Commercial Fishing Activities Research Articles

Some Population Parameters of Picked Dogfish (Squalus acanthias L. 1758) Incidentally Captured in Commercial Fisheries in Southern Black Sea Shores and a First Record of Angular Roughshark (Oxynotus centrina, L. 1758) for Black Sea

The study, which aimed to determine some population parameters of picked dogfish (Squalus acanthias L. 1758) distributed in the Black Sea, was carried out in the five fishing seasons (between 2016 and 2023 years). The sharks draw attention as a bycatch for all fishing gear used in the Black Sea. In the study, total length (cm), weight (g) and sex (female/male) data were obtained from the sharks captured with all fishing gears (demersal trawl, midwater trawl, gillnets purse seine, turbot gillnets, trammel nets and bottom) used in commercial fishing activities in the Black Sea of Türkiye. A total of 576 specimens were collected all fishing gears during the sampling period. Length-weight relationship (LWR) was founded as W=0.0097L2.8521 (R2 =0.9854) for all the picked dogfish. Also, mean total length 48.9±0.707 cm respectively. In addition, the first record of the angular roughshark (Oxynotus centrina, L. 1758) species was given for the Black Sea coasts, which originated in the western Atlantic, was seen in the Mediterranean, Aegean Sea and the Marmara Sea of Türkiye. The shark, which was accidentally caught with a purse seine net, measured as 33.5 cm in total length and weighed 585 g.

Assessment of Heavy metals in Sediments, Water and Carias gariepinus from Alau Dam, Borno State Nigeria

Alau dam attracts commercial fishing and farming activities creating a booming market for individuals involved in the fish and vegetable businesses. The lake having flowed into several towns and villages coupled with the socio-economic activities along its bank received effluents with different concentrations of heavy metals. The study was aimed at assessing the levels of selected heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, As and Hg) concentrations in the sediments, water and Clarias gariepinus from Alau dam, Borno State, Nigeria. Samples were collected bi-weekly for 3 months and analyzed using standards methods. The result of the study indicates that heavy metal concentrations (Pb, Cd and Cr) in the sediments (2.120 ± 0.011, 1.004 ± 0.010 and 0.300 ± 0.010 mg/kg respectively) were all above USEPA permissible limits. The study further shows that exception of Cr (0.011 ± 0.007) all other analyzed metals were above NESREA limits. Additionally, the concentrations of Pb, Cd, Cr, As and Hg in the fish samples (1.020 ± 0.011, 0.940 ± 0.022, 0.001 ± 0.017, 0.010 ± 0.112 and 0.005 ± 0.033 mg/kg respectively) were within the NAFDAC limit. The Non-Cancer Risk (HQ were ˃ 1 in all calculated samples) and Cancer Risks (˃10-3 in all calculated samples) revealed high health risk from ingestion of the C. gariepinus from the study area. Furthermore, the BAF ratio shows Cd ˃ Pb ˃ Hg ˃ As ˃ Cr. The study recommends strict enforcement of NESREA regulations and a continuous monitoring of the levels of heavy metals concentration in the dam.

Passive acoustic monitoring of artificial reefs south of Long Island, New York provides novel insights on fish, marine mammal, and post-pandemic human activity occurring in nearshore coastal habitats

Passive acoustic recorders were deployed at two artificial reef sites (25m water depth) south of Long Island, New York from 2020 to present. The study sites are popular recreational fishing locations but also near commercial fishing activities and shipping lanes for the Port of New York and New Jersey providing numerous types of human-generated signals which can be monitored. We investigated how human activities changed the nearshore soundscape following the global pandemic and found that periods (2020) following the pandemic shutdown were (in some regards) louder instead of quieter than soundscapes later on (2021). Peaks in power spectral densities recorded at the reef sites often corresponded to signals from idling or transitory vessels. In addition to human-produced sounds, signals from both fish and marine mammals are regularly heard on the reefs which provided the opportunity to investigate several ecological questions including: reproductive activity of commercially important cod and weakfish; residency of bottlenose dolphins through individual signature whistle analysis; and baleen whale usage of the nearshore habitat.

The distribution of subarctic and boreal deep-sea demersal fish assemblages across environmental gradients of the northwest Atlantic.

