Ethnobiology Of Snappers (lutjanidae): Target Species And Suggestions For Management

In this study, we sought to investigate the biology (diet and reproduction) and ethnobiology (fishers knowledge and fishing spots used to catch snappers) of five species of snappers (Lutjanidae), including Lutjanus analis, Lutjanus synagris, Lutjanus vivanus, Ocyurus chrysurus, and Romboplites saliens at five sites along the northeast (Riacho Doce, Maceio in Alagoas State, and Porto do Saupe, Entre Rios at Bahia State) and the southeast (SE) Brazilian coast (Paraty and Rio de Janeiro cities at Rio de Janeiro State, and Bertioga, at Sao Paulo State.). We collected 288 snappers and interviewed 86 fishermen. The stomach contents of each fish were examined and macroscopic gonad analysis was performed. Snappers are very important for the fisheries of NE Brazil, and our results indicated that some populations, such as mutton snapper (L. analis) and lane snapper (L. synagris), are being caught when they are too young, at early juvenile stages. Local knowledge has been shown to be a powerful tool for determining appropriate policies regarding management of target species, and artisanal fishermen can be included in management processes. Other suggestions for managing the fisheries are discussed, including proposals that could provide motivation for artisanal fishermen to participate in programs to conserve resources, such as co-management approaches that utilize local knowledge, the establishment of fishing seasons, and compensation of fishermen, through 'payment for environmental services'. These suggestions may enhance the participation of local artisanal fishermen in moving to a more realistic and less top-down management approach of the fish population. © 2011 Begossi et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.7Evans, R.D., Russ, G.R., Larger biomass of targeted reef fish in no-take marine reserves on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia (2004) Aquatic Conservation, 14, pp. 505-519Jennings, S., Polunin, N.V.C., Impacts of predator depletion by fishing on the biomass and diversity of non-target reef fish communities (1997) Coral Reefs, 16, pp. 71-82. , 1997De Boer, W.F., Van Schie, A.M.P., Jocene, D.F., Mabote, A.B.P., Guissamulo, A., The impact of artisanal fishery on a tropical intertidal benthic fish community (2001) Environmental Biology of Fishes, 61, pp. 213-229McClanahan, T.R., Mangi, S., The effect of a closed area and beach seine exclusion on coral reef fish catches (2001) Fisheries Management and Ecology, 8, pp. 107-121Ruttenberg, B.I., Effects of artisanal fishing on marine communities in the Galápagos Islands (2001) Conservation Biology, 15, pp. 1691-1699Marko, P.B., Lee, S.C., Rice, A.M., Gramling, J.M., Fitzhenry, T.M., McAlister, J.S., Harper, G.R., Moran, A.L., Mislabeling of a depleted reef fish (2004) Nature, 430, pp. 309-310. , 10.1038/430309b, 15254528Frédou, T., Ferreira, B.P., Letournneur, Y., A univariate and multivariate study of reef fishes of northeastern Brazil (2006) ICES Journal of Marine Sciences, 63, pp. 883-896Costa, P.A.S., Braga, A.C., Rocha, L.O.F., Reef fisheries in Porto Seguro, eastern Brazilian coast (2003) Fisheries Research, 60, pp. 577-583Starck, W.A., Shroeder, R.E., (1971) Investigations on the Gray Snapper, Lutjanus griseus, , University of Miami Press, Coral Gables, FLFroese, R., Pauly, D., (2010) FishBase, , http://www.fishbase.org, World Wide Web electronic Publication, EditorsMenezes, N.A., Figueiredo, J.L., (1980) Manual de Peixes Marinhos do Sudeste do Brasil. Teleostei [3], , São Paulo: MZUSP/EDUSP, 1980Menezes, N.A., Figueiredo, J.L., (2003) Catálogo de espécies de Peixes Marinhos do do Brasil, , MZUSP/EDUSPFrédou, T., Ferreira, B.P., Letourneur, Y., (a) Assessing the stocks of the primary snappers caught in Northeastern Brazilian reef systems. 