Local Ecological Knowledge as a Conservation Tool for Identifying Threats to the Pacific Goliath Grouper (Epinephelus quinquefasciatus) in Panama

ABSTRACT The Pacific goliath grouper, Epinephelus quinquefasciatus, is the largest reef fish of the tropical Eastern Pacific. The IUCN categorizes it as Data Deficient because of the lack of population data and the risk posed by fishing. Using fishers' local ecological knowledge, we assessed Pa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aquatic conservation Vol. 34; no. 11
Main Authors: Chong‐Montenegro, Carolina, Castellanos‐Galindo, Gustavo A., Robertson, D. Ross
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Oxford Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.11.2024
Subjects:
coasts
conservation
decline
Environmental degradation
environmental knowledge
epinephelidae
Epinephelus
Epinephelus itajara
Epinephelus quinquefasciatus
Fish
Fisheries
Fishers
Fishing
freshwater
grouper
groupers
historical ecology
IUCN red list
Marine fishes
Panama
Population decline
Reef fish
Reef fishes
risk
small‐scale fisheries
species
supply balance
Trends
tropical eastern Pacific
Whitefish
Panama
ISSN:1052-7613, 1099-0755
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:ABSTRACT The Pacific goliath grouper, Epinephelus quinquefasciatus, is the largest reef fish of the tropical Eastern Pacific. The IUCN categorizes it as Data Deficient because of the lack of population data and the risk posed by fishing. Using fishers' local ecological knowledge, we assessed Pacific goliath grouper historical catch trends along Panama's Pacific coast. Handline and speargun catches showed significant declines in the average weight of Pacific goliath grouper landed from 1958 to 2018. Market demand and environmental degradation were identified as primary drivers of the Pacific goliath grouper perceived decline. Local ecological knowledge demonstrated that valuable fisheries information can be derived and used to inform species' population trends.
Bibliography:Funding
C.C.M. was funded by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Short‐term Fellowship programme. G.A.C.‐G. was funded by a Conservation Research Small Grant from the Marine Program of the Society for Conservation Biology.
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ISSN:1052-7613
1099-0755
DOI:10.1002/aqc.70021