Using Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) to inform the multi-habitat life cycle of wreckfish: A Ligurian Sea case study for Mediterranean conservation

PDF (English)
Publicado: Σεπ 2, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12681/mms.41040
ELENA DESIDERÀ
Department of Integrative Marine Ecology (EMI), Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn-National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, Genoa Marine Centre (GMC), Villa del Principe, Piazza del Principe 4, 16126, Genoa, Italy & National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4704-3107
DAVIDE DI BLASI
Department of Integrative Marine Ecology (EMI), Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn-National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, Genoa Marine Centre (GMC), Villa del Principe, Piazza del Principe 4, 16126, Genoa, Italy & National Research Council, Institute of Marine Engineering (CNR-INM), Via De Marini 16, 16149, Genoa, Italy
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3623-8507
FEDERICA POLI
Department of Integrative Marine Ecology (EMI), Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn-National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, Genoa Marine Centre (GMC), Villa del Principe, Piazza del Principe 4, 16126, Genoa, Italy & Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
TREVOR J. WILLIS
National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy & Department of Integrative Marine Ecology (EMI), Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn–National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, Fano Marine Center, Viale Adriatico 1-N, 61032, Fano, Italy
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0357-1189
SIMONE BAVA
Department of Integrative Marine Ecology (EMI), Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn-National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, Genoa Marine Centre (GMC), Villa del Principe, Piazza del Principe 4, 16126, Genoa, Italy
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8945-7482
PAOLO GUIDETTI
Department of Integrative Marine Ecology (EMI), Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn-National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, Genoa Marine Centre (GMC), Villa del Principe, Piazza del Principe 4, 16126, Genoa, Italy & National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7983-8775
Resumen

Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) from fishers and sea users is invaluable for reconstructing the occurrences of data deficient and vulnerable fish species, particularly target species. This study explores the distribution patterns of the data-deficient wreckfish Polyprion americanus in the Ligurian Sea (NW Mediterranean Sea) using semi-structured interviews with 40 sea users (27 fishers and 13 observational data providers). We identified key habitats associated with five main size classes of wreckfish, from surface waters to 1000 m depth, including vulnerable ecosystems like seamounts and cold-water coral habitats. Smaller individuals (0-1.5 kg) were mainly found in pelagic habitats, frequently near floating objects, while larger individuals (>3 kg) were common in slope and seamount habitats. Abundance declines across all size classes were attributed to overfishing and, according to some respondents, a reduction in floating debris may have specifically affected the presence of smaller individuals. Fishing techniques varied by size class, with technological advances notably impacting larger individuals near seamounts. The study supports LEK as a valuable complementary information source to conventional research, advocating for updated conservation measures, including revised size limits and enhanced protection of vulnerable habitats.

Article Details
  • Sección
  • Early View_vol. 26, n. 3, 2025

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g. post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (preferably in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Descargas
Los datos de descargas todavía no están disponibles.
Citas
Andaloro, F., Campo, D., Castriota, L., Sinopoli, M., 2007. Annual trend of fish assemblages associated with FADs in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 23, 258-263.
Asensio, L., GonzaIez, I., Fernandez, A., Rodriguez, M. A., Lobo, E. et al., 2002. Application of Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) Analysis for Identification of Grouper (Epinephelus guaza), Wreck Fish (Polyprion americanus), and Nile Perch (Lates niloticus) Fillets. Journal of Food Protection, 65 (2), 432-435.
Azzurro, E., Sbragaglia, V., Cerri, J., Bariche, M., Bolognini, L. et al., 2019. Climate change, biological invasions, and the shifting distribution of Mediterranean fishes: A largescale survey based on local ecological knowledge. Global Change Biology 25 (8), 2779-2792.
Baillon, S., Hamel, J.-F., Wareham, V.E., Mercier, A., 2012. Deep cold-water corals as nurseries for fish larvae. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 10 (7), 351-356.
Ball, A.O., Sedberry, G.R., Zatcoff, M.S., Chapman, R.W., Carlin, J.L., 2000. Population structure of the wreckfish Polyprion americanus determined with microsatellite genetic markers. Marine Biology, 137, 1077-1090.
Begossi, A., Caires, R., 2015. Art, fisheries and ethnobiology. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 11, 16.
Bennett, N.J., Calò, A., Guidetti, P., Milazzo, M., Prato, G. et al., 2024. Access and well-being in small-scale fisheries. Marine Policy, 169, 106328.
Bethoux, J.P., Gentili, B., Morin, P., Nicolas, E., Pierre, C. et al., 1999. The Mediterranean Sea: a miniature ocean for climatic and environmental studies and a key for the climatic functioning of the North Atlantic. Progress in Oceanography, 44 (1-3), 131-146.
