Socio-economic and cultural values of two species of crabs (Cardisoma armatum Herklots and Callinectes amnicola Rochebrune) in Southern Benin, Africa: Management of post-harvest losses and exoskeletons

Abstract

Crabs play an important economic and bio-ecological role in most aquatic ecosystems and occupy an important place in the variety of trophic niches. Callinectes amnicola Rochebrune and Cardisoma armatum Herklots are two edible species widely exploited in Benin. The present work aims to i) evaluate the socioeconomic and cultural importance of those two crab species, ii) analyze the dynamics of the value chain, and iii) monitor the flow of their resources. Surveys were carried out during February 2018 to September 2019 among target groups in Ouémé, Atlantic and Littoral administrative Departments of Benin through structured and semi-structured interview methods as well as free interview. Results indicate that fishermen/catchers (12.76%), wholesalers/collectors (25.53%) and retailers (61.70%) are the actors involved in the crab value chain. Between 40 and 50% of fishery products are exported to markets in Togo and Ghana. Not all of the exoskeletons resulting from post-capture losses and those resulting from treatments for consumption, in particular C. amnicola (74.46%) and C. armatum (76.59%) are used, which poses an environmental management problem. The gains made in the sector vary from 8.000±2.828 Financial Community African Franc (FCAF) (C. amnicola) to 20.000±21.213 FCAF (C. armatum). The study found that crabs (C. armatum and C. amnicola) have remarkable socioeconomic importance in Southern Benin, Africa.

Assessing the Size-Structured Stock of the Swimming Crab Callinectes amnicola (Crustacea: Portunidae) in the Cross River, Nigeria

“…In the Cross River State and Nigeria as a whole, crabs are harvested in the wild as there is currently no crab farming, notwithstanding the many prospects reported for this species and other portunid crabs (Moruf and Lawal-Are, 2017). Mikpon et al (2020) also reported that most economically important aquatic resources, including crabs, are harvested by both industrial and artisanal fisheries in an unsustainable and uncontrollable manner. This excessive focus on the wild crab to support the stocking population can put undue pressure on the crab stock, resulting in overexploitation, reducing genetic diversity, and jeopardising this important resource (Zhang et al, 2021;Sakib et al, 2022).…”