Threats to Aquatic Biodiversity from Shrimp Fry Fishing in Bangladesh Coastal Waters: Devising Management Measures to Restore Sustainability

Abstract

This paper describes how Bangladesh has a rich biodiversity in coastal areas, with both marine and freshwater resources that pass their life stages in estuaries. The coastal zone hosts several mangrove forest ecosystems with a network of rivers that have rich flora and fauna. Among the fishery resources, the water bodies within the Sundarban mangroves host 63 species of pelagic and 124 demersal fishes, and 24 shrimp and 3 lobster species. However, methods used to catch wild shrimp fry to supply the aquaculture industry have resulted in high levels of by-catch of other non-target shrimp, finfish larvae, and macrozooplanketers that have a consequent impact on coastal biodiversity, the ecosystem and its dependent communities. Since the late 1980s, there has been mounting concern regarding the negative impacts of macrozooplankton fishing in search of tiger shrimp fry. The first published document, which was based on research during 1982-84, drew the attention of the academic community toward this destructive fishing practice that causes excessive by-catches and leads to a great loss of biodiversity. This paper analyzes this situation in light of some past and present research.