1. Traditional modelling approaches (2009) Fisheries Research, 99, pp. 90-96Frédou, T., Ferreira, B.P., Letourneur, Y., (b) Assessing the stocks of the primary snappers caught in Northeastern Brazilian reef systems. 2. A multi-fleet age-structured approach (2009) Fisheries Research, 99, pp. 97-105Vasconcellos, M., Diegues, A.C., Sales, R.R., Limites e possibilidades na pesca artesanal. Brasília (2007) IBAMABarroso, L.M., Regime alimentar do pargo (Lutjanus aya, Bloch, 1795) no Nordeste brasileiro (1965) Boletim de Estudos da Pesca (SUDENE, Recife), 5, pp. 7-16Ivo, C.T.C., Hanson, A.J., Aspectos da biologia e dinâmica populacional do pargo Lutjanus purpureus Poey, no Norte e Nordeste do Brasil (1982) Arquivos de Ciências do Mar (UFCE, Fortaleza), 22, pp. 1-41Fonteles-Filho, A.A., Ferreira, F.T., Distribuição geográfica da captura do pargo, Lutjanus purpureus Poey, e sua relação com fatores oceanográficos nas regiões Norte e Nordeste do Brasil (1987) Boletim de Ciências do Mar (UFCE, Fortaleza), 45, pp. 1-23Rezende, S.M., Ferreira, B.P., Frédou, T., A pesca de lutjanídeos no Nordeste do Brasil: histórico das pescarias, características das espécies e relevância para o manejo (2003) Boletim Técnico Científico da CEPENE, 11, pp. 257-270Rezende, S.M., Ferreira, B.P., Age, growth and mortality of dog snapper Lutjanus jocu (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) in the northeast coast of Brazil (2004) Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, 52, pp. 107-121Ivo, C.T.C., Sousa, M.J.B., Sinopse de informações sobre o pargo, Lutjanus purpureus Poey (Pisces: Lutjanidae), no Norte e Nordeste do Brasil (1988) Arquivos de Ciências do Mar (UFCE, Fortaleza), 27, pp. 57-67. , 1988Klippel, S., Olavo, G., Costa, P.A.S., Martins, A.S., Peres, M.B., Avaliação dos estoques de Lutjanídeos da costa central do Brasil: análise de coortes e modelo preditivo de Thompson e Bell para comprimentos (2005) Pesca e Potenciais de exploração de recursos vivos na região central da ZEE Brasileira, pp. 83-98. , Rio de Janeiro: Museu Nacional, Costa ASP, Martins AS, Olavo G, 2005Begossi, A., Small-scale fisheries in Latin America: management models and challenges (2010) MARE, 9, pp. 7-31Pauly, D., Christensen, V., Dlasgaard, J., Froese, R., Torres, F., Fishing down marine food webs (1998) Science, 279, pp. 860-863. , 10.1126/science.279.5352.860, 9452385Jackson, J.B.C., Kirby, M.X., Berger, W.H., Bjorndal, K.A., Botsford, L.W., Bourque, B.J., Bradbury, R.H., Warner, R.R., Historical overfishing and the recent collapse of coastal ecosystems (2001) Science, 293, pp. 629-638. , 10.1126/science.1059199, 11474098Myers, R., Worm, B., Rapid worldwide depletion of predatory fish communities (2003) Nature, 423, pp. 280-283. , 10.1038/nature01610, 12748640Geoffrey, H., Schlenker, W., Sustainable fisheries (2008) Nature, 455, pp. 1044-1045Johannes, R.E., The case for data-less marine resource management: examples from tropical nearshore finfisheries (1998) Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 13, pp. 243-246. , 10.1016/S0169-5347(98)01384-6, 21238285Sadovy, Y., The threat of fishing to highly fecund fishes (2001) Journal of Fish Biology 59 (A), pp. 90-108Johannes, R.E., Freeman, M.M.R., Hamilton, R.J., Ignore fisher's knowledge and miss the boat (2000) Fish and Fisheries, 1, pp. 257-271Silvano, R.A.M., Valbo-Jorgensen, J., Beyond fishermen's tales: contribution of fishers' local ecological knowledge to fish ecology and fisheries management (2008), 10, pp. 657-675. , Environment, Development and SustainabilityRuddle, K., Systems of knowledge: dialogue, relationships and process (2000) Environment, Development and Sustainability, 2, pp. 277-304. , 2000Begossi, A., Local knowledge and training towards management (2008) Environment, Development, and Sustainability, 10, pp. 591-603Silvano, R.A.M., Silva, A.L., Cerone, M., Begossi, A., Contributions of Ethnobiology to the conservation of