The oceanography of the Labrador Sea is well studied because of its globally important deep-water convection that oxygenates the deep ocean and drives climate-regulating ocean currents. However, little is known about the fish communities that inhabit this area, particularly beyond the depths accessible to standard research surveys and commercial fishing activities. We used baited longline surveys to characterize important components of demersal fish communities across a depth gradient of 200-3000 m and compared these data to a similar dataset collected c. 1200 km to the south in the Flemish Cap Region. We found demersal fish communities in the Labrador Sea to be similar to those of the Flemish Cap Region despite unique oceanography and lower primary productivity in the Labrador Sea. Moreover, both areas had high abundance, biomass, and species richness at intermediate depths that suggests factors beyond depth drive community structure in the deep ocean. These data are important for identifying high-value areas for potential protective measures in the northwest Atlantic and provide necessary data with which to assess potential environmental impacts of extractive industries that are expanding north and to deeper waters.

A sustainable approach for developing biocarbon from lignin and its utilization in recycled ocean nylon based biocomposites

Nylon/polyamide (PA6) is a major cause of ocean plastic pollution because of its extended use in commercial fishing activities. Recovery of this nylon from oceans and its use in manufacturing new materials or composites is urgently required to promote sustainability and circularity. In this work, unlike higher-density mineral fillers, lignin from the forestry industry was converted into biocarbon, which was used as a lightweight filler to manufacture recycled-ocean nylon (RN)-based composites. Biocarbon is a highly stable, competitive, and sustainable filler for high-performance engineering plastics such as nylon. Lignin was pyrolyzed at 600 °C followed by further treatment at 1200 °C (with and without cobalt (II) nitrate catalyst) to induce graphitization in the produced biocarbon. Among the three types of biocarbon samples, such as pyrolyzed at 600 °C, 1200 °C and 1200 °C catalyzed lignin biocarbon, the catalyzed biocarbon showed the maximum electrical conductivity. Catalyzed lignin biocarbon pyrolyzed at 1200 °C showed an increase of 85% in electrical conductivity compared to commercial mineral graphite. The biocomposites consisting of 600 °C biocarbon were manufactured by injection molding at different filler contents up to 40 wt.%. The biocomposites consisting of 40% of pyrolyzed lignin at 600 °C showed increased flexural strength, flexural modulus, and heat deflection temperature by 41, 76 and 76%, respectively, compared to neat RN. Improved properties of the prepared biocarbons and biocomposites showed the potential of RN-based composites in the automotive industries.

Fuzzy cognitive mapping as a tool to assess the relative cumulative effects of environmental stressors on an Arctic seabird population to identify conservation action and research priorities

Abstract In the Arctic, chemical contaminants, shipping, oil pollution, plastic pollution, changing habitats in relation to climate change and fisheries have been identified as environmental stressors to seabirds such as Fulmarus glacialis (northern fulmar; qaqulluk; ᖃᖁᓪᓗᖅ), but rarely have these stressors been considered within a cumulative effects framework in this species which is currently showing a declining populations trend. As a novel tool to understand cumulative effects within a conservation context, we applied a fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM) approach that allows experts to arrange key factors and their interrelationships, organizing their understanding of the components of a complex issue into a graphical representation; a ‘cognitive map’. This process was grounded in local environment concerns as documented in several Nunavut‐specific reports and discussions, and worked with western‐trained seabird experts with knowledge of northern fulmar populations to assess the inter‐related environmental threats to fulmars as a way to combine these stressors in a cumulative effects framework and identify conservation actions and knowledge gaps. We found strong agreement that the main stressors affecting northern fulmar populations in Canada include pollution (11% total influence (TI)), shipping activities (16% TI), hunting and fishing (18% TI) and mining/oil and gas exploitation activities (22% TI). The indirect influence of threats on northern fulmar population size (57% TI) exceeded the total direct influence (43% TI), emphasizing the value of cognitive mapping in cumulative effects assessment for a more holistic understanding of interacting stressors. Participants expressed substantial uncertainty regarding the strong relationships leading from the concepts, commercial fishing activity in the BBDS and the North Atlantic fisheries activity, indicating that these potential stressors require more research. Similarly, uncertainty was expressed about the potential effects of zodiac traffic, ship strikes of northern fulmar, number of oil spills and magnitude of oil spills on northern fulmar. By characterizing individual factors as manageable or not, we determined that stressors are largely manageable with enforcement of existing policies (58% TI)—importantly, fishing activities were both highly influential on fulmars and deemed manageable, which will inform ongoing co‐management planning in the region.

