The Effect of Landing Decrease on Fishing Gears: A Case of Gökçeada Fishery

Abstract

In this study, technical, structural and operational characteristics of fishing gears used in small-scale fishery in Gökçeada and the current inventory was compared with that of previous years. Data were obtained by face-to-face interviews with fishermen of Gökçeada in August 2020. Except for a single trawler that started operating in Gökçeada during the 2019-2020 fishing season, all other 38 fishing boats were small-scale vessels. During these years, the total length of gillnets and entangling nets used decreased by 42% compared to a study conducted a decade ago. In recent years, the increase in costs in longline fishing has made the use of vertical lines, specific calamari hand lines, and different types of hand lines and fishing rods more widespread among commercial fishers. The decline in catches during the last decade and even the collapse of some species such as bluefish in recent years directly reflected on the variety and quantity of fishing gears preferred by fishermen. In recent years, lack of bluefish, sardine and chub mackerel was the main reason for the less frequent use of fishing gears in catching these 3 species. In conclusion, declining catch amounts and changing fishing gear preferences in Gökçeada fishing should be considered as indicators to be taken into consideration in terms of overfishing and sustainable fishing. For this reason, for the re-establishment of sustainable fisheries in Gökçeada, it is recommended to adopt the Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries in Gökçeada fishery which takes into account not only Gökçeada but also its surroundings, evaluates the effects and interactions on a wide geographic scale, and includes all stakeholders in management efforts.

Keywords

• gökçeada
• small-scale fisheries
• fishing gears
• ecosystem approach fisheries