scholarly journals Confirmation of fishers' local ecological knowledge of ciguatoxic fish species and ciguatera-prone hotspot areas in Puerto Rico using harmful benthic algae surveys and fish toxicity testing

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry R Raab ◽  
Joseph J Luczkovich ◽  
Wayne Litaker ◽  
Miguel H Del Pozo Santos ◽  
Cynthia A Grace-McCaskey
Keyword(s):  
Local Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Close Association ◽  
Toxicity Testing ◽  
Benthic Algae ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Fish Toxicity ◽  
Cell Counts ◽  
Top Predators ◽  
A Cell

Ciguatoxin fish poisoning (CFP) is caused by the consumption of tropical and subtropical fishes and other marine species with high levels of ciguatoxin (CTX) in their tissues. CTX is a polycyclic neurotoxin produced by single-celled, photosynthetic dinoflagellates in the Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa genera which are found in close association with benthic autotrophs. CTX enters the food web when these dinoflagellates are inadvertently consumed by herbivores grazing on their preferred substrates. The toxin biomagnifies up the food chain to the top predators and if humans consume seafood with high levels of CTX it can cause a variety of flu-like symptoms. The best way to avoid CFP is to avoid toxic fishes. However, CTX is undetectable by physical inspection. This study investigated local fishers knowledge of ciguatera hotspots and coldspots along Puerto Rican coral reefs using toxic-dinoflagellate cell counts and by estimating fish toxicity in those sites using a cell-based Neuro-2a cytotoxicity assay. The fishers identified regions of high and low risk for CFP based on their local ecological knowledge (LEK) which were deemed hotspots and coldspots, respectively. There is a 35-fold difference in dinoflagellate cell counts of low-toxicity Gambierdiscus species in samples in the identified hotspot compared to the coldspot. Also, higher trophic level fishes (>3.4 ETL) had higher median estimates of CTX in their tissues at the hotspot than the same species in the coldspot. This study shows the effectiveness of LEK in identifying potential problem areas for ciguatera.

scholarly journals The use of fishers’ Local Ecological Knowledge to reconstruct fish behavioural traits and fishers’ perception of conservation relevance of elasmobranchs in the Mediterranean Sea

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 603
Author(s):  
MATTEO BARBATO ◽  
CLAUDIO BARRÍA ◽  
ANDREA BELLODI ◽  
SARA BONANOMI ◽  
DIEGO BORME ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Anthropogenic Impacts ◽  
Local Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Elasmobranch Species ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Conservation Plans

The Mediterranean Sea has a long-lasting history of fishery exploitation that, together with other anthropogenic impacts, has led to declines in several marine organisms. In particular, elasmobranch populations have been severely impacted, with drastic decreases in abundance and species diversity. Based on their experience, fishers can provide information on marine species occurrence, abundance and behavioural traits on a long-term scale, therefore contributing to research on the poorly studied biological aspects of elusive or rare elasmobranch species. In this study, for the first time, the use of the Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) of fishers was applied to study the behavioural traits of sharks, rays and skates in 12 FAO-GFCM geographical sub-areas (GSAs) of the Mediterranean Sea. This study found both new insight and proved the reliability of LEK-based catch seasonality, reflecting seasonal movements, by comparing LEK-based findings and available literature on five elasmobranch taxa (Mustelus spp., Squalus acanthias, Raja spp., Myliobatis aquila and Scyliorhinus stellaris) in the Adriatic Sea and 7 taxa (Mustelus spp., Raja spp., Prionace glauca, Scyliorhinus canicula, Torpedo spp., Pteroplatytrygon violacea and Isurus oxyrinchus) in the remaining Mediterranean GSAs. In addition, LEK provided new insights into a novel comprehensive representation of species aggregations (Mustelus spp., S. acanthias, M. aquila and S. canicula) in the sampled GSAs and supplied the first descriptions of the size, number of individuals and sex composition of the aggregations. When the limits and shortcomings of LEK-based research are considered, this methodology can be a complementary and cost-effective tool used to study elasmobranchs in either a data-poor scenario or a scenario in which a baseline is missing. LEK can also be useful for the evaluation and inclusion of fishers’ perceptions on bottom-up management and to provide important evidence for conservation plans.

The missing wetlands: using local ecological knowledge to find cryptic ecosystems

2011 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amber L. Pitt ◽  
Robert F. Baldwin ◽  
Donald J. Lipscomb ◽  
Bryan L. Brown ◽  
Joanna E. Hawley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Local Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Ecological Knowledge

Building ecological networks with local ecological knowledge in hyper‐diverse and logistically challenging ecosystems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Ong ◽  
Ahimsa Campos‐Arceiz ◽  
Vivienne P. W. Loke ◽  
Param bin Pura ◽  
Charang Muhamad Tauhid bin Tunil ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Local Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Ecological Networks ◽  
Ecological Knowledge

scholarly journals An Environmental Education and Communication Project on Migratory Fishes and Fishing Communities

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 337
Author(s):  
Sara Costa Carvalho ◽  
Heitor Oliveira Braga ◽  
Sofia de Santa-Maria ◽  
Beatriz Fonte ◽  
Mário Jorge Pereira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Environmental Education ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Local Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Ecological Knowledge ◽  
Communication Tool ◽  
Migratory Species ◽  
Ocean Literacy ◽  
New Perspective

This study aims at evaluating the environmental education (EE) and communication intervention for the valorization of migratory fish resources in an estuary of northern Portugal. The EE component intervention was implemented among Middle School pupils of that region. Students’ knowledge was quantitatively evaluated with an experimental approach of pre-testing and post-testing, on the ocean and estuarine literacy (OEL) and biology of migratory species, such as sea lamprey. This study also analyzes the communication component developed via social media. Results of the EE component show an evident increment of OEL (p < 0.05). It is also highlighted that students had previous knowledge on issues that are not covered in the curriculum. Social media has shown to be an effective communication tool mostly among the scientific community (e.g., Ethnobiology). The research has various implications to OEL since it brings a new perspective towards the integration of ocean literacy in formal education; as well as the valorization of Students’ local ecological knowledge and of inter-generational dynamics. This study contributed to promoting local biodiversity, OEL, and participatory local governance of these ecosystems.

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