Key Pathways to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals in Three Polar Regions

Due to the local and natural characteristics of high latitude and altitude in the Three Polar Region (TPR)—that is, the Antarctic, the Arctic, and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP)—this region has been significantly affected by climate change and related disasters. Thus, the sustainable development pathway for the TPR is different from that of other regions. The Antarctic region, as a public territory, experiences sustainability problems that are mainly the result of the integrated impact of tourism and scientific and commercial fishing activities on the continent and ocean. Understanding how to build a shared, co-built, and co-governed, legally binding and equal international multilateral partnership or treaty, and thereby reducing the impact on water life and on land life, is the key pathway to achieving the Antarctic sustainable development goals (SDGs). The Arctic region has both a high level of development at the national level and a low level of development within the country, including the livelihood of indigenous people. Learning how to effectively deal with the domestic development imbalance in the future is a key pathway to achieving Arctic SDGs. The QTP has a fragile ecology and a single industry. As a relatively poor area in China, the ability to promote ecological protection and improve people’s welfare through ecological policies is a key pathway to achieving the SDGs in the QTP. At the same time, the TPR also needs to enhance its climate resilience through climate action to mitigate the impacts of climate change. On this basis, to fully achieve the SDGs in support of the TPR, it is necessary to establish and pursue multilateral cooperation in science research, infrastructure, commerce, energy, and mining trades. As an important part of the climate system, spatial and temporal changes in the TPR have direct and indirect impacts on the global climate and other spheres (e.g., Anthroposphere) and also affect the global sustainable development process. Therefore, through the TPR’s linkage and multilateral cooperation, the region can simultaneously enter the global sustainable development track.

Derelict fishing gear abundance, its causes and debris management practices – Insights from the fishing sector of Kerala, India

Commercial fishing activities are far from free of environmental consequences and can be a major source of marine plastic pollution. Information on the types and fishery-specific causes of derelict fishing gear (DFG) as well as fishers' behaviour contributing to marine debris is lacking from several fishing-intense regions of the world. The present study investigated the contribution of commercial fishing activities to marine plastic debris in the coastal Indian state of Kerala, using data from a survey of 390 fishers operating trawl, seine, gillnet and trammel net gear types as well as a litter assessment on 25 beaches. The findings suggested that the mismanagement of plastic wastes onboard fishing vessels and the loss/discard of fishing gear are the major causes of DFG in the region. The disposal practice of damaged fishing gear, galley waste and debris caught during fishing activities differed among different fishing gear users. Discarding damaged nets on beaches was a common practice among non-motorized gillnet users. Trawl and ring seine fishers threw debris caught during fishing back into the sea, whereas shore seine and mini trawl fishers disposed of it on the shore. Lack of waste collection facilities was the main reason (93 % of respondents) for improper disposal of damaged fishing gear and other plastic litter. DFG was the largest single-category litter (53.4 %) in terms of weight along the beaches of Kerala. Ropes (including rope cut-offs), gillnets/gillnet pieces and trawl pieces formed the major share of DFG. The abundance of DFG on the beaches had a positive correlation with the number of fishing vessels operated from there. The high share of DFG along the Kerala coast highlights the need to prioritize the fishing sector in management efforts to reduce marine litter. Given the anticipated rapid growth in global fishing activities, it is imperative to develop sector-specific plastic litter quantification and management strategies to tackle the growing problem of marine debris.

A data-assimilative model reanalysis of the U.S. Mid Atlantic Bight and Gulf of Maine: Configuration and comparison to observations and global ocean models

