Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Fishers’ ecological knowledge on the reproduction of fish and shrimp in a subtropical coastal ecosystem

  • Primary Research Paper
  • Published:
Hydrobiologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Fishers’ ecological knowledge (FEK) has contributed to a better understanding about the reproduction of fishery resources, especially where biological data are scarce or unavailable. We analyzed FEK on the reproduction of five fishery resources in the Paranaguá estuarine complex and adjacent coastal area, Brazil, including fishes (Genidens barbus, Centropomus parallelus, Chaetodipterus faber, Pseudobatos sp.) and shrimp (Litopenaeus schmitti). We also sought to compare FEK with biological data and investigate which characteristics (age, fish evisceration and fishers’ location) influence fishers' knowledge. We interviewed 132 artisanal fishers. FEK indicated reproductive peaks in the spring and summer for the fish species and in late winter and early spring for the shrimp. The maturation sizes according to FEK did not differ from sizes at first maturity (L50) as reported by biological studies for G. barbus and L. schmitti. Fishers’ residence sites and fish evisceration influenced more their knowledge related to species reproduction than age. Fishers showed a detailed ecological knowledge about some reproductive aspects, including size at first maturity of females, site of occurrence and reproductive peaks. Furthermore, fishers were able to identify sexual dimorphism, parental care and ovoviviparity. These results can be applied to improve fisheries management in the context of data poor fisheries.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andriguetto Filho, J. M., P. T. C. Chaves, C. Santos & S. A. Liberati, 2006. Diagnóstico da Pesca no estado do Paraná. In Pesca marinha e estuarina do Brasil no início do século XXI: Recursos, tecnologias, aspectos socioeconômicos e institucionais. Editora Universitária UFPA, Belém do Pará.

  • Araújo, F. G., 1988. Distribuição, abundância relativa e movimentos sazonais de bagres marinhos (Siluriformes, Ariidae) no estuário da Lagoa dos Patos (RS), Brasil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 5: 509-543.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aswani, S. & M. Lauer, 2006. Benthic mapping using local aerial photo interpretation and resident taxa inventories for designing marine protected areas. Environmental Conservation 33: 263–273.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Azzurro, E., P. Moschella & F. Maynou, 2011. Tracking signals of change in Mediterranean fish diversity based on local ecological knowledge. PLoS One 6: e24885.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Batista, V. S. & L. G. Lima, 2010. In search of traditional bio-ecological knowledge useful for fisheries co-management: the case of jaraquis Semaprochilodus spp.(Characiformes, Prochilodontidae) in Central Amazon, Brazil. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 6(1): 15.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Begossi, A., 1998. Cultural and ecological resilience among Caiçaras of the Atlantic Forest and caboclos of the Amazon, Brazil. In: Folke, C. & F. Berkes (Eds). Linking social and cultural systems for resilience. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, pp. 129-157.

    Google Scholar 

  • Begossi, A., 2006. Temporal stability in fishing spots: conservation and co-management in Brazilian artisanal coastal fisheries. Ecology & Society 11: 5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Begossi, A. & R. A. M. Silvano, 2008. Ecology and ethnoecology of dusky grouper garoupa, Epinephelus marginatus (Lowe, 1834) along the coast of Brazil. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 4: 20.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Bender, M. G., S. R. Floeter & N. Hanazaki, 2013. Do traditional fishers recognise reef fish species declines? Shifting environmental baselines in Eastern Brazil. Fisheries Management and Ecology 20(1): 58-67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berkes, F., 1999. Sacred ecology: traditional ecological knowledge and resource management. Taylor & Francis, Philadelphia 209 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bernard, H. R., 1995. Research Methods in Anthropology—Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. 2ªed. United States of America, Altamira Press.

  • Birkeland, C. & P. K. Dayton, 2005. The importance in fishery management of leaving the big ones. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 20(7): 356-358.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braga, H.O., M.J. Pereira, F. Morgado, A.M.V.M. Soares, and U.M. Azeiteiro (2019) Ethnozoological Knowledge of Traditional Fishing Villages about the Anadromous Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon Marinus) in the Minho River, Portugal. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-019-0345-9.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Bryan, B. J., M. L. Wildhaber, D. M. Papoulias, A. J. DeLonay, D. E. Tillitt & M. L. Annis, 2007. Estimation of gonad volume, fecundity, and reproductive stage of shovelnose sturgeon using sonography and endoscopy with application to the endangered pallid sturgeon. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 23(4): 411-419.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chuwen, B. M., I. C. Potter, N. G. Hall, S. D. Hoeksema & L. J. B. Laurenson, 2011. Changes in catch rates and length and age at maturity, but not growth, of an estuarine plotosid (Cnidoglanis macrocephalus) after heavy fishing. Fishery Bulletin 109: 247–260.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cuevas-Gómez, G. A., J. C., Pérez-Jiménez, I. Méndez-Loeza, M. Carrera-Fernández,J. L. Castillo-Géniz, 2020. Identification of a nursery area for the critically endangered hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini) amid intense fisheries in the southern Gulf of Mexico. Journal of Fish Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.14471

