On the productivity and technical efficiency of the Puerto Rican queen conch Aliger gigas fishery

IF 1.8 3区农林科学 Q2 FISHERIES

Marine and Coastal Fisheries Pub Date : 2024-06-21 DOI:10.1002/mcf2.10296

Juan J. Agar, Daniel Solís

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective

This study examines the productivity and technical efficiency (TE) of diving operations that target queen conches Aliger gigas in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the largest producer of queen conches in the United States. Currently, there is a proposal to list queen conch as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Methods

We use stochastic production frontier methods to investigate the relationship between catch and fishing inputs and the technical performance of diving operations.

Result

Our results show that the fleet could increase its catches, on average, by 30% (and, thus, increase its income) by using existing fishing inputs and technology more efficiently. We find that the potential to expand catches was slightly higher from increasing the crew size than from extending the length of the fishing trip. The study also finds considerable heterogeneity across coastal regions and operation sizes. Overall, operations on the east and west coasts and those having three or more crew members were more efficient. Operations that use a single gear and specialize on few species (revenue concentration) were associated with higher levels of TE. We also find that diving operations exhibit decreasing returns to scale.

Conclusion

The potential ESA listing of the queen conch poses a dilemma because increasing the efficiency of the fleet may continue to compromise the sustainability of the resource. While a threatened designation does not necessarily result in additional trade or harvest restrictions, further actions may be advisable given the many threats, such as overutilization, habitat loss, coastal pollution, and disruptive environmental change that queen conch populations face. Our model suggests that reducing the size of the crew and/or the length of the trip may increase efficiency, but these restrictions may not be advisable on safety grounds. Thus, management agencies may want to reassess existing trip limits and the length of the closed season and explore the use of closed areas.

Abstract Image

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波多黎各皇后海螺（Aliger gigas）渔业的生产力和技术效率

目标本研究考察了波多黎各自由邦（美国最大的皇后海螺产地）以皇后海螺（Aliger gigas）为目标的潜水作业的生产力和技术效率（TE）。目前，有人建议将皇后海螺列为《濒危物种法》（ESA）中的濒危物种。方法我们使用随机生产前沿方法研究渔获量和捕捞投入与潜水作业技术性能之间的关系。结果我们的研究结果表明，通过更有效地利用现有的捕捞投入和技术，船队的渔获量平均可增加 30%（从而增加收入）。我们发现，增加船员人数的渔获量增长潜力略高于延长捕鱼时间的增长潜力。研究还发现，不同沿海地区和不同作业规模之间存在很大差异。总体而言，东海岸和西海岸的作业以及拥有三名或三名以上船员的作业效率更高。使用单一渔具和专门捕捞少数物种（收入集中）的作业与较高的 TE 水平有关。我们还发现，潜水作业呈现出规模收益递减的趋势。结论由于提高船队效率可能会继续损害资源的可持续性，因此将皇后海螺列入欧空局（ESA）名单的可能性带来了两难选择。虽然被列入濒危物种名单并不一定会导致额外的贸易或捕捞限制，但考虑到皇后海螺种群面临的诸多威胁，如过度利用、栖息地丧失、沿海污染和破坏性环境变化，采取进一步行动可能是明智之举。我们的模型表明，减少船员人数和/或缩短航行时间可能会提高效率，但出于安全考虑，这些限制措施可能并不可取。因此，管理机构可能需要重新评估现有的出海限制和禁渔期长度，并探索禁渔区的使用。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Marine and Coastal Fisheries FISHERIES-MARINE & FRESHWATER BIOLOGY

CiteScore

3.40

自引率

5.90%

发文量

审稿时长

>12 weeks

期刊介绍： Marine and Coastal Fisheries: Dynamics, Management, and Ecosystem Science publishes original and innovative research that synthesizes information on biological organization across spatial and temporal scales to promote ecologically sound fisheries science and management. This open-access, online journal published by the American Fisheries Society provides an international venue for studies of marine, coastal, and estuarine fisheries, with emphasis on species'' performance and responses to perturbations in their environment, and promotes the development of ecosystem-based fisheries science and management.