Rapid assessment of bycatch and fishing effort in data-limited fisheries

Participants: Tara Cox (lead), Andy Read, Rebecca Lewison, Jeff Moore

Reliable estimates of bycatch and fishing effort are extremely limited in certain areas of the world, particularly for artisanal fisheries in developing countries. Project GloBAL is collaborating with partners around the world to develop a questionaire-based protocol for obtaining semi-quantitative and spatially explicit estimates of bycatch and fishing effort in data-limited fisheries. Information will be obtained from interviews with fishers in communities from West Africa, East Africa, and Southeast Asia. Our goal is to develop a standardized survey template that may be subsequently applied more broadly in relatively rapid and low-cost manner.