Abstract

Strombus gigas is a species of primary economic importance to all Caribbean countries. Its importance comes from the high exploitation levels ought to local demand for inner consumption, tourist market and intemational trade. Given its limited distribution range and accessibility, in low energy grass and algal beds, its populations have been depleted in many areas and seriously diminished in others, where exploitation is still taking place. This is the primary reason why it has been placed as a commercially threatened species under CITES (Appendix II). Different measures have been taken to regulate exploitation, which include minimum size, based on shell length, weight and lip thickness, catch quotas, temporal and permanent fishing bans, and marine parks as a measure to preserve reproductive stocks. The level of protection in the different parks of Mexico ranges from a total fishing ban with high reinforcement, to controlled exploitation with little to no reinforcement. The impact of the marine parks on the populations of S. gigas is as variable as the number of parks. The density of populations within the parks is critical for the recovery of the populations to its original levels. Evidences hows that the anticipated larval export outside the parks for the restoration of populations seems not to be significant. Marine parks are of practical use for the conservation of reproductive stocks and as a source of juveniles and adults for the rehabilitation of areas under commercial exploitation.

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