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, A., & J. R. Wagner, 2003. Who knows? On the importance of identifying “experts” when researching local ecological knowledge. Human ecology 31(3): 463-489.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Dario, F., C. Alves, H. Boos, F. L. Frédou, R. Lessa, M. M. Mincarone, M. A. A. Pinheiro, C. N. M. Polaz, R. E. Reis, L. A. Rocha, 2015. A Better Way Forward for Brazil’s Fisheries. Science 1079

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Diegues, A. C., 1998. Environmental impact assessment: the point of view of artisanal fishermen communities in Brazil. Ocean & Coastal Management 39: 119-133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diegues A. C., 2008. Marine protected areas and artisanal fisheries in Brazil. In Samudra monograph. International Collective in Support of Fishworkers.

  • Fávaro, L. F., F. D. A. Frehse, R. N. D. Oliveira & R. Schwarz Júnior, 2005. Reproduction of the Madamango sea catfish, Cathorops spixii (Agassiz) (Siluriformes, Ariidae), of the Pinheiros Bay, estuarine coastal area of Paraná, Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 22: 1022-1029.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerhardinger, L. C., R. C. Marenzi, A. A. Bertoncini, R. P. Medeiros & M. Hostim-Silva, 2006. Local ecological knowledge on the goliath grouper Epinephelus itajara (Teleostei: Serranidae) in southern Brazil. Neotropical Ichthyology 4(4): 441-450.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hallwass, G., P. F. Lopes, A. A. Juras & R. A. M. Silvano, 2013. Fishers' knowledge identifies environmental changes and fish abundance trends in impounded tropical rivers. Ecological Applications 23(2): 392-407.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hallwass, G., A. Schiavetti & R. A. M. Silvano, 2020. Fishers’ knowledge indicates temporal changes in composition and abundance of fishing resources in Amazon protected areas. Animal Conservation 23: 36–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton, R. J., M. Giningele, S. Aswani & J. L. Ecochard, 2012. Fishing in the dark-local knowledge, night spearfishing and spawning aggregations in the Western Solomon Islands. Biological Conservation 145: 246–257.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hanazaki, N., 2015. Why are we so attached to the “ethno” prefix in Brazil? Scientometrics 103(2), 545-554.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herbst, D. F & N. Hanazaki, 2014. Local ecological knowledge of fishers about the life cycle and temporal patterns in the migration of mullet (Mugil liza) in Southern Brazil. Neotropical Ichthyology 12: 879-890.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hixon, M. A., D. W. Johnson & S. M. Sogard, 2013. BOFFFFs: on the importance of conserving old-growth age structure in fishery populations. ICES Journal of Marine Science 71(8): 2171-2185.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johannes, R. E., M. M. Freeman & R. J. Hamilton, 2000. Ignore fishers’ knowledge and miss the boat. Fish and Fisheries 1: 257-271.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Souza Jr., O. G., J. L. G. Nunes, & R. A. M. Silvano, 2020. Biology, ecology and behavior of the acoupa weakfish Cynoscion acoupa (Lacepède, 1801) according to the local knowledge of fishermen in the northern coast of Brazil. Marine Policy 115: 103870.

