Correction to “Exploring the Decline of Shark Populations in Santiago Island, Cabo Verde: Insights From Local Fishers' Knowledge and Perspectives”

ABSTRACTCabo Verde is a well‐known marine megafauna biodiversity hotspot in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean. As a Small Island Developing State, fishing is one of its most important economic activities and a major source of animal protein. Yet, the interaction and impacts of the artisanal fisheries on shark species are poorly known in this region. To fill this gap, between April and June 2024, we conducted 152 face‐to‐face interviews with fishers from the 10 main fishing communities on Santiago Island, Cabo Verde. Most respondents (95%) reported the presence of sharks in their fishing grounds all year round (59%) and at certain times of the year (41%). Eighty‐five percent indicated that they catch sharks, but the majority (63%) said they do so unintentionally. The catch is made up of at least 18 species of sharks, almost all of which are threatened with extinction, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Most fishers (80%) had noticed a reduction in the number of sharks over the last 15 years, attributing the cause almost unanimously to fishing (96%) mainly by the international fleet. Around half (51%) believed that it will continue to reduce over the next 15 years. Nevertheless, 33% of the fishers interviewed declared that they do not support shark conservation. Although fishers are valuable sources of information, the present results also show the need to improve fisher's perceptions of sharks and involve them in decision‐making processes and management measures to reduce the impacts of artisanal fishing on endangered species.

Systematizing local knowledge using GIS: fisheries management in Bang Saphan Bay, Thailand

Private-sector financial and legal transactions have long been used to protect terrestrial habitats and working landscapes, but less commonly to address critical threats in marine environments. Transferrable and marketable fishing privileges, including permits and quotas, make it possible to use private-sector transactions as conservation strategies to address some fishery management issues. Abating the effects of bottom trawling on the seafloor and bycatch and discard associated with the practice has proven challenging. On the Central Coast of California, The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Environmental Defense Fund, local fishers and local, state, and federal authorities worked collaboratively to protect large areas of the seafloor from bottom trawling for groundfish while addressing economic impacts of trawl closures. Contingent on the adoption of trawl-closure areas by a federal regulatory agency, TNC used private funds to purchase federal groundfish trawl permits and vessels from willing sellers. Trawl-closure areas were designed collaboratively by combining regional biological diversity and fisheries data with local fishers' knowledge. The private transactional strategy was designed to remedy some deficiencies in previous federal buyouts, to mitigate economic impacts from trawl closures, and to carefully align with a public regulatory process to protect "essential fish habitat" under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. This collaborative effort protected 1.5 million ha (3.8 million acres) of seafloor, reduced trawl effort in the area by 50%, and set a precedent for collaborative partnerships between conservation and fishing interests. This is the first time a large conservation organization has taken an ownership position in a fishery and demonstrates how nongovernmental organizations can invest in fisheries to improve environmental and economic performance.

In artisanal fishing, the techniques used by a community reflect the characteristics of the natural environment, in particular the distribution and availability of resources, as well as local traditions and customs. However, economic development may result in the loss of these traditions. The present study documents the fishing techniques used by the communities on the Xingu River in the Brazilian state of Pará (Maribel, Altamira, Belo Monte, Vitória do Xingu, Vila Nova, Senador José Porfírio, Porto de Moz, and Gurupá). Interviews were used to investigate traditional local knowledge and the distribution of the different fishing methods within the study area. The local fishers described the use of 12 different types of net, 10 hook and line techniques, and eight kinds of spearfishing. Free diving and scuba diving are also used for the capture of ornamental fish.

Learning from ‘apparent consensus’ in TAC disputes: Exploring knowledge overlaps in LEK and genetic categorization of Atlantic cod

We report new records of the fisheries-harvested subtropical greater amberjack Seriola dumerili for the south-east Pacific Ocean. Despite local fishers' asserting that three Seriola morphotypes exist in the region, only one species (the yellowtail amberjack Seriola lalandi) was previously scientifically recorded for Rapa Nui (also known as Easter Island). Whilst we present the first "scientific record", S. dumerili, traditional ecological knowledge suggests that this is likely a pre-existing (albeit transient) species of the Rapa Nui ecoregion. Establishing the existing/historic distributional limits of commercially and ecologically valuable species is key for observing climate-driven distribution shifts, and the inclusion of traditional ecological knowledge is particularly important in areas with relatively lower scientific effort.

