Artisanal fisheries status and sustainable management options in Teknaf coast, Bangladesh

The study was an endeavor to bring forward a concise, factual description of the salient features of the present status of artisanal fisheries resources and its management for sustainable development of fishing communities in Teknaf coast, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. This study was conducted through 14 fishing villages of 4 Unions in Teknaf Upazila. As a hub of various fisheries deeds, a comprehensive coastal fisheries census, conducted on the coast during the study period, revealed that about 566 fishing fleet of two types, 1263 fishing gears of seven kinds, 6466 fishermen were being involved in fishing at Naaf river estuary. The catch composition of the coastal fishing was found 52 finfish species, 10 shrimp and 3 crabs. The unique potentialities provided by mostly affluent fisheries resources are needed to be tapped and channelized in the appropriate direction for maintaining a paragon of these fisheries resources of coastal area and for pursuing ecologically sustainable development via environment friendly intrinsic exploration and exploitation. “Community Based Fisheries Co-management” program should initiate immediately for the fisherman community of Naaf river estuary of Teknaf coastal region. This will go along way to help sustain the coastal fisheries resources with active participation of the fishermen

A fisheries management plan for the River Tweed in the Scottish Borders

The River Tweed is, in rod-catch terms, the second most important river in Britain for Atlantic salmon, with an annual rod catch of ca.10,000 fish. This article gives an outline of the second edition of the Tweed Fisheries Management Plan, which is defined as "The co-ordination of data collection and analyses with fundamental research into relevant topics to devise management actions that will beneficially affect the future state of fish stocks". Much of the work set down for the present is concerned with setting up recording and measuring systems for fish catches and exploitation rates, and for the operation of monitoring sites for juvenile densities and adult trout and salmon spawning runs. While surveys show the present state of affairs, the collection of records and regular monitoring of sites will mean that in the future, the past will be better known through a longer series of records. Two case histories are described. The first is concerned with setting aims for managing the brown trout of the Tweed and defining the present state of the fishery. The second is an investigation into the spring salmon of the Tweed.

Littoral vegetation of Lake Tohopekaliga: community descriptions prior to a large-scale fisheries habitat-enhancement project

An extreme dry-down and muck-removal project was conducted at Lake Tohopekaliga, Florida, in 2003-2004, to remove dense vegetation from inshore areas and improve habitat degraded by stabilized water levels. Vegetation was monitored from June 2002 to December 2003, to describe the pre-existing communities in terms of composition and distribution along the environmental gradients. Three study areas (Treatment-Selection Sites) were designed to test the efficacy of different treatments in enhancing inshore habitat, and five other study areas (Whole-Lake Monitoring Sites) were designed to monitor the responses of the emergent littoral vegetation as a whole. Five general community types were identified within the study areas by recording aboveground biomasses and stem densities of each species. These communities were distributed along water and soils gradients, with water depth and bulk density explaining most of the variation. The shallowest depths were dominated by a combination of Eleocharis spp., Luziola fluitans, and Panicum repens; while the deeper areas had communities of Nymphaea odorata and Nuphar luteum; Typha spp.; or Paspalidium geminatum and Hydrilla verticillata. Mineralized soils were common in both the shallow and deep-water communities, while the intermediate depths had high percentages of organic material in the soil. These intermediate depths (occurring just above and just below low pool stage) were dominated by Pontederia cordata, the main species targeted by the habitat enhancement project. This emergent community occurred in nearly monocultural bands around the lake (from roughly 60–120 cm in depth at high pool stage) often having more diverse floating mats along the deep-water edge. The organic barrier these mats create is believed to impede access of sport fish to shallow-water spawning areas, while the overall low diversity of the community is evidence of its competitive nature in stabilized waters. With continued monitoring of these study areas long-term effects of the restoration project can be assessed and predictive models may be created to determine the efficacy and legitimacy of such projects in the future.

Recent research in the African Great Lakes: fisheries, biodiversity and cichlid evolution

The East African Great Lakes are now well known for (1) their fisheries, of vital importance for their rapidly rising riparian human populations, and (2) as biodiversity hotspots with spectacular endemic faunas, of which the flocks of cichlid fishes unique to each of the three largest lakes, Tanganyika, Malawi and Victoria, offer unique opportunities to investigate how new species evolve and coexist. Since the early 1990s research involving over a hundred scientists, financed by many international bodies, has produced numerous reports and publications in widely scattered journals. This article summarizes their main discoveries and examines the status of, and prospects for, the fisheries, as well as current ideas on how their rich endemic fish faunas have evolved. It first considers fisheries projects in each of the three lakes: the deep rift valley lakes Tanganyika and Malawi and the huge Victoria, all of which share their waters between several East African countries. Secondly it considers the biodiversity surveys of each lake, based on underwater (SCUBA) observations of fish ecology and behaviour which have revealed threats to their fish faunas, and considers what conservation measures are needed. Thirdly, using the lakes as laboratories, what have the international investigations (including DNA techniques and follow-up aquarium experiments) now revealed about the origins and relationships of their cichlid species flocks and mechanisms of evolution?

