No abstract

29The semi-enclosed Red Sea harbours one of the longest coral-reef ecosystems on the 30 planet. The ≈ 850 km section of the western shore, comprising the coastline of the 31 Red Sea State of the Republic of Sudan, has however been sparsely studied. Sudan's 32 coral reef fishery provides livelihoods to fishers and business opportunities by means 33 of local and regional trade, however, the knowledge level of the state of the natural 34 resources and the impacts of fisheries are poorly known. Here we report the results 35 from the first three comprehensive fisheries research surveys spanning the entire 36 Sudanese coast in 2012-13, representing a new baseline for the western coast fisheries 37 resources. The surveys covered the entire coast from inshore down to about 150 m 38 bottom depth using a combination of baited traps, gillnets and handlines to sample the 39 various reef habitats and fish assemblages. The results demonstrate a uniform 40 latitudinal species distribution with peak catch per unit effort rates in and around the 41 Dungonab Bay area in the north and the outer Suakin archipelago in the south. 42 Functional diversity (Rao's Q index) was found to be highest in and around the 43 Dungonab Bay area, thus coming through as a regional hot-spot of biodiversity. The 44 results form a baseline for future research and monitoring, thus representing key input 45 for an ecosystem approach to management of Sudan's coastal artisanal fisheries. 46 47 48 With its semi-enclosed location between the African continent and the Arabian 49 peninsula the waters of the Red Sea are warmer and more saline than many other 50 marine tropical ecosystems [1]. The Red Sea is host to a uniquely rich marine 51 biodiversity and high prevalence of endemic species [2,3,4]. While the northern reef 52 areas of Egypt and the Gulf of Aqaba/ Eilat have been extensively investigated [1,5], 53 the Red Sea proper is generally poorly studied, and only rudimentary studies from 54 decades back have focused on commercial fisheries [6]. The research published on the 55 Red Sea ecosystem is dwarfed by that of the Great Barrier Reef and, in particular, the 56 Caribbean [1], despite equal scientific relevance. The sparseness of information about 57 the fisheries and the state of the resources harvested severely limits the authorities' 58 ability to sustainably manage the sector in an effective and directed manner [1]. 59 Institutional capacities in the region are limited and official landings data are sparse 60 and essentially unreliable. Tesfamichael and Pauly [6] reconstructed the catch 61 statistics from all Red Sea countries using a combination of unpublished data and 62interviews with managers, stakeholders and fishers around the Red Sea. They found 63 that the reconstructed catches were 1.5 × larger than the official FAO statistics with 64 artisanal fisheries dominating, accounting for 49% of the total catch from 1950 -2010 65[6]. These estimates, however, also rely on several assumptions and are too rather 66 uncertain, and management and enfo...