The status of the South African beach-seine and gill-net fisheries

Abstract

nitial estimates indicate that there are at least 7000 fishermen active in fisheries using beach-seine and gill nets in South Africa, mostly (86%) along the West and South coasts. Those fishermen utilize I 373 registered and 458 illegal nets and report an average catch of I 600 tons annually, constituting 60% harders Liza richardsonii, 10% St Joseph shark Cal/orhinchus capensis and 30% "bycatch" species such as galjoen Dichistius capensis, yellowtail Seriola lalandi and white steen bras Lithognathus lithognathus. Catch composition by mass varies bctween 70, 74 and 90% L. richardsonii off the Western, Southern and Eastern Cape coasts respectively to 88% sardine Sardinops sagax in KwaZulu-Natal. Catch-per-unit-effort declines eastwards from 294 and 115 kg'net-day" for the beach-seine and gill-net fisheries respectively off the West Coast to 48 and 5 kg'net-day" off KwaZulu-Natal. Consequently, the fishery changes in nature from a largely commercial venture on the West Coast to an artisanal/subsistence fishery on the East Coast. Attempts to validate compulsory catch returns indicate that at least half the annual catch, notably bycatch. is not reported. Reasons for this indicate an unwillingness to declare prohibited species, perceived avoidance of the taxman, ignorance as to the importance of catch statistics, multiple licensing authorities and management inadequacy to police illegal catches and nets.

Catch and effort of the shore and skiboat linefisheries along the South African Eastern Cape Coast

“…There are 549 registered commercial skiboats in the Eastern Cape (Sauer et al 1997). Using accesspoint survey estimates of the ratio of registered to unregistered boat owners, it was estimated that 1 180 recreational skiboats operate in the area.…”

“…Similar trends have been identified in the recreational and commercial skiboat fisheries (van der Elst and de Freitas 1988, Hecht and Tilney 1989, Garratt 1993, Pilfold and Pampallis 1993. Overfishing is further evident from changes in the species composition of catches, specifically the decline in the relative proportion of reef-associated teleosts (Crawford and Crous 1982, van der Elst and de Freitas 1988, Hecht and Tilney 1989, Bennett et al 1994, Brouwer et al 1997.…”

“…Fishers were interviewed individually, and all fish were weighed and measured. The information was captured on questionnaires developed for each sector of the fishery (Brouwer et al 1997), covered four sections: Section A dealt with catch-and-effort data, including hours fished, bait used and species targeted, Section B with fisher information, including demographics, experience and regular fishing areas, Section C covered economic information, including trip expenditure and investment in fishing equipment, and Section D dealt with fisher attitudes towards regulations. Only the results on catch and effort are reported here; the remaining information has been reported earlier (Brouwer et al 1997, McGrath et al 1997, Lamberth et al 1997, Sauer et al 1997.…”

“…This study describes catch and effort in the commercial and recreational skiboat and shore-based linefisheries of the Eastern Cape. It forms part of a larger national survey of the South African linefishery describing regional differences in catch and effort, an assessment of fisher attitudes and the socio-economic aspects of the fishery (Brouwer et al 1997, Lamberth et al 1997, McGrath et al 1997, Sauer et al 1997.…”

Defining fishers in the South African context: subsistence, artisanal and small-scale commercial sectors

“…Terms that are used more or less interchangeably with "subsistence" include "food fishing", "domestic fishing", "harvesting", "native subsistence" (Berkes 1988), "artisanal" (Horemans 1997), "small-scale" (Poggie 1980, Pomeroy 1991, Kuperan and Abdullah 1994, Amar et al 1996, "aboriginal" (Caulfield 1993), "indigenous" (Nikijuluw 1994), "traditional or customary tenure" (Dahl 1988, Ruddle et al 1992, Amarasinghe et al 1997 and "informal" (Lamberth et al 1997). Berkes (1988) and Fall (1990) both provide useful commentaries on these terms, and opt for "subsistence" as the most acceptable term, which Berkes (1988, p. 319) describes as "local, non-commercial fisheries, oriented not primarily for recreation but for the procurement of fish for consumption of the fishers, their family and community".…”