There is an increasing movement towards acceptance of public participation as a logical approach to heritage conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. In conservation initiatives, to ensure effective participation is to see it as a social process. Thus, the importance of community participation and consultation in planning for heritage conservation is emphasised using an example from fishing community involvement in community-based fisheries management in Langkawi. The setting up of cooperative community resource management Komuniti Pengurusan Ekosistem Perikanan (KPEP) is a significant attempt that acknowledges the value of local involvement in natural resource management. It aims to understand local fishers’ participation in resource management activities towards heritage conservation. One of the findings revealed that although the resource management activities did not mentioned explicitly the importance of heritage conservation. However it could be assumed that intention for heritage conservation is at the heart of the initiatives. Implicit in such an approach is a sense that local fishers’ participation in managing resources would utilise local knowledge gained from past down traditions of previous generations. The application of local knowledge encourages them to become aware of their fishing cultural heritage and to encourage them to conserve it. It is crucial for development activities surrounding the area of KPEP Kuala Teriang are compatible and complementary to the existing activities of fisheries heritage conservation and promotion of social well-being.

Studies have demonstrated ways in which climate-related shifts in the distributions and relative abundances of marine species are expected to alter the dynamics and catch potential of global fisheries. While these studies assess impacts on large-scale commercial fisheries, few efforts have been made to quantitatively project impacts on small-scale subsistence and commercial fisheries that are economically, socially and culturally important to many coastal communities. This study uses a dynamic bioclimate envelope model to project scenarios of climate-related changes in the relative abundance, distribution and richness of 98 exploited marine fishes and invertebrates of commercial and cultural importance to First Nations in coastal British Columbia, Canada. Declines in abundance are projected for most of the sampled species under both the lower (Representative Concentration Pathway [RCP] 2.6) and higher (RCP 8.5) emission scenarios (-15.0% to -20.8%, respectively), with poleward range shifts occurring at a median rate of 10.3 to 18.0 km decade-1 by 2050 relative to 2000. While a cumulative decline in catch potential is projected coastwide (-4.5 to -10.7%), estimates suggest a strong positive correlation between the change in relative catch potential and latitude, with First Nations’ territories along the northern and central coasts of British Columbia likely to experience less severe declines than those to the south. Furthermore, a strong negative correlation is projected between latitude and the number of species exhibiting declining abundance. These trends are shown to be robust to alternative species distribution models. This study concludes by discussing corresponding management challenges that are likely to be encountered under climate change, and by highlighting the value of joint-management frameworks and traditional fisheries management approaches that could aid in offsetting impacts and developing site-specific mitigation and adaptation strategies derived from local fishers’ knowledge.

Traditionally, population sizes, ecology, and threats to species and their habitats have been obtained by empirical scientific studies. However, the knowledge of local and indigenous communities worldwide has been acknowledged as an extremely rich and underused source of information on how the environment, biodiversity, and local conditions are changing over time. In this view, the objective of the study was to investigate local fishers’ knowledge of local names, habitats, uses, market price, change in population abundance, and threats faced by the snakehead fish (Parachanna obscura) in Ivorian freshwaters. The study was conducted using face‐to‐face interviews and a structured questionnaire with 381 fishers during the period from October 2020 to February 2021. The results show that this fish species is strongly appreciated for the good taste of its flesh, with market prices varying between 1.5 and 3€ on average. All respondents confirmed that the species is not yet produced in aquaculture and mentioned their willingness to support its introduction into aquaculture. Several local names of P. obscura fish were recorded, with ‘Sounôgô‐djêguê’ (used in 36% of fishers’ ethnic groups), ‘Pino’ (21%), and ‘Édjoué‐bile’ (21%) being the most popular names used in Ivorian fishers’ communities. All respondents agreed that P. obscura is a potamodromous fish species living preferably in wetlands, rivers, lakes, and streams. A significant decrease in the abundance of this fish was observed by 71% of fishers, perceived mainly due to overfishing, deforestation around watersheds, habitat destruction/modification, obnoxious fishing practices, pesticide use in farms close to watersheds, and climate change, especially lack of rainfall. The study clearly demonstrated the importance of local ecological knowledge of fishers in identifying threats to fish populations, habitat types used by the species, and other relevant information; therefore, this ecological knowledge has to be integrated into biomonitoring and conservation policy of aquatic biodiversity. The information obtained from this study is also helpful for future studies on the management and cultivation of this species.

Chile has a relatively long history of monitoring and managing large-scale commercial fish stocks. However, many other small-scale fisheries, particularly those operating in estuaries, usually lack basic fisheries and biological information. International experience indicates that a monitoring system designed for large-scale stocks cannot simply be resized to address the complexity, relatively low total economic value, and the large number of actors and supply chains in small-scale fisheries. This article proposes a strategy to monitor data-poor fisheries operating in estuaries. The striped mullet (Mugil cephalus), locally known as “lisa”, in the Rapel River, central Chile, was selected to establish a pilot monitoring program for small-scale fish resources. From May 2022 to May 2023, fisheries information, including fleet description, catch and effort data, and fish biological attributes such as length and weight, were collected and described for the first time in the region. Drawing insights from this case study, we propose developing a generic monitoring system tailored specifically for monitoring fish stocks in estuaries. This conceptualization is based on: i) change agents, who are individuals trained to work with both the social and biological dimensions of each coastal fish stock; ii) experienced fisheries scientists outside government agencies; and iii) local fishers' knowledge to provide constant feedback for adapting temporal and spatial scales for monitoring. This monitoring scheme is cost-effective and can be efficiently replicated in other estuarine fisheries in Chile.

