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Small-scale recreational and artisanal fisheries are popular activities in the Autonomous Region of Madeira, and to date no information is available on their impact on regional coastal ecosystems. Through fishers’ surveys and official registers of fish landings, we described and characterized these fisheries in Madeira, comparing artisanal and recreational fisheries. In 2017, artisanal boats landed 91 species in fishing ports, while recreational catches landed 58 species. The most frequent catches were Dentex gibbosus, Phycis phycis and Pagrus pagrus for artisanal fishery and P. pagrus, Serranus atricauda and Diplodus spp. for recreational fishery. Comparing the same techniques, artisanal fishery always showed higher catch per unit effort values than recreational boat fishery. Nevertheless, the low number of artisanal fishery boats in comparison with the recreational ones reflected the lower total landings of the artisanal fishery, which in 2017 were 62.3 t, compared with the 509.8 t estimated catches for the recreational fishery. Though the estimated recreational fishing data were based on surveys and thus subject to various biases, this activity seems to negatively affect coastal ecosystems and, together with artisanal fishing, exerts a combined pressure on targeted species. Improved legislation for both fisheries is essential for an appropriate management of resources.

Artisanal fisheries in center-southern Chile targeted a large amount of southern ray bream (Brama australis), whereas other species of Bramidae are negligible in the catches. During a small-scale fishing trip targeting B. australis off the coast of Lebu Harbour (38ºS) in August 2021, two specimens of other Bramidae species were also caught, but the fishermen did not identify them. The first corresponded to a sickle pomfret, Taractichthys steindachneri, the first record of the species in Chilean waters. The second specimen corresponded to the rough pomfret, Taractes asper, already reported from the Chilean coast, but with only one previous record from the eighties. We discussed how the occurrence of T. steindachneri and T. asper provide insights regarding the B. australis demography in the south Pacific.

The study aimed to evaluate whether the addition of pequi increases the nutritional value of meatballs made with piranha and pacu fillets. Piranhas were obtained from the colony of fishermen; pacu with the fish farmer and the pequis were collected in nature. Fish were filleted and triturated, and the resulting masses were used to prepare 4 types of meatballs: piranha fillet with 2.0% pequi pulp, piranha fillet without pequi pulp, pacu fillet with with 2.0% pequi pulp, and pacu fillet without pequi pulp. After preparation, acceptance, purchase intention and frequency of consumption were evaluated with untrained tasters. Chemical composition parameters evaluated were crude protein, lipids, ash, moisture, carotenoids and antioxidant activity. Results of acceptability for all formulations were similar. The chemical composition of piranha meatballs presented differences (p < 0.05) for lipids and carotenoids. Pacu meatballs showed no difference (p > 0.05) for moisture, carotenoids, and antioxidant activity. The addition of pequi did not alter the organoleptic characteristics, however increased the nutritional values, therefore, it can add value to the product to be marketed and be more nutritionally attractive to the consumer.

The Sundarbans Delta, one of India's Ramsar sites, is an ecologically important wetland that is home to a variety of endemic and threatened aquatic species, including mudskippers. However, there is a knowledge gap about their fundamental aspects, such as population dynamics, reproductive biology and other life-history characteristics, which hindered their conservation. Therefore, the demographics of the blue-spotted mudskipper Boleophthalmus boddarti (Pallas, 1770) were estimated. A total of 975 mudskipper individuals were collected during January 2018-December 2018 using a range of fishing gears [scoop net (0.5–2 cm mesh), bag net (5–15 cm mesh), fish traps (5 × 5 cm mesh traps) and cast net (6–8 cm mesh)] with the help of artisanal fishers. Length–weight relationship analysis revealed negative allometric growth ( b  = 2.82) pattern for the study species. The estimated demographic parameters of study species are as follows: Asymptotic length; ( L ∞ ) = 220 mm, growth coefficient ( K)  = 0.75 year −1 , growth performance index (Ø) = 2.56 and potential longevity ( t max ) = 4.0 years. The natural mortality rate ( M  = 1.58 year −1 ) of fish species was higher than the fishing mortality rate ( F  = 0.25 year −1 ). The current level of exploitation ( E  = 0.10) was much lower than the expected maximum rate of exploitation ( E max  = 0.53), which indicates that the species is rationally exploited without any imminent danger of over-harvesting. The baseline data provided here likely to have implications for conservation and fisheries management of blue-spotted mudskipper.

The franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) is considered the most threatened cetacean in the South Western Atlantic due to bycatch in gillnet fisheries of Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. As gillnet fisheries operate in the same areas inhabited by dolphins, methods and strategies to reduce bycatch require particular attention. This study investigated the potential of switching gillnets to bottom longlines to reduce franciscana bycatch rates while maintaining economic returns in a small-scale artisanal fishery in Argentina. Trials were conducted in Bahía Samborombón and Cabo San Antonio between October 2004 and January 2007, in cooperation with artisanal fishermen who simultaneously fished using bottom longlines and gillnets. Target and non-target catch composition, fishing yield, catch size distribution and quality of catch, as well as bycatch of dolphins, sea turtles and interaction with sea lions were compared between the two fishing methods. An economic analysis of the fishery was performed to evaluate the potential to assess the profitability of switching fishing gears. Hauls of both gear types deployed simultaneously in the same locations showed similar fish catch composition and catch size with both gears but reduced catch of juvenile fishes in longlines. Bycatch of franciscana in bottom longlines was limited to only one dolphin in three consecutive years of trials, and no direct interaction between turtles and hooks were recorded. interaction with sea lions and sea turtles was reduced. The economic analysis showed financially acceptable perspectives under a five-year scenario. Reducing gillnet effort by switching to bottom longlines appears a practical approach to creating a sustainable fishery that could result in significant mitigation of current bycatch of franciscana dolphins in Argentina. However, implementation requires acceptance and compliance by the artisanal gillnet fishery.