Fish communities and fisheries in Wales's National Nature Reserves: a review

Wales is important for fish conservation in Britain. In much of Wales, atchments are small (median catchment size = 121 km2 ) and frequently eparated by areas of upland (> 600 m altitude), creating a highly agmented habitat for freshwater fish. Consequently, fish communities onsist mainly of diadromous species such as trout, eel and sticklebacks hat were able to recolonise freshwaters via the sea following the retreat of he ice sheets ca. 10 000 years BP. This review aims to (i) update the former work of Lyle and Maitland, taking into account new National Nature Reserves (NNRs)and additional data collected since 1991; (ii) assess the different fish communities represented on Welsh NNRs with respect to their naturalness; (iii) examine the use of NNRs for angling; (iv) evaluate opportunities for expanding the NNR series to conserve fish populations of conservation importance. The paper provides a table of freshwater fish occurrence by water body in Wales.

The blackback flounder and its fishery in New England and New York

A decline in the abundance of blackback flounders, together with the withdrawal of vessels from this fishery, has resulted in a lowered catch in recent years compared to the peak period 1928 through 1931. Data obtained from U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Hatchery catch records and from fishermen's log book records show a drop in abundance of 63 per cent from the early 1930's to the present in the Boothbay Harbor region and of 31 to 40 per cent in the area south of Cape Cod. Information on the early life history and distribution of young blackback flounders and the size and age composition and distribution of fish subject to the commercial and sport fisheries indicates that the young are the product of local spawning and that the sport and commercial fisheries draw on a resident stock of primarily adult fish.

Studies on the mouth size of fish larvae. Method and conclusions only [Translation from: Bulletin of the Japanese Society of Scientific Fisheries 36, 353-368, 1970]

This study was conducted to look into the relationship between mouth size and the total length of larval fish, and the growth in total length of larval fish in one or within a one-year period. Study material was gathered in the South China Sea, the Bay of Bangkok and the Vietnamese coast. This translation focuses on methods and conclusions of the original (longer) paper.

Commercial testing of concrete

The material included within this report is the result of a series of tests of concrete specimens taken during the construction of various buildings in the cities of Pasadena and Los Angeles over a period of eight months.

The object of the problem is to determine the effect of the water ratio on the ultimate strength of the concrete as obtained from data observed and recorded from specimens taken from actual building practice rather than that from laboratory specimens made under ideal, or at least more nearly standard conditions.

The design of multimesh, multidepth gillnet fleets for use in the Lake Victoria Fisheries Research Project

Multimesh, multidepth gillnet fleets are useful in assessing fish stock abundance, size distribution and depth distribution. Using data collected on net mesh selectivity for Nile perch, Lates niloticus (L.), in the Kenyan waters of Lake Victoria, suitable mesh sizes for gillnet fleets for use in the Lake Victoria Fisheries Research Project were determined. The modal selection length for Nile perch in the mesh sized used in the earlier experiment were determined, as was the size range vulnerable to capture. Initial trials suggest 60% of the Nile perch swim within 5 m of the bottom. Setting and hauling of the nets is simple and quick, allowing the nets to be used at the same time as other sampling programmes.

Methodology of the Lake Victoria Fisheries Research Project's Co-management survey

In this book section, the theoretical background to the methodology is outlined, questionnaire development described, sample selection outlined and biases and shortcomings to the survey noted.

The Co-management survey: results of the survey of Fisheries Department personnel

This short book section analyses the role of Fisheries Department personnel in the process of co-management related to the LVFRP.

Lake Victoria Fisheries Management Plan

The purpose of this Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) within the Lake Victoria Fisheries Research Project was to sustain the livelihoods of the communities who depend on the fishery resources of the lake and to reduce poverty, food insecurity and unemployment. To achieve this goals, a better management of the resources, which would mobilize and include stakeholders at local, regional, national and international level was believed to be the right strategy for success. (PDF contains 79 pages)

Co-managerial potentials for Tanzania's Lake Victoria fisheries perspectives from two landing sites

Two landing sites were chosen in Tanzania for the 4-beaches survey. The former, Ihale, is a large one with an avarage of 120 boats and direct connections to the fish processing factories. The latter, Mwasonge, is one of the smallest landing sites in the Mwanza region with totally different characteristics. This book section aims to analyse the results from these two sites in the context of the co-management potentialities in Tanzania and more generally on the Lake Victoria region.

Zooplankton - fish interaction in the littoral zone of Nyanza Gulf, Lake Victoria

The zooplankton community of the littoral zone of Nyanza Gulf, Lake Victoria, was studied between June 1998 and June 1999 to identify and quantify various zooplankton groups, and investigate the interactions that occur between them and the littoral fish through the food chain. Zooplankton samples were collected from five stations using a 83 micro-m mesh size plankton net hauled vertically through the water column. Fish samples were obtained by beach seine, except at Gingra (May 1999), where trawl samples were used. Gut/stomach analysis was carried out on the three major commercial species, Lates niloticus (L.), Oreochromis niloticus (L.) and Rastrineobola argentea (Pellegrin).

Improved fisheries productivity and management in tropical reservoirs

The main objective of this 3.5 year project was to increase the productivity of reservoir fisheries and provide sustainable livelihoods to the rural poor through a series of interventions in tropical reservoirs. The main project activities focused on two reservoirs in the Indo-Gangetic basin (Dahob in Madhya Pradesh, and Pahuj in Uttar Pradesh, both in India), the Lake Nasser in Egypt as part as the Nile basin, and the Volta Lake in Ghana as part as the Volta basin. The project also encompassed an initial data inventory from a wide variety of tropical reservoirs within the three basins, and the detailed assessment of the selected reservoirs, including market evaluation and post-capture improvements. (PDF contains 117 pages)