Publisher :
Place of publication :
Publication year : 2008
Thematic : Marine Resources
Language : English
Note
The urgency of managing marine resources is based on the fact that half of the
world stocks are fully exploited, excluding those stocks that are already depleted. Artisanal
fisheries in Brazil, both inland and coastal, are responsible for about half of the country’s
catches. Therefore, management of local artisanal fisheries is a necessity that provides an
additional benefit, considering the observation that decentralization and the use of local
ecological knowledge (LEK) in management have given better results than centralized,
top-down management. In this study, a third system of knowledge–based on practice and
training–is built from the local and scientific systems of knowledge, and a method to
accomplish practical steps in local management is shown. Four elements are considered for
the process of linking systems towards management: (1) an understanding of the natural
environment of the fishery and on the use of natural resources by locals; (2) the knowledge
of the marine area used by fishers, i.e., location of fishing spots for each species; (3) the
understanding of fisher behavior, e.g., using tools from optimal foraging theory; and (4) the
knowledge fishers have of the biology and ecology of species and their LEK, based on
studies of the ethnobiology, ethnoecology, and ethnotaxonomy of fish. Considering the
availability of publications on topics 1 and 2, illustrative cases are shown using optimal
foraging models in Itaipu Beach, Rio de Janeiro and Sa˜o Paulo Bagre, Canane´ia, Sa˜o
Paulo, and using common snook, Centropomus undecimalis, as an example for a target
species. Finally, local programs including training courses using both scientific and local
knowledge are proposed within coastal artisanal fisheries.
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Keywords : Tarsomys echinatus
Encoded by : Pauline Carmel Joy Eje