Bettoso, N., Faresi, L., Felluga, A., Lipej, L., 2020. On the occurrence of the wreckfish Polyprion americanus in the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea). Acta Adriatica, 61 (1), 107-112.
Bini, G. (Ed.), 1970. Polyprion americanum. p.63-64. In: Atlante Dei Pesci Delle Coste Italiane. Volume VII-Osteitti. Mondo sommerso, Rome.
Boero, M., Guzzardi, R., 2003. Pesci salati: La pesca delle acciughe e la loro salagione. Associazione culturale Storie di barche, 93 pp.
Bo, M., Coppari, M., Betti, F., Enrichetti, F., Bertolino, M. et al., 2021. The high biodiversity and vulnerability of two Mediterranean bathyal seamounts support the need for creating offshore protected areas. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 31 (3), 543-566.
Bo, M., Enrichetti, F., Betti, F., Gay, G., Quarta, G. et al., 2023. The cold-water coral province of the eastern Ligurian Sea (NW Mediterranean Sea): historical and novel evidences. Frontiers in Marine Science, 10, 1114417.
Brooks, D.A., Bane, J.M., Jr, 1978. Gulf Stream deflection by a bottom feature off Charleston, South Carolina. Science, 201 (4326), 1225-1226.
Button, R.E., Parker, D., Coetzee, V., Samaai, T., Palmer, R.M. et al., 2021. ROV assessment of mesophotic fish and associated habitats across the continental shelf of the Amathole region. Scientific Reports, 11, 18171.
Canepa, E., Pensieri, S., Bozzano, R., Faimali, M., Traverso, P. et al., 2015. The ODAS Italia 1 buoy: More than forty years of activity in the Ligurian Sea. Progress in Oceanography, 135, 48-63.
Canese, S., Bava, S., 2015. The decline of top predators in deep coral reefs. p.67-68. In: 1st Mediterranean Symposium on the Conservation of Dark Habitats (Portorož, Slovenia, 31 October 2014), Langar, H., Bouafif, C., A., O. (Eds.), RAC/ SPA publ., Tunis.
Carbonara, P., Costantino, G., Giovine, G., Lembo, G., Spedicato, M.T. et al., 2003. Some aspects of the life history of Polyprion americanus (Schneider, 1801) along the coasts of the north western Ionian Sea. Biologia Marina Mediterranea, 10 (2), 102-112.
Castro, J.J., Santiago, J.A., Santana-Ortega, A.T., 2001. A general theory on fish aggregation to floating objects: An alternative to the meeting point hypothesis. Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 11 (3), 255-277.
Cattaneo-Vietti, R., Orsi Relini, L., Wurtz, M., 1985. La pesca in Liguria. Centro Studi Unioncamere liguri, Genova, 190 pp.
Cattaneo-Vietti, R., Albertelli, G., Aliani, S., Bava, S., Bavestrello, G. et al., 2010. The Ligurian Sea: present status, problems and perspectives. Chemistry in Ecology, 26, 319-340.
Collette, B., Fernandes, P., Heessen, H., Smith-Vaniz, W.F., 2015. Polyprion americanus (European assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e. T43972A45795607. (Accessed April 21, 2022).
Deudero, S., Morales-Nin, B., 2000. Occurrence of Polyprion americanus under floating objects in western Mediterranean oceanic waters, inference from stomach contents analysis. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 80 (4), 751-752.
Diogo, H., Pereira, J.G., 2013. Recreational boat fishing pressure on fish communities of the shelf and shelf break of Faial and Pico Islands (Azores Archipelago): implications for coastal resource management. Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria, 43 (4), 267-276.
D’Onghia, G., Maiorano, P., Carlucci, R., Capezzuto, F., Carluccio, A. et al., 2012. Comparing deep-sea fish fauna between coral and non-coral “megahabitats” in the Santa Maria di Leuca cold-water coral province (Mediterranean Sea). PLoS One, 7 (9), e44509.
D’Onghia, G., Capezzuto, F., Carluccio, A., Carlucci, R., Giove, A. et al., 2015. Exploring composition and behaviour of fish fauna by in situ observations in the Bari Canyon (Southern Adriatic Sea, Central Mediterranean). Marine Ecology, 36 (3), 541-556.
Enrichetti, F., Dominguez-Carrió, C., Toma, M., Bavestrello, G., Betti, F. et al., 2019. Megabenthic communities of the Ligurian deep continental shelf and shelf break (NW Mediterranean Sea). PLoS One, 14 (10), e0223949.
