Gerardo Rodríguez-Quiroz

Artisanal fisheries in the conservation zones of the Upper Gulf of California

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are increasingly being used as management tools to protect ecosystems around the world, but there is some debate as to whether ...

Analysis of management options for artisanal fishing of the Bigeye Croaker Micropogonias megalops (Gilbert, 1890) in the Upper Gulf of California

Bigeye Croaker (Micropogonias megalops Gilbert 1890) is captured in the Upper Gulf of California (UGC) by local community fishers from San Felipe in Baja California, El Golfo de Santa Clara and Puerto Peñasco in Sonora. The calculated sustainable fishery index (SFI) identifies four production periods, one of low capture before 1999 (∼1451.49 t year−1); a second of fleet expansion (∼2408 t year−1); a third showing a production decline related to overfishing (> 923.85 t year−1); and a fourth of recovery, with standardization of production of about 1057 t year−1 (2004). A GIS survey indicated that almost 84% of the Bigeye Croaker fishery in the UGC occurs within two marine protected areas, of which almost 74% takes place inside the Biosphere Reserve of the UGC, and almost 79% in the Vaquita Refuge Area. Bigeye Croaker captured in the marine protected areas generates a gross profit of around US

Efecto de diferentes combinaciones de temperatura y salinidad sobre el consumo específico de oxígeno en el camarón blanco Litopenaeus vannamei

501,000 year−1, with a return rate close to 73%. Fishing effort in the marine protected areas needs to undergo an interdisciplinary and complex evaluation due to the presence of endangered species in the region. This requires adequate management practices to enhance marine conservation without compromising fishermens individual interests. Some approaches to manage this fishery within the protected marine areas are discussed.

Artisanal Shrimp Fishing in the Biosphere Reserve of the Upper Gulf of California

The combined effect of different temperatures (20, 25 and 30°C) and salinities (15, 25, 35 and 45 psu) on the specific oxygen consumption (CEO) in Litopenaeus vannamei was determined. For this, CEO of 248 organisms of different body sizes (0.31 to 15.85 g) was measured. The CEO decreased when shrimp weight increased in all treatments without presenting a definite pattern when the salinity increased; even though all the combinations of temperature and salinity did not statistically show slopes significantly different in the regression models for CEO and organism weight relationships. The slope values suggest that at 20°C there is high energy expenditure at 15 psu, and at 25°C the highest energy consumption occurs at 45 psu. Whereas at 30°C, the lowest energy consumption occurred combined with the lowest salinity (15 psu). This may indicate that the isosmotic condition (point of lowest energy expenditure) tends to change with temperature, which may imply that the shrimp can be cultivated at high temperature (30°C) and at low salinities (15 psu) without increasing energy expenditure.

Fisheries and Biodiversity in the Upper Gulf of California, Mexico

Shrimp is the most important marine resource for the three communities of the Upper Gulf of California (UGC): San Felipe in the state of Baja California, and Golfo de Santa Clara and Puerto Penasco in the state of Sonora. This fishery generates 80% of the profits in the region. A fishery tendency analysis was made from 1996 to 2007 in the UGC. For the first time, this fishery analysis showed that the Biosphere Reserve and the recently declared Vaquita Refuge Area are important grounds for artisanal fishing. The CPUE and total catches used to describe the fishing effort in the area, could be used to establish any further relationship between shrimp population and environmental variables, because of their high correlation coefficient (0.85). Shrimp capture in the marine protected areas has maintained a continuous level of production with economic incentives, making it attractive to fishermen despite recent restrictions on their activities. As shrimp vessels reduce in number, small boats gradually increase in number and productivity, maintaining high incomes from the fishery. A detailed interdisciplinary study of the fishing effort in the UGC must be conducted, because of the endangered species found in this area, which require adequate management for their conservation without compromising the welfare of the fishermen. El camaron es el recurso pesquero mas importante en el Alto Golfo de California (AGC) para las tres comunidades pesqueras que en ella se encuentran: San Felipe, Baja California, Golfo de Santa Clara y Puerto Penasco, Sonora. Esta pesqueria por si sola genera el 80% de los ingresos pesqueros totales en la region. Se hizo un analisis de la tendencia de la pesca de camaron del periodo 1996 al 2007. Por primera vez se describe la importancia de la pesca dentro de la Reserva de la biosfera del Alto Golfo de California y del Refugio de la Vaquita Marina. Debido al alto coeficiente de correlacion (0,85), la captura total y el CPUE analizados para el esfuerzo pesquero pueden ser utilizados para establecer futuras relaciones entre las variables ambientales y la poblacion de camaron en la region. La captura del camaron mantiene un continuo crecimiento en las areas naturales protegidas (ANP) siendo atractivo para los pescadores a pesar de las recientes restricciones a la pesca. Al disminuir el esfuerzo de las embarcaciones mayores dentro las ANP, se ha incrementado gradualmente la productividad de las embarcaciones artesanales, lo que ha propiciado un aumentando en el numero de embarcaciones y de los ingresos economicos en la region, manteniendose una alta rentabilidad de la pesqueria. El esfuerzo pesquero realizado por pescadores de las comunidades en el AGC dentro de las ANP requiere de un estudio mas complejo e interdisciplinario, ya que en esta ANP se encuentran especies en peligro de extincion, el cual requieren de un manejo adecuado para su conservacion sin que afecte los intereses individuales de los pescadores.

Artisanal fisheries in the conservation zones of the Upper Gulf of California Pesca artesanal en las zonas de conservación del Alto Golfo de California

Gerardo Rodriguez-Quiroz1, Eugenio Alberto Aragon-Noriega2, Miguel A. Cisneros-Mata3 and Alfredo Ortega Rubio4 1Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones para el Desarrollo Integral Regional, Unidad Sinaloa, 2Centro de Investigaciones Biologicas del Noroeste, Unidad Sonora, 3Instituto Nacional de Pesca, SAGARPA, Centro Regional de Investigaciones Pesqueras de Guaymas, 4Centro de Investigaciones Biologicas del Noroeste, Unidad La Paz, Mexico