A 15-year reanalysis (2007–2021) of circulation in the coastal ocean and adjacent deep sea of the northeast U.S. continental shelf is described. The analysis uses the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) and four-dimensional variational (4D-Var) data assimilation (DA) of observations from in situ platforms, coastal radars, and satellites. The reanalysis downscales open boundary information from the Copernicus Marine Environmental Monitoring Service (CMEMS) global analysis. The dynamic model is forced by regional meteorological analyses, observed daily river discharges, and harmonic tides that augment the open boundary conditions.A complementary analysis of the mean seasonal cycle of regional circulation, also computed using ROMS 4D-Var but with climatological mean observations and forcing, is used to reduce biases in the CMEMS boundary data and to provide a dynamically and kinematically constrained Mean Dynamic Topography to use in conjunction with the assimilation of satellite altimeter sea level anomaly observations.The configuration of ROMS 4D-Var used is described, presenting details of the comprehensive suite of observations assembled, data pre-processing and quality control procedures, and background and observation error hypotheses. Control variables of the DA are the initial conditions, surface forcing, and boundary conditions of a sequence of non-overlapping 3-day analysis cycles.Comparisons to a non-assimilative version of the same ROMS model configuration show the added skill brought by assimilation of local observations. The improvement that downscaling with assimilation achieves over ocean state estimates from CMEMS and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory Global Ocean Forecast System (GOFS) is demonstrated by the reduction in residuals of the DA, and by comparison to independent (unassimilated) observations. Wherever data volumes allow, skill assessments are made with the respect to anomalies from the mean seasonal cycle to emphasize performance at the ocean mesoscale.To highlight the utility of the analysis to inform studies related to coastal sea level variability and marine ecosystems, comparisons are made to unassimilated coastal sea level gauges and novel observations from sensors on fishing gear. The assimilation of coastal satellite altimetry data produces coastal sea level results that are coherent with observations across all time scales from interannual to tidal, while bias and correlation metrics show that bottom temperatures in regions of commercial fishing activity in the Mid-Atlantic Bight and the Gulf of Maine are modeled well.

Enforcement of fishing Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) standards: Challenges in Atlantic Canada

Fishing is a hazardous occupation worldwide with a poor health and safety record. Between 2010 and 2020, an average of 236 marine accidents were reported to the Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) and an average of 33 % involved fishing vessels. Like fisheries governance more generally, governance of fishing health and safety is a wicked problem, which cannot be solved once and for all but tends to reappear. While there are no panaceas for improving fishing safety, improved regulation can help. Fishing health and safety is often subject to regulations by multiple agencies, particularly in federalist states. In Canada, the federal government, Transport Canada, is responsible for providing a national regulatory framework that applies to the structural and operational safety of vessels, and provincial governments are responsible for the workplace health and safety of crews while they are engaged in commercial fishing activities and for workers’ compensation. In this context, inconsistencies among standards and variability in levels of protection across fleets and provinces can exist, and jurisdictional conflicts may occur. However, few studies have examined this problem. To fill this research gap, guided by governance theory and drawing upon findings from a legal review of international, federal and provincial fishing OHS laws and regulations and a review of case law, this article identifies multiple OHS law regulatory and enforcement challenges in the Atlantic Canadian context. These challenges include (1) fragmented OHS governance due to the division of powers between federal and provincial governments; (2) variation in OHS-related standards and protections between provinces, with those from the provinces of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick less protected than those from Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador; (3) evidence of jurisdictional disputes that can reduce the efficiency of enforcement and development of fishing OHS standards; and (4) indications that federal-provincial jurisdictional divisions may be impeding Canada’s progress in ratifying and implementing international OHS instruments such as the C-188, Work in Fishing Convention of the International Labour Organization. These four challenges mean that improving fishing OHS in Canada is difficult. The paper proposes a regional fishing OHS initiative based on a partnership between the federal and provincial governments to establish harmonized fishing OHS standards to mitigate these challenges.

Seafloor litter generated by coastal and offshore fisheries operations in the South Sea of Korea

Seafloor litter sources, distribution and density were assessed in a bottom trawl survey of the South Sea around Jeju Island by the Ara-ho training ship of Jeju National University. Samples were taken from 14 transects at a depth range of 60–120 m in areas with sandy and muddy substratum. Generally, mean densities varied from 26.9 items/km2 to 62.4 items/km2 and 104.8 kg/km2 to 370.9 kg/km2. Mean densities of total litter sampled was 46.3 items/km2 and 228.6 kg/km2. Derelict gears were the most common litter items (92 % of total litter) with mean densities of 44.3 items/km2 and 228.1 kg/km2. Gillnets and traps were the most derelict with densities reaching 4.9 items/km2 and 99.2 kg/km2 and 25.0 items/km2 and 89.1 kg/km2 respectively. The results of this study indicate that significant level of pollution in the South Sea are generated from commercial fishing activities and gillnets and traps being high risk derelict gears.

Entanglement of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in man-made marine debris on Tyuleniy Island, Sea of Okhotsk

The present report provides data on entanglement of Steller sea lions (SSL) in marine debris on Tyuleniy Island, Sea of Okhotsk. The frequency of entanglement depending on the material, sex, and age of animals was estimated. A total of 133 SSL were recorded as having debris on their bodies, or an average of 22.2 individuals per year. The relative rate of entanglement over the observation years ranged from 1.48 to 1.97% of their total number. The entangled individuals were both males and females of all ages, but young males constituted the largest proportion among them (5.2%). The entangled SSL most frequently (43.2%) had neck collars (the material is not defined) and, less frequently, packaging bands (23.4%), nets (17.7%), and other debris. Most of marine litter found on SSL is associated with commercial fishing activities. On Tyuleniy Island, the rate of SSL entanglement is higher than in the eastern part of the species' range.