EU, 2000. Directive 2000/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2000 on port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues - Commission declaration. Official Journal of the European Communities L332. 81-90.
European Council, 2006. Council Regulation (EC) No. 1967/2006 concerning management measures for the sustainable exploitation of fishery resources in the Mediterranean Sea, amending Regulation (EEC) No. 2847/93 and repealing Regulation (EC) No. 1626/94. Official Journal of the European Union L 409.
Froese, R., Pauly, D., 2024. Fish Base. http://www.fishbase.org. (Accessed February 13, 2024).
Garibaldi, F., 2015. By-catch in the mesopelagic swordfish longline fishery in the Ligurian Sea (Western Mediterranean). Collective Volume of Scientific Papers ICCAT, 71 (3), 1495-1498.
Gauvin, J.R., Ward, J.M., Burgess, E.E., 1994. Description and evaluation of the wreckfish (Polyprion americanus) fishery under individual transferahle quotas. Marine Resource Economics, 9, 99-118.
Glukhov, A.A., Zaferman, M.L., 1982. Observations on the behaviour of Polyprion americanus (Schneider) (Serranidae). Voprosy Ikhtiologii, 22 (2), 334-336.
Hamilton, R., de Mitcheson, Y.S., Aguilar-Perera, A., 2012. The role of local ecological knowledge in the conservation and management of reef fish spawning aggregations. p.331-369. In: Reef Fish Spawning Aggregations: Biology, Research and Management. Sadovy de Mitcheson, Y., Colin, P.L. (Eds). Springer Netherlands, Dordrecht.
Hardy, J.D., 1978. Development of fishes of the Mid-Atlantic Bight. An atlas of egg, larval and juvenile stages. Vol. 3: Aphredoderidae through Rachycentridae. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 402 pp.
Imhoof-Blumer, F., Keller, O., 1889. Tier-und Pflanzenbilder auf Münzen und Gemmen des klassischen Altertums. Teubner, Leipzig, 240 pp. Johannes, R.E., 1978. Traditional marine conservation methods in Oceania and their demise. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics, 9 (1), 349-364.
Johannes, R.E., Freeman, M.M.R., Hamilton, R.J., 2000. Ignore fishers’ knowledge and miss the boat. Fish and Fisheries, 1 (3), 257-271.
Kalimeris, A., Kolios, S., 2019. TRMM-based rainfall variability over the Central Mediterranean and its relationships with atmospheric and oceanic climatic modes. Atmospheric Research, 230, 104649.
Lejeusne, C., Chevaldonné, P., Pergent-Martini, C., Boudouresque, C.F., Pérez, T., 2010. Climate change effects on a miniature ocean: the highly diverse, highly impacted Mediterranean Sea. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 25 (4), 250-260.
Linares, F., Pérez Rial, E., Rodriguez, J.L., Pazos, G., Álvarez- Blázquez, B., 2021. Biometric parameters and biochemical composition of wild wreckfish (Polyprion americanus). Marine Biology Research, 17 (3), 234-246.
Lytton, A.R., Ballenger, J.C., Reichert, M.J., Smart, T.I., 2015. Age validation of the North Atlantic stock of wreckfish (Polyprion americanus), based on bomb radiocarbon (14C), and new estimates of life history parameters. Fishery Bulletin, 114 (1), 77-88.
Machias, A., Somarakis, S., Papadroulakis, N., Spedicato, M.- T., Suquet, M. et al., 2003. Settlement of the wreckfish (Polyprion americanus). Marine Biology, 142 (1), 45-52.
Mavruk, S., Saygu, İ., Bengil, F., Alan, V., Azzurro, E., 2018. Grouper fishery in the Northeastern Mediterranean: An assessment based on interviews on resource users. Marine Policy, 87, 141-148.
Menni, R.C., López, H.L., 1979. Biological data and otolith (sagitta) morphology of Polyprion americanus and Schedophilus griseolineatus (Osteichthyes, Serranidae and Centrolophidae). Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment, 14 (1), 17-32.
Papadaki, M., Peleteiro, J.B., Alvarez-Blázquez, B., Rodríguez Villanueva, J.L., Linares, F. et al., 2018. Description of the annual reproductive cycle of wreckfish Polyprion americanus in captivity. Fishes, 3 (4), 43.
Papandroulakis, N., Suquet, M., Spedicato, M., Machias, A., Fauvel, C. et al., 2004. Feeding Rates, Growth Performance and Gametogenesis of Wreckfish (Polyprion americanus) kept in Captivity. Aquaculture International: Journal of the European Aquaculture Society, 12, 395-407.
