Ethnotaxonomy of sharks by expert fishers from South Bahia, Brazil: Implications for fisheries management and conservation

Historically, Brazilian fisheries management has not considered the knowledge of fish taxonomy from within fishing communities. This study points out processes of recognition, classification and nomenclature of sharks achieved by fishermen from South Bahia, Brazil. Data were obtained through semistr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEthnobiology and Conservation Vol. 10
Main Authors Barbosa Filho, Márcio Luiz Vargas, Ramires, Milena, Mourão, José da Silva, Rosa, Ricardo de Souza, Alves, Rômulo Romeu da Nóbrega, Costa-Neto, Eraldo Medeiros
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Portuguese
Published Recife Ethnobiology and Conservation 01.01.2021
Subjects
Classification
Community participation
Developing countries
Fisheries
Fisheries management
Fishery management
Fishing
Fishing communities
LDCs
Leather
Morphology
Nomenclature
Sharks
Species
Taxonomy
Vernacular names
Brazil
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Summary:Historically, Brazilian fisheries management has not considered the knowledge of fish taxonomy from within fishing communities. This study points out processes of recognition, classification and nomenclature of sharks achieved by fishermen from South Bahia, Brazil. Data were obtained through semistructured interviews visually stimulated by exhibiting images of 30 species of elasmobranch fishes. Regionally, elasmobranch species are inserted into the folk taxon called “leather fishes" and in a category known as “cação" (shark) family. In addition to hierarchical classification, the fishermen organize shark species by adopting an ethnodimorphic and sequential model based on ethnoontogeny. Ethnodiagnostic characteristics are mainly related to the morphology, ecology and even physiology of a species. A total of 144 epithets is recorded, with a mean value of 4.8 ethnospecies for each scientific correspondent. Richness of vernacular names impedes species-specific information gathering regarding shark landings if fisher knowledge is not considered and applied in the improvement of fisheries data. Thus, this study encourages the employment of fishermen as parataxonomists in order to assist in the identification of sharks to specific levels. This study further emphasizes the potential of using ethnotaxonomic knowledge of fishing communities in initiatives related to participative management of shark fisheries in developing countries.
ISSN:2238-4782
2238-4782
DOI:10.15451/ec2021-08-10.02-1-12