domestic fisheries, American Samoa is also homeport to a distant-water fleet of large purse seiners and longliners that fish beyond the EEZ and deliver about 160,000-220,000 short tons of tuna per year to local canneries.

Monitoring of streambank stability and streamside vegetation in a livestock exclosure on the Warm Springs River, Oregon : comparison of ground-based surveys with aerial photographic analysis

The objective of this monitoring project was to determine the baseline condition for a 960-m long stream reach and its associated streamside zone, which terminates at the confluence with the Deschutes River. This stream reach had been damaged heavily in the February 1996 flood and had also received many years of overuse by livestock grazing. The monitoring project was conducted in July 1997 just after installation of riparian exclosure fencing. Future resurvey of the study area will allow determination of progress made in ecological recovery.

Rights first, rights forever: small-scale fisheries and fishing communities from a human-rights perspective. A collection of articles from SAMUDRA report

Small-scale and artisanal fisheries contribute about two-thirds of the global fish production destined for direct human consumption. They also accommodate over 90 per cent of those who make their living from fisheries. Women comprise at least half the workforce in small-scale fisheries. Despite the important contributions made by small-scale fisheries to poverty eradication and food security, small-scale fishers and fishworkers continue to be marginalized at different levels. It is in this context that the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has developed the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines).

Spiny lobster fishery on the southwest coast of Portugal: conciliating fisheries and conservation

Dissertação de mest., Aquacultura e Pescas (Pescas), Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Univ. do Algarve, 2011

Spatial and temporal variation of commercially important bivalve species in the Algarve coast, Portugal

Dissertação de mestrado, Biologia Marinha, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve, 2015

Ecologia humana e manejo participativo da pesca do búzio Anomalocardia brasiliana (Gmelin, 1791) (Bivalvia: Veneridae) na Reserva de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Estadual Ponta do Tubarão (RN)

Coastal and marine protected areas are created to protect habitat, avoid biodiversity loss, and to help maintain viable fisheries. However, most of these areas in tropical countries occurs in impoverished regions and directly affect the livelihood and survival of coastal communities which directly depend on fisheries and shellfisheries. Therefore, socioeconomic and conservation goals overlap. In this context, fishers should have a central place in resource management. They are critical resource users and their behavior directly affects the system. Shellfish resources are important sources of food, employment and income to fishing communities in Latin America. But despite its widespread use for food and income, there is an urgent need of more research on shellfish management. This research discusses the artisanal fisheries of Venus clam (Anomalocardia brasiliana) (Gmelin, 1791) (Bivalvia: Veneridae) in Brazil, and points out strategies to improve the system. Venus clam is a small and commonly exploited species for food and income on the Brazilian coast. This research was carried out at Ponta do Tubarão Sustainable Development Reserve (Brazilian Northeast coast), where there was no information available about who harvest, where or how much Venus clam has been harvested, despite this resource being exploited for generations. Clam fishery follows the pattern of socio-economic invisibility that general clam exploitation has in Brazil. Methods used were interviews, participatory monitoring and focal follow observation from January 2010 to May 2011. Results include: (a) the identification of shell fishers, (b) how harvest and meat processing are performed (mollusk beds, time spent, gross and net production), (c) the analisis of shell fisher income and their economic sustentability, and (d) the involvement of shell fisher families in data gathering and analyses for the first time. Based on the acquired knowledge, we propose a new institutional arrangement for clam fishery including co-management, fisheries agreement, compensatory arrangements and improvements for the Venus clam value chain such as the establishment of a minimum price for clam meat. This research also includes two other results: a general description for Venus clam harvesting in the Brazilian Northeast coast and a specific discussion about co-management of Venus clam in Brazil. The first one was possible through the meeting of several shell fisherwomen from other states during activities promoted by People of the Tides (PoT) project. PoT was an international initiative aiming to develop coastal communities that depend on mollusk for their livelihood. The second one is a comparison between PoT and Venus clam management at Pirajubaé Marine Extractive Reserve (Santa Catarina). It evaluates the success and failures of these only two initiatives involving co-management of A. brasiliana in Brazil

Estimativa da captura total: desenhos amostrais para pesca artesanal

Estimating total landings of artisanal fisheries in managed areas is essential for the development of programs aimed at the establishment of sustainable production systems. However, few experiences addressed the constraints of assessments targeted at multispecific and small scale fisheries with pulverized landings. Total annual production (fish, lobsters and octopus) at the Marine Extractive Reserve of Corumbau, Bahia, Brazil, in 2006, was estimated through yields recorded by fisherfolks, in the scope of a participatory fisheries monitoring program. Three designs were employed: 1) simple random sampling, 2) stratified random sampling by month and fishing frequency, 3) stratified random sampling by community, fishing frequency and months, resulting in estimates of 349t (95% confidence interval = 305-393), 330t (289-372) and 315t (279-351), respectively. This kind of information can help design strategies for aggregation of value to small scale fisheries production, and also for the dimensioning of the corresponding infrastructure. However, these estimates shall not be used to support fishing effort increase, as there is high uncertainty regarding the state of the stocks, as well as limitations related to the asymmetry in monthly landings per fisherfolk and to the sampling coverage in the different strata.

Taxonomia, biologia reprodutiva e dieta da Raia Borboleta, Gymnura micrura (Myliobatiformes: Elasmobranchii)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Los derechos de pesca, ¿una solución al estado de los caladeros de Gran Canaria (Islas Canarias, España)?

Máster en Gestión Sostenible de Recursos Pesqueros