Three-dimensional Sustainability Profile of the coastal fishery of Jalisco State, Mexico

Sustainability is a basic tool in decision-making regarding human resources distribution for government programs applied to communities. The sustainability index reflects the level of impact on the effectiveness of its application. It is important to mention that a study of this nature has not been reported in the scientific literature for Mexican fishery activity on Jalisco Coast, Mexico. Thus, the results of this research will support the fishermen's federations in decision-making about their productive work. The main objective was to determine the sustainability index for Cihuatlán, La Huerta, Tomatlán, and Puerto Vallarta municipalities of Jalisco state, Mexico by applying the IRS methodology. Even when the productive activity is economically profitable, its do not contribute positively to the Social and Environmental sustainability indices. The index of the three-dimensional sustainability of the Jalisco Coast, Mexico fishing activity is 2,33, which is considered very low about what is desirable, which should be greater than 4. In other words, there is no positive development in the quality of life of fishermen and environment care for the catch areas and species of interest for commercial fishing activities.

Habitat Modelling on the Potential Impacts of Shipping Noise on Fin Whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in Offshore Irish Waters off the Porcupine Ridge

Little is known about the ecological importance of fin whales found year-round in southwestern offshore Irish waters. Understanding their ecology is important to reduce potential harm through any spatio-temporal overlap with commercial shipping and fishing activities. This study explored the potential environmental drivers and impacts of low-frequency shipping noise on fin whale calling at Porcupine Ridge using the presence/absence of call detections as a proxy for observed changes due to possible masking. Acoustic call data was collected at a low sampling rate (2 ksps) from the end of March 2016 to June 2016 (97 days) using a bottom-moored autonomous acoustic recorder with an omni-directional hydrophone. The high zero-inflated and binary nature of the data was addressed using generalised linear models. The results of our habitat modelling predicted call detections to increase significantly during night-time (p ≤ 0.01) with sea surface height and chlorophyll-a concentration (p ≤ 0.01), implying higher prey availability may occur on Porcupine Ridge. It also indicated a significant decrease in call detections with increasing shipping noise (p ≤ 0.01). Unfortunately, the model had a type II error. To provide robust results, a longer study not limited by data on the prey, and oceanographic drivers including spatial and temporal parameters is required. This study provides the foundations on which further ecological data could be added to establish management and mitigation measures to minimize the effects of shipping noise on fin whales.

Bills of Fare, Consumer Demand, Social Status, Ethnicity, and the Collapse of California Abalone

Since at least the mid-nineteenth century, California's Pacific Coast has been an epicenter of global commercial fishing activities. Decades of intensive harvest, pollution, anthropogenic climate change, and disease, however, have resulted in the collapse of many of the state's most important and profitable fisheries. Much of the research designed to understand the processes and consequences of this crisis of the oceans has focused on production issues—the number of fish that live in and are harvested from the ocean. Here, we turn our attention to consumption issues and explore how market-forces, status, ethnicity, and evolving perceptions of food can drive fisheries collapse. We use the rise and fall of the California abalone ( Haliotis spp.) fishery as a case study and compile data on the price of abalone dishes from bills of fare, primarily in southern California, dating between 1901 and 2005. We explore how and why restaurant prices for abalone dishes changed over the last century and the role of consumer demand (or taste) and social status in influencing the health and stability of fish stocks.

