Evaluation of fishermen opinions about inland fisheries with non-linear canonical correlation analysis

Abstract

This study aims to present and examine the views among fishermen with different socio-demographic and socio-economic backgrounds (i.e., age, education level, annual income and source of income), fishing in four important inland fishing grounds in Turkey, namely Marmara Lake-Demirköprü Dam Lake (Manisa Province) and Eğirdir Lake- Beyşehir Lake (Isparta Province). The following key points are emphasized; a) Problems in inland fisheries b) Potential reasons of decrease in natural fish stocks c) Problem solutions and recommendations to improve the inland fisheries. The data obtained from a survey administered to 59 fishermen was evaluated using the Non-Linear Canonical Correlation Analysis method. According to the findings of the study: a) The most important problems encountered in fisheries; according to the fishermen with high education level, while the marketing and changes in the water level of the lakes, the fishermen with low education and income level, unlicensed hunting, the lack of punishment and electric hunting are problems b) Fishermen with a high level of education think that fishing with illegal fishing gears during the prohibited fishing season, and those with a low level of education and income are of opinion that small fishing is an important factor in the decrease of natural fish stocks c) Fishermen with high education-income sources adopt the idea of improving legal regulations and complying with them, whereas fishermen with a low-level of education and income think that problems in marketing should be eliminated as a solution to the problem in the fisheries. Results indicate that increasing the effectiveness of the practices that consider the opinions/suggestions of fishermen will contribute to the management and sustainability of fisheries in the region.

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“…Non-native fish species (C. zillii, and C. gibelio) were dominant in the Koca Lake wetland and represented 37.12% of the fish community. Although C. carpio is a native species for some regions of Türkiye (Atalay et al, 2017), it was not recorded in a previous study from Lake Koca (Yılmaz et al, 2006). Tarkan et al (2015) has been reported as an introduced fish because this fish has been transported to almost all parts of Türkiye due to aquaculture production and stocking programs.…”

“…The abundance of non-native species and the decline of native fishes could reflect the high degree of human influence on the wetland, leading to the current semi-replacement of native species. There is no study on the fish community composition or biodiversity of this wetland and only a study provides information on the fish fauna (Yılmaz et al, 2006), and reported that no non-native species, but only catadromous species were recorded between 1999 and 2003.…”

“…Because it is an essential habitat for two endemic freshwater fish, Capoeta aydinensis, Ladigesocypris irideus, a butterfly species called Ottoman fire (Lycaena ottomana), Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus), otter (Lutra lutra), the sea turtle (Caretta caretta), and many aquatic avian species, which are endangered on a world scale (Kıraç and Suseven, 2021), despite its national and global importance as a significant wetland supporting a wide diversity of animal taxa, but little information has been gathered about fish fauna. Yılmaz et al, (2006) conducted a taxonomic study on fish species in some inland waters of Muğla, including Lake Koca. There is no published article on the fish fauna of Lake Koca and its physicochemical properties.…”