An individual-based model applied to the study of different fishing strategies of Pintado Pseudoplatystoma corruscans (Agassiz, 1829)

Authored by S G F Martins, P S Pompeu, Souza A A de

Date Published: 2012

DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2012.07.001

Sponsors: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG)

Platforms: No platforms listed

Model Documentation: Other Narrative Mathematical description

Model Code URLs: Model code not found

Abstract

The decline in stocks of commercial fish species has been documented in several regions of the world. This decline is due partially to the effect of evolutionary pressure caused by the management of fishing activity, which reduces the size of fish after a few generations. In this paper, the population dynamics of the Pintado Pseudoplatystoma corruscans, one of the main commercial species of freshwater fish in Brazil, were simulated considering different scenarios of fishing mortality and different minimum and maximum lengths of capture. The results show that selective fishing based on the different proposed selectivity curves can result in an evolution-mediated increase in the growth rate of the fish, the biomass and the catch. This suggests that appropriate changes in Brazilian legislation can contribute to the sustainability of fisheries and to conservation of the fish stocks exploited by man. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tags

Evolution selection Brazil growth Science Populations Age Traits Fisheries management Pimelodidae