Sardinella maderensis is one of the fish species well appreciated in Benin. In recent years, this species has experienced a decrease in its production in the coastal waters of this country. To search for the causes of this decline in production, a standard survey was carried out using Computed Assisted Personal Interviewing with the 38 artisanal fishermen at the artisanal fishing port of Cotonou who targets this species in order to inquire about the fishing gear and techniques of production. The current stock status of this species was determined using FiSAT from a sample of 1240 specimens collected randomly in commercial catches from January to December 2021. The typical survey revealed a massive use of non-regulatory fishing mesh gear (86.85%). The fishing effort is also sustained and results in a fishing mortality rate (F = 2.88 yr −1 ) higher than the rate of natural mortality (M = 2.22 yr −1 ) suggesting overfishing of the stock. Sustainable management through capacity building of fishermen and application of regulations in terms of gear mesh size and respect for fishing seasons could be stated.
La Sardinelle plate est l’un des petits pélagiques côtiers béninois soumis à une forte pression de pêche. Cette étude présente la caractérisation morphologique, le mode de croissance et l’embonpoint de l’espèce. Pendant douze mois, 1026 spécimens de Sardinella maderensis ont été échantillonnés aléatoirement dans les débarquements au port de pêche artisanale de Cotonou. Parmi les différents paramètres biométriques et méristiques relevés sur chaque spécimen, seules la longueur totale et la grande hauteur ont montré une différence significative suivant le sexe (p<0,05). Ainsi, les femelles présentent un corps plus long et plus haut que les mâles signalant l’existence d’un dimorphisme sexuel chez l’espèce. L’analyse factorielle discriminante révèle que le nombre de branchiospines sur les branches supérieure et inférieure du premier arc branchial ainsi que les ratios longueur de la tête sur distance orbitaire, longueur pré-orbitaire sur distance orbitaire et longueur à la fourche sur longueur totale constituent des paramètres discriminants pouvant permettre de caractériser l’espèce suivant les différents stades de vie. La relation âge-longueur indique que la Sardinelle plate développe une croissance allométique rapide dès le bas âge. Les valeurs mensuelles élevées du facteur d’embonpoint attestent d’une bonne adaptation de l’espèce aux conditions écologiques dominantes de son milieu de vie. The flat Sardinella is one of the small Beninese coastal pelagic species subject to strong fishing pressure. The study aims to carry out morphological characterization, growth model and body condition factor of the species. For twelve months, 1,026 specimens of Sardinella maderensis were randomly sampled in the landings at artisanal fishing port of Cotonou. Among the various biometric and meristic parameters recorded on each specimen, only total length and great body height showed a significant difference according to the sex (p<0.05). Indeed, females have longer and higher body than males, indicating the existence of sexual dimorphism in the species. Discriminant factor analysis reveals that the number of gill rakers on the upper and lower branches of the first gill arch as well as the ratios of head length by orbital distance, pre-orbital length by orbital distance and fork length by total length constitute the discriminating parameters that can be used to characterize the species at different life stages. The age-length relationship indicates that the species develops rapid allometric growth from an early age. The relatively high mean value in the body condition factor attests to the good adaptation of this species to the prevailing ecological conditions of its living environment.
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