tropical rivers and streams (2008) Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 18, pp. 241-260Pinnegar, J.K., Engelhard, G.H., The ' shifting baseline' phenomena: a global perspective (2007) Rev Fish Biol Fishes, 18 (1), pp. 1-16Begossi, A., Silvano, R.A.M., Ecology and Ethnoecology of dusky grouper, garoupa, [Epinephelus marginatus (Lowe, 1834)] along the coast of Brazil (2008) Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 4, pp. 1:20Silvano, R.A.M., Begossi, A., What can be learned from fishers? An integrated survey of ecological knowledge and bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) biology on the Brazilian coast (2010) Hydrobiologia, pp. 637-643. , 18Aswani, S., Patterns of marine harvest effort in southwestern New Georgia, Solomon Islands: resource management or optimal foraging? (1998) Ocean & Coastal Management, 40, pp. 207-235Aswani, S., Lauer, M., Incorporating fishermen's local knowledge and behavior into geographical information systems (GIS) for designing marine protected areas in Oceania (2006) Human Organization, 65, pp. 81-102Cordell, J., (1989) A sea of small boats, , Cambridge, MA: Cultural SurvivalCordell, J., (2006) Scaling up marine management: the role of protected areas, , Washington DC: The World BankJohannes, R.E., (1981) Words of the lagoon, , Berkeley: University of California PressRuddle, K., Johannes, R.E., (1985) The Traditional Knowledge and Management of Coastal Systems in Asia and the Pacific/Jakarta, , UNESCORuddle, K., Johannes, R.E., (1990) Traditional Marine Resource Management in the Pacific Basin: An Anthology/, , Jakarta, UNESCOHickey, F.R., Johannes, R.E., Recent evolution of village-based marine resource management systems (2002) SPC Traditional Marine Resource Management and Knowledge Information Bulletin, 14. , http://www.unesco.org/csi/wise/indigenous/vanuatu.htm, condensed versionfull version inAcheson, J.M., (2003) Capturing the Commons, , New England: University Press of New EnglandBerkes, F., (2008) Sacred Ecology, , New York: RoutledgeBegossi, A., Cooperative and territorial resources: Brazilian artisanal fisheries (2001) The Commons Revisited: an Americas Perspective, pp. 109-130. , Menlo Park, CA: Island Press, Burger J, Norgaard R, Ostrom E, Policansky D, Goldstein BBegossi, A., Temporal stability in fishing spots: conservation and co-management in Brazilian artisanal coastal fisheries (2006), 11 (1), p. 5. , http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol11/iss1, Ecology & SocietyDiegues, A.C., (2002) Enciclopédia Caiçara, I. , Hucitec, São PauloMarques, J.G.W., (2001) Aspectos ecológicos na ecologia dos pescadores do complexo estuarino-lagunar de Mundaú-Manguaba, Alagoas, , Unicamp, Campinas: PhD ThesisRamires, M.S., Barrella, W., Etnoictiologia dos Pescadores artesanais da Estação Ecológica Juréia-Itatins (São Paulo, Brazil) (2005) Enciclopédia Caiçara, vol I, pp. 117-132. , São Paulo: Hucitec-Nupaub, Diegues ACSilvano, R.A.M., Mac Cord, P., Lima, R.V., Begossi, A., When does this fish spawn ? Fishermen's local knowledge of migration and reproduction of Brazilian coastal fishes (2006) Environmental Biology of Fishes, 76, pp. 371-386(2006) Relatório Executivo (Jablonksy, S., Coord). Avaliação do potencial sustentável de recursos vivos na Zona Econômica Exclusiva do Brasil, , http://www.mma.gov.br/estruturas/205/_publicacao/205_publicacao03022011100749.pdf, Brasília: Ministério do Meio-Ambiente, REVIZEEBegossi, A., Lopes, P.F., Oliveira, L.E.C., Nakano, H., (2010) Ecologia de Pescadores Artesanais da Baía da Ilha Grande, , São Carlos: Editora RimaNehrer, R., Begossi, A., Fishing at Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: local strategies in a global city (2000) Ciência e Cultura, 52, pp. 26-30Andreoli, T.B., Etnoecologia de Lutjanidae (vermelhos) em comunidade de pescadores de Bertioga (SP) (2008), http://www.puc-campinas.edu.br/graduacao/ccsa/ciencia_infor/monografias.asp, Campinas, Brazil: Report TCC, PUCCAMPCaillet, G.M., Love, M.S., Ebeling, A.W., (1986) Fishes: a field and laboratory manual on their structure, identification and natural history, , Illinois: Waveland Press, IncMoura, R.L., Lindeman, K.C., A new species of snapper (Perciformes: Lutjanidae) from Brazil, with comments on the distribution of Lutjanus griseus and Lutjanus apodus (2007) Zootaxa, 1422, pp. 31-43Melo, G.A.S., (1996) Manual de identificação dos Brachyura (Caranguejos e Siris) do Litoral Brasileiro, , Plêiade, São PauloIUCN Red List http://www.iucnredlist.org/Anderson, W.D., Lutjanidae (2002) The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Volume 3: Bony fishes part 2 (Opistognathidae to Molidae), sea turtles and marine mammals, pp. 1479-1486. , Rome: FAO, Carpenter KE, 2002Cocheret de la, M., Pollux, E., Nagelkerken, B.J.A., Van Der Velde, G., Diet shifts of Caribbean grunts (Haemulidae) and snappers (Lutjanidae) and the relation with nursery-to-coral reef migrations (2003) Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 57, pp. 1079-1089. , 2003Duarte, L.O., García, C.B., Diet of the Lane Snapper, Lutjanus synagris (Lutjanidae) in the Gulf of Salamanca, Colombia (1999) Caribbean Journal of Science, 35, pp. 54-63. , 1999Duarte, L.O., García, C.B., Diet of the Mutton Snapper Lutjanus analis (Cuvier) from the Gulf of Salamanca, Colombia, Caribbean Sea (1999) Bulletin of Marine Science, 65, pp. 453-465Rooker, J.R., Feeding Ecology of the schoolmaster snapper, Lutjanus apodus (Walbaum), from southwestern Puerto Rico (1995) Bulletin of Marine Science, 56, pp. 881-894Harrigan, P., Zieman, J.C., Macko, S.A., The base of nutritional support for the gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus): an evaluation based on a combined stomach content and stable isotope analysis (1989) Bulletin of Marine Science, 44, pp. 65-77Thresher, R.E., (1984) Reproduction in Reef Fishes, , New Jersey: T.F. H. PublicationsBurton, M.L., Age, growth and mortality of mutton snapper, Lutjanus analis, from the east coast of Florida, with a brief discussion of management implications (2002) Fisheries Research, 59, pp. 31-51Mueller, K.W., Dennis, G.D., Eggleston, D.B., Wicklund, R.I., Size-specific social interactions and foraging styles in a shallow water population of mutton snapper, Lutjanus analis (Pisces: Lutjanidae), in the Central Bahamas (1994) Environmental Biology of fishers, 40, pp. 175-188Silvano, R.A.M., Begossi, A., Ethnoichthyology and fish conservation in the Piracicaba River (Brazil) (2002) Journal of Ethnobiology, 22, pp. 285-306Silvano, R.A.M., Begossi, A., Local knowledge on a cosmopolitan fish, ethnoecology of Pomatomus saltatrix (Pomatomidae) in Brazil and Australia (2005) Fisheries Research, 71, pp. 43-59Begossi, A., Brown, D., Fisheries co-management experiences in Latin America and the Caribbean (2003) The Fisheries co-management experience, pp. 135-152. , Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Pub., Fish and Fisheries Series 26, Wilson DC, Nielsen JR, Degnbol PBegossi, A., The use of optimal foraging theory to understand fishing strategies: a case from Sepetiba Bay (State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) (1992) Human Ecology, 20, pp. 463-475Seth, S.A., Branch, T.A., Watson, R., Global fishery developments patterns are driven by profit but not trophic level (2010) PNAS, 107, pp. 12163-12167. , 10.1073/pnas.1003236107, 2901455, 20566867Engel, S., Pagiola, S., Wunder, S., Designing payments for environmental services in theory and practice: an overview of the issues (2008) Ecological Economics, 65, pp. 663-674Vinha, V., May, P., Begossi, A., Payments to avoid overfishing: PES potential for the Arraial Cabo Resex in Brazil (2010) Paper present at the XI Conference of the International Society for Ecological Economics, , Oldenburg/Bremen, German