Abstract
Illegal wildlife trade is considered one of the most serious threats to biodiversity worldwide, along with habitat loss/degradation and overfishing of wild stocks. Seahorses are considered at high risk as these fish represent an important component of traditional Chinese medicine but are also sold as curios and ornamental fish. On a worldwide level, illegal trade is controlled by numerous laws and regulations, but it seems to continue by assuming more dynamic routes. In the Mediterranean Sea, Hippocampus guttulatus formed one of the largest populations at Mar Piccolo di Taranto in South-Eastern Italy. During the routine monitoring of this population in 2016, a dramatic density decrease was observed. By using questionnaires and long-term datasets, the present study determined possible causes of this decline by investigating habitat changes, temperature trends and the existence of seahorse trafficking while also examining abundance trends during the last decade. The results indicated a sharp density decline starting from 2015, co-occurring with the period of high temperatures, while habitats remained almost constant. However, interviews with main stakeholders described both illegal and legal fishing activities as the main drivers for the declining seahorse density. Indeed, at one of the studied sites, which was under strict military control, seahorse abundance started to decline only after the intensification of fishing pressure in the basin. The study suggests that Mar Piccolo di Taranto could be one of the sources for international seahorse trade, thus highlighting the need for more intense and effective actions to prevent and combat illegal poaching, while threatened populations are requiring continuous and close monitoring. Due to unfavorable socio-economic conditions, a viable and thriving seahorse population at Mar Piccolo di Taranto could contribute to the revitalization of the coastal economy and the development of environmental awareness.
Highlights
Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) are considered to be among the most severe threats for sustainable fisheries and aquatic animals’ conservation on a worldwide level [Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)., 2016; Margulies et al, 2019]
Marine species are considered the largest group traded for value (Engler, 2008), with approximately 30 millionfish and 1, 5 million coral colonies traded per year
Seahorses are sold mainly as dried traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) components, and to a lesser extent, as curios, while live specimens are traded as aquarium fishes (Foster et al, 2019)
Summary
Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) are considered to be among the most severe threats for sustainable fisheries and aquatic animals’ conservation on a worldwide level [Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)., 2016; Margulies et al, 2019]. By analyzing long-term data, the present study sought to investigate the causes assuming two possible factors that led to the observed decline: (i) environmental drivers, mainly temperature, which is decisive for the survival and nutrition of juveniles through affecting resource availability (e.g., Planas et al, 2012); or (ii) the existence of trafficking of seahorses as reported by Manna (2019) in February 20192 Regarding the latter, and due to the difficulties related to the illegal and criminal nature of trafficking, the present study carried out interviews with the principal stakeholders to obtain information and fill knowledge gaps. Abundance trends of the longsnouted seahorse population at MPT during the last decade were assessed and discussed given the new and unexpected threat of illegal trade
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