  • Lana, P. C., E. Marone, R. M. Lopes & E. D. C. Machado, 2001. The subtropical estuarine complex of Paranaguá Bay, Brazil. In Coastal marine ecosystems of Latin America. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg: 131-145.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Le fur, J., A. Guilavogui & A. Teitelbaum, 2011. Contribution of local fishermen to improving knowledge of the marine ecosystem and resources in the Republic of Guinea, West Africa. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 68:1454-1469.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leite, M. C. F., M. A., Gasalla, 2013. A method for assessing fishers’ ecological knowledge as a practical tool for ecosystem-based fisheries management: seeking consensus in Southeastern Brazil. Fisheries Research 145: 43–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lopes, P. F. M., E. M. Rosa, S. Salyvonchyk, V. Nora, A. Begossi, 2013a. Suggestions for Fixing Top-down Coastal Fisheries Management through Participatory Approaches. Marine Policy 40 (1): 100–110.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lopes, P. F. M., R. A. M. Silvano, V. A. Nora, A. Begossi, 2013b. Transboundary Socio-Ecological Effects of a Marine Protected Area in the Southwest Atlantic. AMBIO 42(8): 963–74.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Machado, I. F., L. F. C. Dumont & F. D'Incao, 2009. Stages of gonadal development and mean length at first maturity of wild females of white shrimp (Litopenaeus schmitti - Decapoda, Penaeidae) in southern Brazil. Atlântica 31: 169-175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martins, M. F., A. F. Pasquino, & O. B. F. Gadig, 2018. Reproductive biology of the Brazilian guitarfish, Pseudobatos horkelii (Müller & Henle, 1841) from southeastern Brazil, western South Atlantic. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 34: 646-652.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendonça, J. T., A. C. M. Lucena, L. D. Muehlmann & R. P. Medeiros, 2017. Fisheries Socioeconomics on the Coast of the State of Paraná (Brazil) for the Period from 2005 to 2015. Desenvolvimento e Meio Ambiente 41: 140-157.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nogueira, A. B., 2009. Biologia de Centropomus parallelus Poey, 1860 no sistema Baía de Guaratuba, Paraná, Brasil. Dissertação de Mestrado, Universidade Federal do Paraná.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nunes, M. U. S., 2020. The fishers’ ecological knowledge on the reproduction and migration of fishing resources in a subtropical coastal ecosystem of the Southern Atlantic. PhD thesis, Universidade Federal do Paraná.

  • Nunes, M. U. S., G. Hallwass, & R. A. M. Silvano, 2019. Fishers’ local ecological knowledge indicate migration patterns of tropical freshwater fish in an Amazonian river. Hydrobiologia 833: 197-215.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Possatto, F. E., M. K. Broadhurst, C. A. Gray, H. L. Spach & M. R. Lamour, 2017. Spatiotemporal variation among demersal ichthyofauna in a subtropical estuary bordering World Heritage-listed and marine protected areas: implications for resource management. Marine and Freshwater Research 68: 703-717.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rasalato, E., V. Maginnity, J. M. Brunnschweiler, 2010. Using Local Ecological Knowledge to Identify Shark River Habitats in Fiji (South Pacific). Environmental Conservation 37 (1): 90–97.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • R Development Core Team, 2019. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for statistical computing. Viena, Austria. http://www.R-project.org. Accessed 01 Feb 2019.

  • Reis, E. G., 1986. Reproduction and feeding habits of the marine catfish Netuma barba (Siluriformes, Ariidae) in the estuary of Lagoa dos Patos, Brazil. Atlântica 8: 35-55.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rocha, F., 2010. Biologia reprodutiva da raia-viola Rhinobatos percellens Walbaum, 1792 (Chondrichthyes, Rhinobatidae), da plataforma continental de São Paulo. Dissertação de Mestrado, Universidade Estadual Paulista.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Rodrigues P. P., 2005. Aspectos reprodutivos do robalo peba, Centropomus parallelus, na foz do rio doce, Linhares/ES. Monografia, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ruddle, K. & F. R. Hickey, 2008. Accounting for the mismanagement of tropical nearshore fisheries. Environment Development and Sustainability 10: 565-589.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sadovy de Mitcheson, Y., A. Cornish, M. Domeier, P. L. Colin, M. Russell & K. C. Lindeman, 2008 A global baseline for spawning aggregations of reef fishes. Conservation Biology 22: 1233–1244.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Saenz-Arroyo, A., C. Roberts, J. Torre, M. Cariño-Olvera & R. Enríquez-Andrade, 2005. Rapidly shifting environmental baselines among fishers of the Gulf of California. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 272(1575): 1957-1962.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Santos, J. L., E. Severino-Rodrigues, & M. André, 2008. Estrutura populacional do camarão-branco Litopenaeus schmitti nas regiões estuarina e marinha da Baixada Santista, São Paulo, Brasil. Boletim do Instituto de Pesca 34: 375-389.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schemmel, E., A. M. Friedlander, P. Andrade, K. Keakealani, L. M. Castro, C. Wiggins, B. A. Wilcox, Y. Yasutake, J. N. Kittinger (2016). The codevelopment of coastal fisheries monitoring methods to support local management. Ecology and Society 21(4).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Serrão, E. M., T. M. P. Braga, Y. K. S. Côelho, D. P. F. Campos, A. A. Santos, L. C. Imbiriba & D. M. Zacardi, 2019. Traditional knowledge of fishermen of the reproductive behavior of fish in a flood lake in western Pará, Brazil. Sociedade e Natureza 31: 1-21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Serra-Pereira, B. K. Erzini, C. Maia, I. Figueiredo, 2014. Identification of potential essential fish habitats for skates based on fishers’ knowledge. Environmental Management 53(5): 985–98.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Silvano, R. A. M. & A. Begossi, 2012. Fishermen’s local ecological knowledge on Southeastern Brazilian coastal fishes: contributions to research, conservation, and management. Neotropical Ichthyology 10: 133–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silvano, R. A. M., & G. Hallwass, 2020. Participatory research with fishers to improve knowledge on small-scale fisheries in tropical rivers. Sustainability 12(11): 4487.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silvano, R. A. M., P. F. L. MacCord & A. Begossi, 2006. When does this fish spawn? Fishermen’s local knowledge of migration and reproduction of Brazilian coastal fishes. Environmental Biology of Fishes 76: 371-381.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silvano, R. A. M. & J. Valbo-Jorgensen, 2008. Beyond fishermen’s tales: contributions of fishers’ local ecological knowledge to fish ecology and fisheries management. Environment, Development and Sustainability 10: 657–675.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soeth, M., L. F. Fávaro, H. L. Spach, F. A. Daros, A. E. Woltrich & A. T. Correia, 2018. Age, growth, and reproductive biology of the Atlantic spadefish Chaetodipterus faber in southern Brazil. Ichthyological Research 66: 140-154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SPVS (Sociedade de Pesquisa em Vida Selvagem), 1992. Plano Integrado de Conservação para a região de Guaraqueçaba, Paraná, Brasil. Curitiba, Ícone computação gráfica Ltda