Gathering local ecological knowledge to augment scientific and management understanding of a living coastal resource: The case of Oregon’s nearshore groundfish trawl fishery

Globally, coastal nearshore regions are an intersecting point for human and biological productivity, often serving as hotspots for subsistence, commercial, and recreational fishing activities. Despite this, many nearshore areas remain poorly understood, monitored or managed. This case study examined the nearshore sector of Oregon’s groundfish trawl fishery, which exists in shallow estuarine and continental shelf habitats common along the West Coast of North America; areas that are important for early life history stages of many commercial and recreational fisheries. The West Coast groundfish fishery includes over 90 different species, 40 of which occur within Oregon’s nearshore (here defined as the portion of the shelf extending seaward to a water depth of 200 m). The very shallow portions of the Oregon Coast (the area of the shelf inshore of 55 m) have been subject to limited scientific survey monitoring, and much of the details of the ecology, health, and processes in these habitats remain poorly understood. The utilization of the nearshore region by the commercial groundfish trawl fleet is also minimally documented despite the fact that experiential knowledge (local ecological knowledge [LEK]; trawl logbooks, fish tickets, interviews) exists. This research explored the capacity of capturing LEK sources to inform and enhance understanding of the drivers of effort and the vitality of nearshore fishery resources. Our approach used statistical analysis and mapping of nearshore trawl effort from 1981 to 2017 and gathered semi-structured interviews of intergenerational fishermen to bolster data-poor areas. Insights provided by sampling strategies and historical to current knowledge of access to groundfish assemblages provide informed baselines for future management. Spatial mapping results revealed a decline in trawl effort on the Oregon continental shelf thought time. Logbook and interview data assessment illuminated market and ecological drivers of fishing behavior as well as a unique sector of the groundfish fleet in Oregon: the beach fleet, with unique market and socio-economic challenges. Findings indicate a mixed-methods approach can provide a more thorough assessment of long-term interest in Oregon’s nearshore groundfish fishery. Ensuring better understanding of coastal interfacing regions such as Oregon’s nearshore insights potential for better conservation and utilization of marine resources and improved monitoring in resource limited management contexts.

The Estuarine Ecological Knowledge Network: Future Prospects

Abstract Estuaries are profoundly rich, diverse, and complex ecosystems, and crucial to the overall health of Earth's oceans. Estuarine ecological complexity is matched by tremendous human cultural diversity. In the United States, millions of people live in estuarine environments from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic—many of whom directly depend on the productivity of marine resources in both commercial and subsistence fishing activities. Yet, estuaries are also among Earth's most threatened landscapes against the backdrop of global warming, sea-level rise, agricultural and industrial pollution, habitat loss, overfishing, and so on. This represents a looming disaster for our oceans at a global scale. The Estuarine Ecological Knowledge Network (EEKN) is based on the idea that fishing communities living within major estuaries are the key to ensuring the health of global oceans. Coastal fishing communities have vast accumulations of ecological knowledge about the functioning of estuarine ecosystems and interact with those ecosystems in intimate ways on a daily basis. This network is designed to connect coastal communities in monitoring the health of estuarine ecosystems and in using traditional ecological knowledge to develop strategies for enhancing ecosystem health and resilience.

Making sense of firms for ocean governance

Making sense of firms for ocean governance

Commercial fisheries & local economies

Commercial fisheries are often presumed to contribute meaningfully to local economies, despite a lack of supporting empirical evidence. We address this gap by estimating local economic effects from commercial fishing activity in Alaska. Using exogenous variation in fish stocks and prices, we find that a 10% increase in a community's annual resident fishery earnings leads to a corresponding 0.7% increase in resident income. This translates to an increase of 1.54 dollars in total income for each dollar increase in fisheries earnings. Our results demonstrate the potential for local benefits from commercial fishing through direct, indirect, and induced effects into other sectors. Moreover, our findings demonstrate the importance of local resource ownership for generating benefits for local economies.

Goliath grouper Epinephelus itajara oral history, use, and conservation status in the Mexican Caribbean and Campeche Bank

The Atlantic goliath grouperEpinephelus itajarais highly vulnerable to overfishing, yet little is known of its population status in Campeche Bank (southern Gulf of Mexico) and the Mexican Caribbean. By reviewing landings records, historical literature, and the local ecological knowledge of fishers, we documented historical practices, uses, and changes in the abundance and distribution of the goliath grouper in these regions. In both the Mexican Caribbean and Campeche Bank, goliath grouper populations were notably impacted by commercial fishing activities in the 1970s and 1980s. The catches during this period could only be sustained for a few years, after which the fishery collapsed. Our results from Campeche Bank indicate that populations persist in an area currently occupied by oil platforms. In the Mexican Caribbean, the extirpation of the goliath grouper may be close at hand, with local exceptions like that of Chetumal Bay. The results of our study indicate that the local goliath grouper populations are in critical danger of extinction, which must be taken into account during the next IUCN Red List regional assessment. In addition, the goliath grouper should be included in the Mexican list for endangered species (NOM-059-SEMARNAT).