In the period March 2009-February 2010 the fish bycatch of the artisanal shrimp fishery operating off the beach of Isla del Rosario (Gulf of Salamanca, Colombian Caribbean) was evaluated and length-frequency data analysis were done for five of the main ichthyic species. For this purpose, data registered in the project \"Pesca artesanal del Magdalena\", processed in the Fisheries Information System of Invemar (SIPEIN) to obtain fishery variables, on a monthly basis, was used. Between shrimp and fish fauna 38,265 kg were registered. The ichthyic bycatch fauna was composed of 59 fish species, distributed in 23 families, being Engraulidae, Sciaenidae, and Mugilidae the most representative. Regarding the engraulid Cetengraulis edentulus biomass, it was the most important species. Ichthyic bycatch to shrimp relationship was 1.2:1.0 with shrimp beach seine. During the assessed year, the highest mean Landing Per Unit Effort (LPUE) was present in the dry season, but November (rainy season) was the month with the highest shrimp LPUE. The indicators, Lc (mean length) and spawning/juvenile proportion, evidence growth overfishing for the species Bairdiella ronchus, Cathorops mapale, Mugil incilis and Trichiurus lepturus. The state of this fishery and the impact it generates on the ecosystem is discussed. Measures for its proper management are recommended.

The institutional analysis and development (IAD) literature finds that Nash equilibrium predictions are empirically falsified in the social dilemmas that arise in community-level natural resource management problems. However, Nash equilibrium is not the only solution concept within noncooperative game theory. Here we demonstrate the power of correlated equilibrium (CE) to explain lotteries for the allocation of fishing sites as enduring community-level natural resource management institutions. Such CE-implementing lotteries are procedurally fair, equitable, and increase total expected fishery value. This modeling approach clarifies two further sets of relationships. It reveals the nature of the interdependence between the size and spacing of fishing sites and (a) the inuse characteristics of fishing gear, as well as (b) the degree of formalization of property rights and the structural features of the resource-management institution. When appropriately applied, noncooperative game theory offers a powerful explanatory complement to the IAD literature on community-level natural resource management.

Freshwater fishing is an important socioeconomic aspect of the communities in the Cagayan de Oro River (CDOR), Philippines. The fishery sector in CDOR has the elements that are generally characteristic of artisanal or small-scale fisheries. Before this study, very little was known of the scope and magnitude of artisanal level fishing activities within the CDOR. It has remained undocumented by Local Government Units (LGUs) as it does not contribute directly to the economy in terms of measurable cash flow. However, a number of fishes in the river have higher commercial value compared to marine fisheries in the nearby Macajalar Bay. This study is an attempt to examine the conditions of the CDOR fisheries and to quantify its economic contributions. The economic contribution is measured in terms of the market value of captured aquatic resources. In order to establish the behavior and trends in the fisheries of the different communities, the study area was divided into three sub-zones. Data in this study were collected through interviews of identified fishermen in the different sub-zones. Majority of the fishermen venture into other menial jobs due to proximity to the urban center. Many of them have subsidiary occupations which serve the dual purpose of alternative income and job opportunities and food source because fishing is seasonal. The peak fishing season usually spans two to four months. Comparatively, the earnings derived by the Cagayan de Oro River fishermen are relatively in almost the same range as the marine fishermen in the different parts of the country.

Bycatch remains one of the most significant fisheries issues in the world and its monitoring and reporting is now expected in many regions. This paper provides a global synthesis of the data that are available on one of the most controversial components of bycatch, that associated with the capture and discarding of endangered, threatened and protected (ETP) species in marine commercial and artisanal fisheries. We examine the available literature regarding estimates for the key taxa in this category of bycatch (seabirds, turtles, sea snakes, marine mammals, sharks, rays and teleosts) and use the data to try to provide a total global estimate. We estimate (albeit quite imprecisely) that at least 20 million individuals of such species are discarded annually throughout the world. However, there remain far too many gaps and uncertainties across fisheries and regions in the information to provide any robustness (or variance) around such an estimate, nor to determine the actual fates of these animals (many may survive). This is exacerbated because: (1) the occurrences of such species are often rare and controversial and so go either unnoticed and/or unrecorded; (2) different levels of protection are afforded to different ETP species in different countries and fisheries and; (3) discarding practices vary greatly across a hierarchy of spatio-temporal scales and according to individual fishing conditions and procedures—the latter affecting actual mortalities. Nevertheless, there have been major initiatives established in recent years to provide better data on such interactions in addition to novel fishing methods and practices that reduce them and also improve the survival of discarded individuals. This paper discusses the data currently available and the quite significant gaps that remain.

While women globally make up nearly half of the fisheries workforce, their contribution to the sector has long been overlooked with implications for fisheries management. To assess women’s participation in small-scale fisheries (SSF) management and related socio-cultural, environmental, and economic impacts, we conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature (n = 124 case studies). Women had no or limited participation in more than 80% of the examined case studies reporting their participation level in SSF management. Women’s exclusion from SSF management resulted in negative outcomes, whereas their active participation was associated with various positive impacts at multiple scales. Most of the documented impacts were socio-cultural, suggesting a gap in documenting environmental impacts stemmed from women’s participation in SSF management. Importantly, most impacts reported affected the social-ecological system scale, suggesting that gender inclusion may contribute to improving the management of SSF social-ecological systems. We conclude by highlighting the need to foster gender perspectives in data collection methods used in fisheries research, in SSF management, and in ecological research on SSF social-ecological systems.