Abstract

This study seeks to address some of the significant information gaps relating to the reef fishery of the main island of St. Vincent. Data on fishers, fishing practices, fishing effort, catches, and marketing were collected largely by interviewing reef fishers using a standardised questionnaire. Landing sites around the entire island were visited and a sample size of 87% of all reef fishers identified was interviewed. There are approximately 270 reef fishers in St. Vincent concentrated around the landing sites. Reef fishing is important, but not the primary source of income for most of these fishers. The most commonly utilized fishing gear is the deep-set bottom handline. Other deep gears include the handline and bottom longline, whilst shallow-set gear includes rod and line, trammel net, speargun, and fish trap. The predominant boat type used is the flat transom; fishing grounds around St Vincent are generally 1-5 km away from landing sites, but fishers may travel as much as10 - 70 km to reach fishing grounds in the Grenadine islands of Bequia, Balliceaux, Mustique and Canouan. A crew of 2 - 3 is typical of the reef fishery and reef fishing is practiced by most fishers three to six days a week between the months of June and December, although a few fish year round. The most commonly caught reef fishes are snappers, groupers, jacks, and barracudas, although there is a marked difference in species composition of the catch between deep and shallow-set gears. An average of 14 kg of reef fish is caught per fisher per reef fishing trip and most fishers perceive that the size and the abundance of reef fishes are declining

PDF Preview