Ready for co-management? Portuguese artisanal octopus fishers’ preferences for management and knowledge about the resource

In Portugal, the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) dominates the total catches and landings from small scale fisheries. The small-scale fisheries have been targeting the common octopus for a long time and it is consistently one of the most important commercial fishing resources in the country. Questionnaires were conducted in 13 fishing ports in the south and southwest coasts of Portugal, from November 2014 to December 2016, to explore octopus artisanal fishers’ preferences for management and their knowledge about the biology and ecology of octopus. The survey revealed that fishers are generally not satisfied with the current management of the octopus fisheries. Some differences in preferences for management were found between regions, but in general, fishers strongly supported biological closures and local management plans developed by themselves. Fishers seemed to be interest in being more involved in the decision-making process, but only seem to have a moderate knowledge about the biology and ecology of the resource they exploit. A greater involvement of fishers in decision-making process will contribute to increase their awareness and knowledge about the resource, their receptivity to and acceptance of management measures, as well as increase their feeling of responsibility towards, and ownership of the resource.