Fisheries assessment of species of cultural and economic interest in the Karataska lagoon system

Abstract

The fishing management plan for the Karataska Lagoon System in the Honduran Moskitia recorded 80 species distributed among fish, molluscs and crustaceans of which about 40% of these species are of economic and cultural interest. The miskitian Honduran indigenous communities sustain themselves mainly from the artisan fishing used for self-consumption or small-scale commerce of snook and other species. With the objective of achieving the sustainable management of artisanal fisheries of snook (Centropomus undecimalis, Centropomus pectinatus and Centropomus parallelus) and “kawacha” (Eugerres plumieri) in the Karataska lagoon, the Moskitia Project of PNUD/GEF with the scientific consultant's office of the UNAH, evaluated the main ichthyological species with cultural and economic interest in the Karataska Lagoon System. The evaluation included an analytical model for the quantitative approach
between the years 2012-2014. The estimation of total mortality (z) was of 1,78 for Centropomus undecimalis and 1,67 for Eugerres plumieri, which indicates that both species are in intense exploitation phases, the analysis of cohort of Jones shows, in a very preliminary sample, that the peak efficiency sustainable (PES) for Centropomus undecimalis is of 69,193.17 tons and for Eugerres plumieri is of 17,8604.59 tons. With our results, Moskitia Project of PNUD/GEF and the UNAH, contribute with scientific information that could serve as tools for the Miskito community as to the management of their fishing resources