Peres, M.B., Klippel, S., 2003. Reproductive biology of southwestern Atlantic wreckfish, Polyprion americanus (teleostei: Polyprionidae). Environmental Biology of Fishes 68 (2), 163-173.
Pérez, E., Linares, F., Rodríguez Villanueva, J.L., Vilar, A., Mylonas, C.C. et al., 2019. Wreckfish (Polyprion americanus). New knowledge about reproduction, larval husbandry, and nutrition. Promise as a new species for aquaculture. Fishes, 4, 14.
Relini, G., 2007. La pesca batiale in Liguria. Biologia Marina Mediterranea, 14 (2), 190-244.
Relini, M., Orsi Relini, L., Relini, G., 1994. An offshore buoy as a FAD in the Mediterranean. Bulletin of Marine Science, 55 (2-3), 1099-1105.
Relini, G., Tunesi, L., Vacchi, M., Andaloro, F., D’Onghia, G. et al., 2017. Lista Rossa IUCN dei Pesci ossei marini Italiani. Comitato Italiano IUCN e Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare, Roma, 52 pp.
Rizzo, G.E. (Ed.), 1946. Monete greche della Sicilia: Descritte e illustrate da Giulio Emanuele Rizzo. Vol. 1,2. Arnaldo Forni Editore, Bologna.
Roberts, C.D., 1977. The wreckfish Polyprion americanus (Schneider, 1801) in Irish waters: An underwater sighting and review of the Irish records. The Irish Naturalists’ Journal, 19 (4), 108-112.
Roberts, C.D., 1989. Reproductive mode in the percomorph fish genus Polyprion Oken. Journal of Fish Biology, 34 (1), 1-9.
Ryall, P.J.C., Hargrave, B.T., 1984. Attraction of the Atlantic wreckfish (Polyprion americanus) to an unbaited camera on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Deep-Sea Research. Part A, Oceanographic Research Papers, 31 (1), 79-83.
Sadovy, Y., 2003. Polyprion americanus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2003: e.T43972A10845280. (Accessed October 2, 2023).
Sedberry, G.R., Carlin, J.L., Menezes., G.M., 1998. Movements of a pelagic-phase wreckfish, Polyprion americanus (Schneider, 1801) as indicated by tag and recapture. Arquipelago. Life and Marine Sciences, 69-72.
Sedberry, G.R., Carlin, J.L., Chapman, R.W., Eleby, B., 1996. Population structure in the pan‐oceanic wreckfish, Polyprion americanus (Teleostei: Polyprionidae), as indicated by mtDNA variation. Journal of Fish Biology, 49, 318-329.
Sedberry, G.R., Andrade, C.A.P., Carlin, J.L., Chapman, R.W., Luckhurst, B.E., et al., 1999. Wreckfish Polyprion americanus in the North Atlantic: fisheries, biology, and management of a widely distributed and long-lived fish. p.27-50. In: American Fisheries Society Symposium, 23, 27-50.
Sedberry, G.R., Pashuk, O., Wyanski, D.M., Stephen, J., Weinbach, P., 2006. Spawning locations for Atlantic reef fishes off the southeastern U.S. Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute, 57, 464-514.
Silvano, R.A.M., Nora, V., Andreoli, T.B., Lopes, P.F.M., Begossi, A., 2017. The “ghost of past fishing”: Small-scale fisheries and conservation of threatened groupers in subtropical islands. Marine Policy, 75, 125-132.
Silvano, R.A.M., Baird, I.G., Begossi, A., Hallwass, G., Huntington, H.P. et al., 2023. Fishers’ multidimensional knowledge advances fisheries and aquatic science. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 38 (1), 8-12.
Smith, J.L.B. (Ed.), 1949. The sea fishes of Southern Africa. Central News Agency, Ltd, Cape Town, 580 pp. Tortonese, E., 1975. Polyprion americanus. p.60-62. In: Fauna d’Italia, “Osteichtyes”: Pesci Ossei, Tortonese, E. (Ed.). Calderini, Bologna.
Wakefield, C.B., Newman, S.J., Boddington, D.K., 2013. Exceptional longevity, slow growth and late maturation infer high inherent vulnerability to exploitation for bass groper Polyprion americanus (Teleostei: Polyprionidae). Aquatic Biology, 18 (2), 161-174. Ward, J., 1902. Greek coins and their parent cities. Hill, G.F. (Ed). J. Murray, London.
Yokes, B., Kara, M.H., Bizsel, C., Kada, O., Bariche, M. et al., 2011. Polyprion americanus (Mediterranean assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2011: e.T43972A10845635 (Accessed October 2, 2023).
Artículos más leídos del mismo autor/a