The literature on commons has established the validity and significance of Elinor Ostrom's design principles for collective action. Can these principles be used to guide policies and initiatives towards adaptive co-management? We analyze this idea by using two case studies, Piriápolis (Uruguay) and Paraty (Brazil). Both cases are small-scale fisheries, and both have been experiencing a social-ecological crisis in a context of prevailing top-down government management. However, there are signs that government policies are moving towards participatory governance. The objective of this article is to identify opportunities and barriers to adaptive co-management of small-scale fisheries in Uruguay and Brazil using Ostrom's design principles for guidance. Both case studies partially meet seven of the eleven design principles (as amended by Cox and colleagues), but do not fulfill four. The analysis of the fisheries using Ostrom's principles sheds light on the opportunities and barriers to adaptive co-management in three categories: resource system, resource users, and governance system. Barriers include long-standing conflicts between small-scale fishers and government agencies, and between small and large-scale fisheries sectors. Nevertheless, recent initiatives involving participatory approaches to research and management show potential to improve compliance with several principles. Two weaknesses of using Ostrom's principles for the analysis of the cases were a lack of attention to social learning and the exclusion of external drivers.

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Globally there is a crisis due to the accelerated detriment of fishery resources, largely due to weak governance, lack of management and lack of knowledge. In Colombia, some management tools have been implemented to move towards co-management of fishery resources, highlighting the Exclusive Artisanal Fishing Zone (ZEPA) of the Colombian Pacific. The present research contributes to the knowledge of the state of the fishing resources and to the analysis of the management of the north zone of the Colombian Pacific, after the implementation of the ZEPA. It collects the fishery data of the area, registered by governmental institutions and NGOs, to analyze the interannual dynamics and compare the effects of the implementation of the ZEPA, in particular with indices such as landing by unit of effort, maximum sustainable yield and effort. Likewise, qualitative information was obtained, through four focus groups, with the participation of 27 fishers and 15 semi-structured interviews with researchers, in order to assess the state of the eight principles proposed by economist Elinor Ostrom for a successful co-management of the resources in the ZEPA. In addition, a catch quota from the MSY is proposed for each of the fishing gear and species of commercial importance, following the precautionary approach proposed by FAO. With the results, a vision of the state of the Ostrom principles was built, evidencing the willingness of fishermen to move towards collective management of resources, as well as the urgency of strengthening the monitoring of resources and rules and agreeing sanctions for Violators. This study highlights the strengths of the ZEPA in Colombia and presents the minimum factors required to strengthen and managed it effectively in the immediate future.

Participatory research in which experts and non-experts are co-researchers in addressing local concerns (also known as participatory action research or community-based research) can be a valuable approach for dealing with the uncertainty of social-ecological systems because it fosters learning among stakeholders and co-production of knowledge. Despite its increased application in the context of natural resources and environmental management, evaluation of participatory research has received little attention. The objectives of this research were to define criteria to evaluate participatory research processes and outcomes, from the literature on participation evaluation, and to apply them in a case study in an artisanal fishery in coastal Uruguay. Process evaluation criteria (e.g., problem to be addressed of key interest to local and additional stakeholders; involvement of interested stakeholder groups in every research stage; collective decision making through deliberation; and adaptability through iterative cycles) should be considered as conditions to promote empowering participatory research. Our research contributes to knowledge on evaluation of participatory research, while also providing evidence of the positive outcomes of this approach, such as co-production of knowledge, learning, strengthened social networks, and conflict resolution.

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a b s t r a c t Frequent mother-pup separations and reunions occurring in the South American sea lion Otaria flavescens require a well-developed individual recognition system. Individuality in mothers' and pups' calls of this species has been found in Península Valdés (PV), Argentina (with individuality rates of 95% and 89%, respectively). In order to test the hypotheses of ecological constraints (i.e., population density, habitat) and geographic variation affecting the characteristics and/or the individuality of vocalizations, we studied another population at Isla de Lobos (IL), Uruguay, separated by approx. 1200 km from PV. DFAs showed classification rates of 63.2% in mothers and 53.3% in pups. This lower degree of individuality can be explained by differences in population density. Differences in acoustic characteristics were also found: at IL mother and pup calls tended to be shorter in duration and mother calls lower-pitched. This can be explained by an adaptation to the local environment: at IL sea lions breed in sympatry with South American fur seals in an obstructed habitat whereas PV sea lions are the unique species in the colony constituted by an open habitat. Finally, the acoustic differences can also be a consequence of the genetic isolation that has been found between these two colonies of O. flavescens.