Development and perspectives for community-based management of the goose barnacle (Pollicipes pollicipes) fisheries in Galicia (NW Spain)

Abstract

The goose barnacle, Pollicipes pollicipes, is an intertidal cirripede that lives attached to rocks on very exposed shores, forming dense aggregations. It occurs in the northeast Atlantic (from 48 to 14 • N). Commercial fisheries have been developed in several countries, but except for a short-lived local consumption, most of the production is traded in the Spanish market, where the price can reach ?80/kg in first-sale auctions. This species shows a strong spatial structure, constituting metapopulations with local adult populations sharing a common larval pool. Advection of larvae depends largely of oceanographic conditions that govern larval transport and survival. In Galicia (NW Spain), the regional government regulations promote a co-management system between fishers' organisations ("cofradías") and the fisheries authority through territorial user rights for fishing (TURFs). Since 1992, the exploitation is granted to "cofradías" after presentation of an annual plan of exploitation and management, where fishing (daily allocation of effort, maximum individual quotas and area of exploitation), surveillance and the commercialisation processes are established. The recent implementation of a geographic information system (GIS) designed for the management of Pollicipes in Galicia will allow for new ways to improve the elaboration and control of management plans by fishers' organisations using a combination of the available statistical data and computer-based methods. The system, including databases and software for the visualisation of geographic information, was designed for independent use in each "cofradía" or in a network, and its results are accessible in a web site (http://sigremar.cesga.es).

The Key Role of the Barefoot Fisheries Advisors in the Co-managed TURF System of Galicia (NW Spain)

“…But, it was not until 1992 when the Galician government, with fishing powers since 1981, introduced the biggest change; a new model for shellfishing, promoting a co-management system between cofradías and the fisheries administration, 2 based on territorial use rights for fishing (TURFs) over a large area and its resources (Molares and Freire 2003). The new management system, still ongoing, is only applied to sedentary resources (bivalves, echinoderms, gastropods, annelids, algae, and gooseneck barnacles), concerning therefore the so-called Sfisheries (Small-Scale and Spatially Structured fisheries targeting Sedentary resources with artisanal gears, sensu Orensanz et al 2005).…”

“…For compiling the information required in the Exploitation and Management Plans, we followed Molares and Freire (2003) as an initial reference but also many official plans from 2010 to 2013 from different cofradías were checked modifying the final table and the information included.…”

“…That was a key point to increase knowledge sharing and trust between TAs and mariscadoras. During this period and because of this proximity, the TAs started helping in the design of the Exploitation and Management Plan for the cofradías, required since 1992 although gradually enforced during the forthcoming years (Molares and Freire 2003;Frangoudes et al 2008). The Exploitation and Management Plans were not only required for clams and oysters fisheries, but for all S-fisheries (see Electronic Supplementary Material), so the TAs had to prepare many new plans.…”

“…During the 2000s, several initiatives were launched to assess the fisheries from researchers from the CIMA who developed two platforms (SIGREMAR and AROUSA) and gave training to the TAs, and also to the FA biologists, which has significantly improved the level and quality of the fisheries data and its organization in common databases. SIGREMAR (http://ww3.intecmar.org/Sigremar/) started in 2000 as a geographic information system (GIS) designed for elaborating and controlling the S-fisheries management plans using a combination of the available statistical data and computer-based methods (Molares and Freire 2003). Although with some initial success, its complexity caused low implementation of several TAs and FA biologists who argued it was too time consuming and it was gradually abandoned (FA biologists and TAs pers.…”

Modulation of gregarious settlement of the stalked barnacle, <em>Pollicipes pollicipes</em>: a laboratory study

“…Harvesting Pollicipes pollicipes is an economically important activity in Portugal and Spain, where this species is subject to an intensive fishery (Molares and Freire 2003, Borja et al 2006, Sousa et al 2013). Due to its high market value, conservation interest and stock management concerns, there has been continued interest in the reproductive cycle and recruitment patterns of this species.…”