Subsistence fish exploitation and implications for management in the Baram River system, Sarawak, Malaysia

Abstract

Introduction of gillnets to the subsistence fishery caused an apparent decline in catch per effort on the Baram River, Sarawak. Fishermen ranked gillnets and castnets respectively as their most effective fishing gears, and the annual fish catch, estimated by extrapolation from experimental gillnet samples, was 54 000 to 76 000 kg. A catch estimate of 14.2 to 19.6 kg ha −1 year −1 from the river was in good agreement with the 19 kg ha −1 year −1 from the intensively exploited Lake Bangweulu system, Zambia, which has similar characteristics. Comparisons between heavily and lightly exploited areas suggested that subsistence fishing with a variety of gears was not species or size selective, and that maintenance of species diversity could be important in maintaining a high catch per effort. The balanced approach to exploitation was establishing an equilibrium between subsistence fishermen and their resource. External incentives which influence catch size or composition should be preceded by research on fish community structures and ecological production within the system.