Depleting Fish Biodiversity

along the Indian Coast

Introduction• Fishing is central to the livelihood and food

security of many people in the developing world.

• Accelerated loss of coastal and marine biodiversity components over the last few decades has been of great concern.

• The identification of depleted fish stocks in the light of loss of biodiversity has been engaging the attention of marine fishery scientists all over the world.

India has a long coastline of more than 7500 km. Its marine resources are spread over in the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, and Bay of

Bengal.

Major Causes of Fish Depletion

Over Exploitation

Environmental Changes

Habitat Loss

Main Causes of Marine Fish Extinctions (Source: adapted from Reynolds et al., 2005. Data from Dulvy et al., 2003, n = 65 species)

Overfishing: A Threat to Marine Biodiversity

According to a FAO, over 70% of the world’s fish species are either fully exploited or depleted. The dramatic increase of destructive fishing techniques worldwide destroys marine mammals and entire ecosystems.

Status of World Fish Stocks(Source: FAO, 2008)

Overfishing is largely due to: Poor Fisheries Management Pirate Fishers - don’t respect fishing laws or

agreements Massive bycatch - of juvenile fish and other

marine species Unfair Fisheries Partnership Agreements Destructive Fishing Practices

Why is this happening?

According to a study conducted by the team of fisheries scientists in Kerala, two popular species -

Lactarius lactarius (Parava) and Pampus argenteus (white or silver pomfret)

have depleted.

Impacts of Overfishing

Fish stock identified by FAO as falling into its "worst" category -

"depleted"Indian Ocean : Southern BluefinThunnus maccoyii (Tuna)

Biodiversity Conservation Technologies in Fisheries

Enforcement of bycatch reduction technologies Promotion of low impact and fuel efficient

fishing systems Use of smart trawling techniques Regulation on total fishing effort at sustainable

levels Maintenance of Marine Protected Areaswill facilitate protection and restoration of biodiversity

• The ecological impact of high volume of fishing is evident from its effects on bio-diversity. The impacts of declining fish catches are being painfully felt by many coastal fishing communities around the world.

• Environment activists have to demand that the government have to revise its fishery policy, including that of issuing permits to foreign vessels.

• Fishery regulations and implementation of conservation measures should be implemented.

Conclusion

Presented by S.Priya M.Sc., M.Phil.,

Ph.D., Research Scholar,Department of Zoology,Queen Mary’s College