Local fishers' knowledge (LFK) obtained from 49 fishers in the upper Gulf of California indicates that fishery resources have declined by at least 60% over the past 50 years, most likely due to overfishing and environmental changes associated with upstream damming of the Colorado River. LFK can provide supporting evidence of trends and changes. In marine ecosystems, for example, relative abundances obtained from LFK for several commercial and non-target species are closely correlated with stock assessment biomass, fishing effort, and landings reported by the Mexican Government. Rapid shifts in perception of the degree of degradation of this ecosystem, as well as greatly reduced nutrients and river flows (over just a few decades), should act as a red flag to the Mexican Government and management agencies. It is crucial for the restoration of this ecosystem that young fishers and the Mexican public are able to visualize previous states of their local ecosystems.

Introduction: There is evidence about the close relationship between chronic non-communicable diseases, eating habits and physical activity. Based on the results of the 4th National Survey of Risk Factors (ENFR), an island territory in the province of Buenos Aires was sought where it was assumed that the way of life could have a positive influence. Objectives: to analyze the frequency of habits, the frequency of chronic pathologies and the relationship between them; assuming that a lifestyle away from the big cities would lead to healthier habits, and with it, better health indicators. Material and methods: Prevalence study. A house-to-house survey of 42 homes on Santiago Island, where a survey and physical examination were applied, which included: anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, and capillary blood glucose. Results: Most of the dwellings (71.4%) had fruit trees or orchards in their homes at the time of data collection. However, when making the comparison with the 4th ENFR, the results showed that it was a population in which physical inactivity, poor diet and problematic consumption of alcohol and tobacco exceeded the national average. Chronic diseases resulted in a trend similar to the national one. Conclusions: Although accessibility to resources should be considered an important element, this characteristic is added to87 others due to associated factors such as sociocultural, advertising and aspects of health education. The importance of working deeply on population habits is highlighted, as well as emphasizing the need to implement efficient educational programs with a local perspective. Key words: Cardiovascular risk factors; chronic non-communicable diseases; nutritional habits.

Filling global gaps in monitoring data with local knowledge

Deriving robust historical population trends for long-lived species subject to human exploitation is challenging in scenarios where long-term scientific data are scarce or unavailable, as often occurs for species affected by small-scale fisheries and subsistence hunting. The importance of Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) in data-poor scenarios is increasingly recognized in conservation, both in terms of uncovering historical trends and for engaging community stewardship of historic information. Building on previous work in marine historical ecology and local ecological knowledge, we propose a mixed socio-ecological framework to reliably document and quantify LEK to reconstruct historical population trends. Our method can be adapted by interdisciplinary teams to study various long-lived taxa with a history of human use. We demonstrate the validity of our approach by reconstructing long-term abundance data for the heavily-exploited East Pacific green turtle (Chelonia mydas) in Baja California, Mexico, which was driven to near extinction by a largely unregulated fishery from the early 1950s to the 1980s. No scientific baseline abundance data were available for this time-frame because recent biological surveys started in 1995 after all green turtle fisheries in the area were closed. To fill this data gap, we documented LEK among local fishers using ethnographic methods and obtained verified, qualitative data to understand the socio-environmental complexity of the green turtle fishery. We then established an iterative framework to synthesize and quantify LEK using generalized linear models (GLMs) and nonlinear regression (NLR) to generate a standardized, LEK-derived catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) time-series. CPUE is an index of abundance that is compatible with contemporary scientific survey data. We confirmed the accuracy of LEK-derived CPUE estimates via comparisons with fisheries statistics available for 1962–1982. We then modeled LEK-derived abundance trends prior to 1995 using NLR. Our model established baseline abundance and described historical declines, revealing that the most critical (exponential) decline occurred between 1960 and 1980. This robust integration of LEK data with ecological science is of critical value for conservation and management, as it contributes to a holistic view of a species’ historic and contemporary conservation status.

Last decade the number of computers in Cabo Verde increased notably, making influences on important sectors for the country development. For many years traditional knowledge are not being enough in order to guarantee the productivity unless it was complemented by ICT area of influence. In the survey the conditions and contributions of Compulsory Education subsystem to the national growth development are studied, meanwhile educational authorities have already started an education reform programmes, which aims to change the educational paradigm within the country by implementing Mundu Novu program. This work shows a descriptive analysis about the use of ICT as educational tools for support learning and its role to overcome the digital divide from teachers’ opinions. In relation to the research method, a qualitative approach was used through interviews to teachers in service from the six areas belonging Northern Region at Santiago Island in Cabo Verde.