  • Tesfamichael, D., T. J. Pitcher, & D. Pauly, 2014. Assessing changes in fisheries using fishers’ knowledge to generate long time series of catch rates: a case study from the Red Sea. Ecology and Society 19: 18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zukowski, S., A. Curtis, & R. J. Watts, 2011. Using fisher local ecological knowledge to improve management: the Murray crayfish in Australia. Fisheries Research 110(1): 120–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

First, we must thank all fishers who contributed to this study! We are thankful for the financial support and grants for M.U.S.N., O.R.C., and M.S., by the Higher Education Personnel Training Coordination (CAPES), for the Post-graduate degree at Federal University of Paraná. One author (R.A.M.S.) also received research grants from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, Brazil (CNPq, grant 303393/2019-0) and from the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, Brazil (CAPES-PRINT, grant 88887.467553/2019-00). And finally, thank you to colleagues and professors from the Post-graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation at the Federal University of Paraná and Sydney Stenekes, a graduate student from the University of Alberta for reviewing and providing feedback on the previous manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Centro Politécnico, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Jardim das Américas, P.O. 19031, Curitiba, PR, 81531-990, Brazil

    Moisés Ubiratã Schmitz Nunes & Luís Fernando Fávaro

  2. Laboratório de Reprodução e Comunidade de Peixes, Centro Politécnico, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Jardim das Américas, P.O. 19031, Curitiba, PR, 81531-990, Brazil

    Moisés Ubiratã Schmitz Nunes & Luís Fernando Fávaro

  3. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zoologia, Centro Politécnico, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Jardim das Américas, P.O. 19020, Curitiba, PR, 81531-980, Brazil

    Olímpio Rafael Cardoso

  4. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Sistemas Costeiros e Oceânicos, Centro de Estudos do Mar, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Pontal do Sul, P.O. 61, Pontal do Parana, PR, 83255-976, Brazil

    Marcelo Soeth

  5. Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Agronomia, P. O. 15007, Porto Alegre, RS, 91501-970, Brazil

    Renato Azevedo Matias Silvano

Authors
  1. Moisés Ubiratã Schmitz Nunes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Olímpio Rafael Cardoso
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Marcelo Soeth
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Renato Azevedo Matias Silvano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Luís Fernando Fávaro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Moisés Ubiratã Schmitz Nunes.

Additional information

Handling editor: Fernando M. Pelicice

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary information

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nunes, M.U.S., Cardoso, O.R., Soeth, M. et al. Fishers’ ecological knowledge on the reproduction of fish and shrimp in a subtropical coastal ecosystem. Hydrobiologia 848, 929–942 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-020-04503-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-020-04503-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation