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The queen conch fishery on Pedro Bank, Jamaica: discovery, development, management
Ocean & Coastal Management 42 (1999) 1069}1081
The queen conch "shery on Pedro Bank, Jamaica: discovery, development, management Karl A. Aiken!,*, G. Andre Kong, Stephen Smikle", Robin Mahon#, Richard Appeldoorn$ !Department of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica "Fisheries Division, Ministry of Agriculture, Kingston, Jamaica #Fisheries and Environmental Consulting, 48 Sunset Crest, St. James, Barbados $Department of Marine Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
Abstract The history, methods, problems and regulation of "shing of the last remaining large queen conch resource in the world, located on a Jamaican "shing bank, are examined. The "shery activities for the queen conch, Strombus gigas Linnaeus are brie#y described with the main activities in the industrial sector which produce the bulk of the harvest, which is exported. There are a few large producers harvesting the single major "shing ground of Pedro Bank, southwest of Kingston. These "shers harvested at least 1500 t annually between 1992 and 1998. Management is by licensing, individual quotas and a close season from July to October. Regulations related to CITES are thought to greatly assist in making licensed harvesters provide catch data to the Fisheries Division. The industrial operators have provided funding to undertake stock assessment studies in 1994 and again in 1997. We highlight the focus on management on a participatory consensual approach with meetings with all players in the industry. The conch "shery is thought to be one of the few areas of the Jamaica "shery where there is close and successful collaboration between "shers and the Fisheries Division. It provides an example of how rapid, precautionary, participatory action can provide an adequate basis for management until more de"nitive scienti"c information becomes available. The status of the conch "shery is thought to be sustainable at present, once reductions are made to the annual quota. ( 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: #876-927-1202; fax: #876-977-1075. E-mail address: [email protected] (K.A. Aiken) 0964-5691/00/$ - see front matter ( 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 9 6 4 - 5 6 9 1 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 6 3 - 0
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1. Introduction Throughout the Caribbean queen conch "sheries have been characterised by over"shing [1]. The repeated pattern has been expansion of landings mainly for export and then a rapid decline of the stocks to uneconomic levels. Conch are particularly susceptible to over"shing as they are sedentary and occur in easily accessible nearshore habitats, most of which are within free diving depths. In Jamaica, conch have been "shed for decades on the island shelf, especially the southern part, where they have been overexploited by free-diving from canoes. Following the establishment of "shing camps in the 1960s on Pedro Bank (Fig. 1), a small-scale, free-diving "shery developed in the shallow waters adjacent to the Pedro Cays. In the late 1980s, the "shing industry became aware of large numbers of queen conch in the expansive central plains of Pedro Bank at greater depths than could be accessed by free diving. Surplus conch "shing e!ort in the form of large commercial diving vessels and experienced divers from other parts of the Caribbean quickly began to exploit this resource in collaboration with Jamaican entrepreneurs. In 1992, Jamaica became the largest queen conch producer in the Caribbean, in a market worth some US$60 million annually [2,3]. The queen conch resource on Pedro Bank appeared to be threatened with the same fate as conch resources elsewhere in the Caribbean. This paper describes the rapid development of the "shery and the urgent e!orts that were made to ensure that the highly valuable conch "shery on Pedro Bank would be sustainable. The process involved many participants in a variety of roles, including regional "shery organisations, the national Fisheries Division, international organisations, and the conch industry. It provides an example of how rapid, precautionary, participatory action can provide an adequate basis for management until more de"nitive scienti"c information becomes available.
2. The rise of the industrial conch 5shery on Pedro Bank As mentioned earlier, all activities prior to 1988 were strictly limited to small-scale landings from the artisanal "shery and were less than 50 t annually (Fig. 2). Following the discovery of a large resource, the small industrial "shery which quickly started, resulted in a trend of rapidly increasing landings most of which are processed and exported. This large-scale commercial "shery developed alongside a rather di!use small-scale artisanal "shery. The industrial "shery is one with diver-equipped vessels averaging 24 m LOA, operating on Pedro Bank. The bank is relatively large being 3750 km2 in area with a mean depth of 25 m deepening to the northwest. It is coralline mainly around the edges with the top of the bank sandy with scattered coral patches and soft corals, mixed with seagrass in shallower areas [4]. The main conch "shery is around the centre of the bank. Three categories of conch "shers operate on Pedro Bank; free and SCUBA diving small-scale "shers resident on the Pedro Cays using motorised canoes; SCUBA diving mainland divers operating from motorised canoes around the Pedro Cays and on the
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Fig. 1. (a) Jamaica showing-100 m contour and proximal oceanic banks. (b) Pedro bank, the major conch "shing area.
south island shelf and; large, decked `mothera vessels 20}25 m in length with SCUBA/hookah equipped divers working from small boats. This latter category of vessel is referred to as the `industriala "shery and operates exclusively on Pedro Bank. Each can have up to 20, but on average, approximately ten divers [5,6].
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Fig. 2. Jamaica queen conch (Strombus gigas L.) exports: 1980}1998.
Most `mothera vessels take their catch to Kingston for processing, while one or two operating on the western end of the bank take their catch to a processing plant at Whitehouse. There are 14 processing plants and three are considered large plants. At least 1000 artisanal free divers contribute a small proportion of the catches landed at numerous smaller sites and mainly taken to processing plants. Between 1980 and 1988 annual exports were approximately 50 t [7]. In 1989 conch exports increased to 100 t (Fig. 2), then rose almost exponentially from 1991 to 1995 to a maximum of 2132 t recorded from CITES sources [7]. Almost all originated from the newly opened Pedro Bank industrial "shery. Up to 1993/1994 most exports were to the United States. The 1995/1996 conch exports had a value of US$7.8 million. An annual quota of 1900 t with an annual reduction of 100 t was introduced in 1995, so that in 1996/1997 exports were 1800 t worth approximately US$6 million. Since 1995 most conch (60% clean) was exported to France (Martinique). The 1998/1999 season did not open on 1 November, 1998. There is minimal processing of conch as only plastic wrapping and simple consumer packs are provided. Conch, removed from the shell is laid on ice. After processing it is exported frozen in 5 kg consumer packs. Processing is labour intensive and conducted under closely supervised, sanitary conditions, mainly in Kingston [8]. Frozen conch are taken in refrigerated containers from the Kingston commercial port facility. The procedure for export of conch from Jamaica under CITES rules is that the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA), already informed of the annual export quota by the Fisheries Division, has its CITES Scienti"c Authority make recommendations for approval to CITES, which approves the quota and informs NRCA. The NRCA informs the Fisheries Division, which then opens the "shing season. Export applications are received for processing by NRCA, during which time there may be inspection of conch products by the Fisheries Division. If approved, a Zoo Sanitation certi"cate is then issued by the Veterinary Division of the Ministry of Agriculture prior to export of product. The NRCA then faxes permits to CITES.
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3. Fishery assessments A review of the conch stocks on the main "shing ground of Pedro Bank was conducted in 1991, based on existing published data, by the CARICOM Fisheries Resources Assessment & Management Programme (CFRAMP) and the University of the West Indies (UWI) in conjunction with the Fisheries Division [5]. That review provided approximate estimates of biomass and of maximum sustainable yield (MSY). The preliminary estimate of MSY that was produced was 800 t yr~1. This was incorporated into a preliminary management plan [5]. Later, an accurate ground survey-based estimate of MSY for Pedro Bank conch was done in late 1994 by the Fisheries Division, the University of Puerto Rico & CFRAMP (partly underwritten by the industrial "shers) that produced an estimate of MSY for all three depth zones exploited, (0}10, 10}20 and 20}30 m) of 1818 t yr~1 [9]. This estimate deliberately did not consider the deeper ('30 m) resources which were thought to function as additional spawning stock. Conch density on Pedro Bank were later found by these diver assessments to be a remarkable 10}100 times that in other Caribbean "shing grounds [2]. The stock, interestingly, consists of a large percentage of stoned conch (older than 5 yr), although younger conch comprise the bulk of current catches [9]. A second assessment again by the same group was done in late 1997. The preliminary results suggest a signi"cant decline in the number of adult conch and stoned conch in the 0}20 m depth stratum since 1994 [10]. Using the Gulland (1971) MSY model an estimate was made which totalled 1350 t yr~1. The exploitation rate, however, has totalled 5809 t or an annual mean of 1936 t yr~1 for three years. This rate was thought to be unsustainable [10,11]. Another small conch stock was assessed at the Morant Bank some 50 km southeast of Kingston (160 km upcurrent of Pedro Bank), using the same diver-based stock assessment methods which yielded an MSY of 18 t yr~1 [12] and showed stock structure similar to Pedro Bank conch with adult and stoned conch dominating. We speculate that this stock may serve as a minor source of Pedro Bank larval recruits, as recent research by Stoner and his colleagues suggests that recruitment across this distance could be possible [13}16]. This is part of a growing body of information on conch that is assisting the development of suitable regulations and management plans. The source(s) of recruitment is an area that is in need of investigation.
4. A participatory framework and preliminary management plan The marine "sheries of Jamaica have a history of high levels of "shing e!ort, poor enforcement and data collection and a record of little success in controlling "shing e!ort [17,18]. However, in contrast, from the earliest stage of the development of industrial "shing, there was an expression of concern from the "shers themselves, that their large catches could probably be unsustainable. This was the start of the consultation with the operators of the "shery which was the "rst priority of the
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Table 1 Early management suggestions for the Jamaican conch "shery 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Licensing of conch "sheres Licensing of conch vessels Minimum meat weight of 84 g processed meat Recommendation for three month closed season Exploration of measures to minimise con#icts among and between industrial and small-scale conch "shers 6. Implementation measures to collect conch landings and e!ort data 7. Recommendation for establishing o!shore security base on Pedro Bank to deter foreign poaching 8. Formalisation of communication network among Coast Guard and industrial "shers
Fisheries Division. This cooperation was by itself notable, as the large artisanal "shery was generally characterised by considerable suspicion and mistrust between both sides. We suggest here that the current cooperation may be the result of regular consultations between the parties. This resulted in a series of meetings and two management workshops assisted by CFRAMP by the end of 1992. A draft preliminary conch "shery management plan was the direct result of these workshops and was presented to the industry for discussion in early 1993 [5]. First management measures introduced are listed in Table 1 and included, licensing of (a) vessels, (b) "shers/processors, and (c) a minimum meat weight of 84 g for processed meat based on the Belize "shery. Later, a closed season was introduced in the 1994/1995 season from August to October inclusive, thereby restricting the "shing season to eight months. The major managerial concern however, is over"shing. For example, conch exports during the 1993/1994 season were so large that the conch "shery in the US Virgin Islands closed, as it was uneconomical to compete with Jamaican conch. Export "gures re#ected a harvest close to 3000 t in that season. It was agreed in June 1995 in a national conch management meeting, that there would be a 100 t reduction in the quota each year until 2000 AD to attain an MSY of not more than 1500 t yr~1, starting with the 1995/1996 season. Between 1991 and 1994 when the "rst Pedro Bank assessment survey was done, the "shery had operated at "shing levels uncontrolled by quotas. The closed season was also increased to four months (July to October) in the 1995/1996 season. The earliest management plan (Table 1) therefore utilised best assumptions about stocks extrapolated from what was known about conch in similar habitats regionally. Early recommendations also drew on management options for Caribbean conch [17]. There was an emphasis on measures to reduce "shing e!ort, monitoring the "shery and collecting data. Table 2 lists current measures and Table 3 some of the main features of management strategy. Under the regulations for the "shery, individuals, companies, restaurant operators, and other organizations have to declare all conch in their possession to the Fisheries Division, before the start of the closed season on 1 July. During the four months of the closed season it is illegal to harvest, sell or possess any conch or conch products,
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Table 2 Management regulations currently in place (1999) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Licensing of "shers Licensing of vessels Minimum weight of 84 g processed meat weight Four month closed season (July to October) NTAC reduced by 100 t annually from 1995 No new conch "shers No new industrial vessels Transferable quotas
Table 3 Characteristics of Jamaican conch "shery management strategy Feature
Result
1. Participation of third party without political/ personal plan connections in early management plan formulation 2. Early consultation with industry by technocrats 3. Involvement of CITES in regulation export and management 4. Funding of stock assessment research by industry on two occasions 5. Regular meetings with industry
Increased acceptance of plan
Early realisation of need for management Increased acceptance of regulations by industry Timely implementation of assessment project. Management possible Early information on problems. Fewer industry problems
unless a declaration of the amount and condition is made to the Fisheries Division prior to the start of the close season. Conch to be exported during the closed season is declared to the Fisheries Division. On receipt of declaration, the Fisheries Division authorises the transaction. Thus far, most private sector "rms have collaborated relatively well with these regulations. Nevertheless, "shing levels and exports between 1991 and 1995 appeared greatly above the MSY and potential yield estimates from the 1994 survey. The damage to stocks caused by this over"shing is unknown, but stock levels were thought to be high enough not to have resulted in serious damage.
5. The development of the 5nal management plan As "shery is characterised by high levels of "shing, one major objective was to create a limited entry policy within the national maritime space. However, there are no current regulations in force for the conch "shery. The Fishing Industry Act of 1975 "rst needs to be modi"ed according to the provisions relating to management. Also, in order to properly encompass the many other activities of the industry, other laws
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relating to conch need to be modi"ed. Fortunately, a new Fisheries Bill replacing the older Act is currently being reviewed and should greatly facilitate these changes. A measure of great signi"cance is the National Total Allowable Catch (NTAC) system which speci"es an annual quota limit. The NTAC system has provisions for other conch "shing areas (as may be determined from surveys) outside Pedro Bank. Pedro Bank and these other areas are referred to as the Fishery Management Area (FMA). Importantly, some FMAs are to be reserved exclusively for the artisanal "shery. Incentives in the form of catch quotas are given to individuals and/or companies based on several criteria which have to be satis"ed. These conditions include, ownership of a motor "shing vessel, Jamaican ownership of a "sh processing establishment, and a percentage of Jamaican divers [19]. Planned measures for the near future include a ban on the importation of SCUBA and hookah gear, so as to control "shing e!ort levels. Better control of processors and their standards, minimum meat sizes, storage declaration and licensing of processors, control of sales, processing and export of conch during closed season, as well as the prevention of user con#ict between artisanal and industrial "shers by zoning, are all desirable management objectives. But e!ectively there is little control over processors and sales due to sta! shortages.
6. Discussion Currently, in practical terms, conch "shing is managed under the Fishing Industry Act (No. 17 of 1975) by the Fisheries Division of the Ministry of Agriculture. Other agencies involved with management are the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA), the Jamaica Defence Coast Guard and the Jamaica Constabulary Force (Police). Other organisations that impinge on the conch industry are the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Jamaica Customs, US Customs, CITES, and countries observing the Special Protocol for Protected Areas & Wildlife (SPAW). The Act provides for the regulation of the "shing industry and Section 3 sets out the need for all "shers to have a license to "sh issued by the licensing authority (Fisheries Division). A register of licenses issued under the Act is maintained [20]. Licenses are issued to the conch operators who own decked vessels to "sh for conch. Temporary licenses are issued to foreign divers employed as "shermen on conch boats. Each license is issued for a period of 14 d, and a `peppercorn feea of $US 0.014 (J$1.00) is collected each time the license is renewed. Conch "shers possess this type of license. Export applications to the NRCA cost US$30.00. The "shery is partly managed by limited/restricted entry, and by licensing conch "shing operators/processors and conch vessels. There is also a "ve year variable national quota system in place. Additionally, there is a four month closed season annually. This conch close season was introduced under section 19 of the Fishing Industry Act of 1975 (Fishing Industry * Declaration of Close Season-Conch, (Strombus gigas) Order, 1993. Table 2 lists the measures in place at the start of 1999. If the major management objectives include monitoring and regulating of "shing e!ort at sustainable levels, controlling levels of exported product, optimising earnings,
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integrating local employment and preventing resource overexploitation, then we suggest that there may be a number of problems. These include over"shing, underreporting of catches, the transfer of catches at sea to third parties, poaching by foreign countries, ine$cient policing of quotas and other infringements, under-invoicing of exports, landing of Jamaican conch in other countries, lack of protection of critical biological areas, lack of queen conch marine reserves and lack of realistic license fees. There were considerable changes made in the "shery for the 1998/1999 season as this was not opened on 1 November as scheduled. All quotas were made transferable, and further, the transfer could take place from the industrial to the artisanal "shery. The season was not opened as quota reductions were not properly sorted out. In the meantime, several conch producers had opted not to "sh in the 1998/1999 season and switched to other activities. Adequate enforcement is of paramount importance for the successful implementation of any "sheries management and conservation plan. The main enforcing authorities are the Fisheries Division which issues licenses and allocates industry quotas as part of the NTAC, and the NRCA. The NRCA plays a key role in regulating exports by issuing CITES documentation required to export product successfully. Jamaica acceded to CITES in 1997, implying that observance of CITES rules and regulations relating to trade in conch will continue. This is quite important for the management of the "shery as one of the most signi"cant CITES regulations relate to production and export data collection and reporting these to CITES every year. All necessary institutional, operational and reporting requirements under the CITES have been completed. Another aspect that has considerably assisted in cooperation, enforcement and the general acceptance of management regulations, is the inclusion of conch under Appendix B of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora & Fauna (CITES) in 1992. During the 1993/1994 season the export of conch from Jamaica came to a halt when several containers of conch were detained in Miami, Florida until CITES documentation was completed. This was resolved only after a draft conch management plan was agreed upon with the industry, that included an undertaking for a resource survey which would be funded by the industry, along with an interim quota system. Signi"cant loss of product resulted by the time this siezure was sorted out. Since this incident, cooperation by larger producers with authorities has generally been good. Support by pertinent high level Government o$cials has been high throughout the development of the industrial "shery with strong support for the enforcement of the rules and regulations of the conch "shery. This political support in turn has greatly assisted the observance of the regulations governing the "shery by licensees. Typical of the now familiar pattern of exploitation, there has been increased capitalisation through boat hiring, processing plant construction, scuba gear purchase, and increased diver numbers. Although data are scarce, it would appear that operating expenses have increased, with some decrease in pro"tability. A proper socioeconomic study of the "shery needs to be conducted as soon as possible. Areas for which data are insu$cient include, (a) licensed harvester's incomes, (b) operational costs, (c) processing costs, and (d) break-even point. Another aspect with bio-medical
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implications, is the increased frequency of conch diver decompression sickness and its economic impact on decompression chamber use. The ocurrence of diver illnesses was studied [21] and it was found that almost every diver had some form of decompression sickness. Levels of training among divers is virtually nonexistent. This area is in need of improved management. All the management plans for the Jamaican conch "shery are generally in keeping with the Acceptance of the Precautionary Approach to Fisheries [22]. Most recently, it has been suggested that the quota system be modi"ed so as to reduce the size of the "shery [23]. Closely linked with spawning stock protection is the future banning of SCUBA gear. This gear has allowed expansion into previously unexploited areas, placing deep water populations at risk [8]. We suggest that hookah be the only permitted commercial gear as this will e!ectively limit exploitation to approximately 30 m, thereby protecting deeper stock. Marine reserves must be set up for Jamaican queen conch stocks. Such areas closed to "shing will function as reproductive reserves for the future. It is thought that parts of Pedro and Morant Bank having adults must be set aside for this purpose. Closed areas such as reserves represent one mechanism for maintaining high densities of adult conch [16]. Morant bank which lies upcurrent of Pedro Bank is one site that could play a role in larval supply, at the very least, to the east side of the latter. The NTAC system may be #awed in that the catch data reporting system is perhaps de"cient and in need of cross-checking of the reliability of statistics. Suspected under-reporting by licensees has serious implications for long-term stock status if allowed to continue or not to be accounted for in assessments. All the national management plans and regulations, while being important for the sustainability of the local stock, should be viewed as part of a regional attempt to manage all conch resources [24]. Given the history of regional over-exploitation of the resource, a number of measures is suggested for consideration as part of a regional management approach. Conch management, it must be noted, has been limited in e!ectiveness by a paucity of reliable, up-to-date information on stock status, the signi"cance of larval transport and poor enforcement, among other de"ciencies [3]. We therefore suggest that there are areas in need of investigation for management purposes (Table 4). These include, (a) the need for oceanographic studies that would be important in assessment of recruitment sources and the extent of stock sharing between countries. It is thought that, (b) centralised data dissemination facility would facilitate regional management. We also share the view that given the extent of economic pressures on the resource and its impact on management that, (c) jointly managed marketing agencies may be a key area for driving regional management. Another aspect with potential regional management value would be, (d) the accession of all regional producer countries to CITES regulations. This would a!ect all exporting countries (which are the majority) and would greatly facilitate the implementation of basic standards of record-keeping and export regulation. That the industry paid for the "rst assessment in 1994 may not by itself seem important. But it clearly demonstrated rare cooperation between operators of the "shery and Government's enforcement arm, and was a landmark event, as was their
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Table 4 Areas of Jamaican & Caribbean-wide concern critical to successful conch management and suggestions for implementation Area of concern 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.
How to resolve
Extent of larval transport 1. Extent of larval retention in gyres 2. Extent of stock sharing 3. Recruitment sources 4. Re"nement of closed season 5. Extent of critical habitat areas e.g. for 6. juveniles Changed age-structure of stocks 7. Need for centralised data centre for 8. information sharing Jointly administered marketing 9. Annual regional conch management meeting 10. All Caribbean producer nations to accede 11. to CITES Better diver mangement and safety 12.
Oceanographic studies Oceanographic studies m-DNA studies Oceanographic studies Reproductives studies Mapping of critical conch habitats Investigation on Age of stocks Identify facility Discuss establishment Con"rm regional interest Peer pressure at all regional meetings Diver training
assistance with the 1997 survey. We highlight the focus on management on a participatory, consensual approach with meetings with all players in the industry. The continued cooperation between the participants is important for the sustainability of the resource. It is important that the Fisheries Division be given the "nancial support and trained personnel to enforce regulations. The Natural Resources Conservation Authority needs similar support as CITES enforcer and thus both organisations will be dependent upon public sector funding. This is one of the potential weak points in the long term management policy, because we perceive that the relative importance of the environment and natural resources tends to #uctuate with political change. Finally, we urge a region-wide approach to conch "shery management as it is a shared resource [25] (See Table 4). Both the SPAW Protocol and Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) "sheries regulations could provide opportunities for the development of regional management plans for this resource [7,24]. The Declaration of San Juan of 1996 is perhaps a step in this direction, but more regional discussion and cooperation are necessary. CITES also represents another opportunity to hold exporters to share data with researchers. Unfortunately, it is reported that much large-scale conch trading appears to go on outside the control of CITES [7] despite the listing of conch under Appendix B, thereby limiting its e$cacy as a regulatory mechanism. The record of Caribbean-wide over-exploitation, under-reporting of catches and illegal trade in our view, clearly shows the need for more e!ective regional management measures along with trade controls. Queen conch is one of the largest remaining marine "shery export products, and the sustainability or collapse of the Jamaican conch "shery will probably serve as an index of the fate of other valuable and heavily exploited marine resources in the region. Increasingly, economic pressures
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on this "shery will need to take into consideration the issue of sustainable "sheries. The main challenge is to be able to distinguish the thin line between optimal earnings from conch exports and the biological sustainability of the living renewable resource that is queen conch.
Acknowledgements The authors thank the industrial conch "shers and processors for access to data and facilities. They also thank Yvette Strong, NRCA and Professor Emeritus Ivan Goodbody, Department of Life Sciences, U.W.I., Mona, for comments on drafts of this paper.
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[16] Stoner AW, Glazer RA, Barile PJ. Larval supply to queen conch nurseries: relationships with recruitment process and population size. Journal of Shell"sh Research 1996;15:407}20. [17] Aiken KA, Haughton MO. Status of the Jamaica reef "shery and proposals for its management. Proceedings of the Gulf & Caribbean Fisheries Institute 1986;38:469}84. [18] Haughton MO. An analysis of statistical data from the Jamaica inshore "sheries. FAO Fisheries Report 1988;389:443}54. [19] Fisheries Division. Proposal for the allocation of catch quotas for the conch industry. Unpublished Report, Ministry of Agriculture, Jamaica, 1994. 6pp. [20] CFRAMP. Conch & Lobster Subproject Speci"cation & Training Workshop. 9}12 October 1995. Kingston, Jamaica. CARICOM Fisheries Research Document, 19, 1997. 290pp. [21] FAO. Precautionary approach to "sheries. Pt. 1: Guidelines on the precautionary approach to capture "sheries and species introductions. FAO Fisheries Technical Paper 350/1, 1995. 52pp. [22] CFRAMP. Plan for managing the marine "sheries of Jamaica. Updated/revised March, Belize City, Belize, 1997. 54pp. [23] Lodge MW. Review and analysis of legal regime for "sheries conservation and management in Jamaica. FAO/TCP/JAM/4553A, 1996. 21pp. [24] Daves NK. Queen conch: the need for Caribbean-wide management. Queen Conch Newsletter, vol. 5(1) Univ. Puerto Rico/Sea Grant Programme/Carib. Fish. Management Council, December 1995. [25] Appeldoorn RS, Dennis GD, Monterrosa O. Review of shared demersal resources of Puerto Rico and the Lesser Antilles Region. FAO Fisheries Report 1987;38:36}106.
The queen conch "shery on Pedro Bank, Jamaica: discovery, development, management Karl A. Aiken!,*, G. Andre Kong, Stephen Smikle", Robin Mahon#, Richard Appeldoorn$ !Department of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica "Fisheries Division, Ministry of Agriculture, Kingston, Jamaica #Fisheries and Environmental Consulting, 48 Sunset Crest, St. James, Barbados $Department of Marine Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
Abstract The history, methods, problems and regulation of "shing of the last remaining large queen conch resource in the world, located on a Jamaican "shing bank, are examined. The "shery activities for the queen conch, Strombus gigas Linnaeus are brie#y described with the main activities in the industrial sector which produce the bulk of the harvest, which is exported. There are a few large producers harvesting the single major "shing ground of Pedro Bank, southwest of Kingston. These "shers harvested at least 1500 t annually between 1992 and 1998. Management is by licensing, individual quotas and a close season from July to October. Regulations related to CITES are thought to greatly assist in making licensed harvesters provide catch data to the Fisheries Division. The industrial operators have provided funding to undertake stock assessment studies in 1994 and again in 1997. We highlight the focus on management on a participatory consensual approach with meetings with all players in the industry. The conch "shery is thought to be one of the few areas of the Jamaica "shery where there is close and successful collaboration between "shers and the Fisheries Division. It provides an example of how rapid, precautionary, participatory action can provide an adequate basis for management until more de"nitive scienti"c information becomes available. The status of the conch "shery is thought to be sustainable at present, once reductions are made to the annual quota. ( 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: #876-927-1202; fax: #876-977-1075. E-mail address: [email protected] (K.A. Aiken) 0964-5691/00/$ - see front matter ( 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 9 6 4 - 5 6 9 1 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 6 3 - 0
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1. Introduction Throughout the Caribbean queen conch "sheries have been characterised by over"shing [1]. The repeated pattern has been expansion of landings mainly for export and then a rapid decline of the stocks to uneconomic levels. Conch are particularly susceptible to over"shing as they are sedentary and occur in easily accessible nearshore habitats, most of which are within free diving depths. In Jamaica, conch have been "shed for decades on the island shelf, especially the southern part, where they have been overexploited by free-diving from canoes. Following the establishment of "shing camps in the 1960s on Pedro Bank (Fig. 1), a small-scale, free-diving "shery developed in the shallow waters adjacent to the Pedro Cays. In the late 1980s, the "shing industry became aware of large numbers of queen conch in the expansive central plains of Pedro Bank at greater depths than could be accessed by free diving. Surplus conch "shing e!ort in the form of large commercial diving vessels and experienced divers from other parts of the Caribbean quickly began to exploit this resource in collaboration with Jamaican entrepreneurs. In 1992, Jamaica became the largest queen conch producer in the Caribbean, in a market worth some US$60 million annually [2,3]. The queen conch resource on Pedro Bank appeared to be threatened with the same fate as conch resources elsewhere in the Caribbean. This paper describes the rapid development of the "shery and the urgent e!orts that were made to ensure that the highly valuable conch "shery on Pedro Bank would be sustainable. The process involved many participants in a variety of roles, including regional "shery organisations, the national Fisheries Division, international organisations, and the conch industry. It provides an example of how rapid, precautionary, participatory action can provide an adequate basis for management until more de"nitive scienti"c information becomes available.
2. The rise of the industrial conch 5shery on Pedro Bank As mentioned earlier, all activities prior to 1988 were strictly limited to small-scale landings from the artisanal "shery and were less than 50 t annually (Fig. 2). Following the discovery of a large resource, the small industrial "shery which quickly started, resulted in a trend of rapidly increasing landings most of which are processed and exported. This large-scale commercial "shery developed alongside a rather di!use small-scale artisanal "shery. The industrial "shery is one with diver-equipped vessels averaging 24 m LOA, operating on Pedro Bank. The bank is relatively large being 3750 km2 in area with a mean depth of 25 m deepening to the northwest. It is coralline mainly around the edges with the top of the bank sandy with scattered coral patches and soft corals, mixed with seagrass in shallower areas [4]. The main conch "shery is around the centre of the bank. Three categories of conch "shers operate on Pedro Bank; free and SCUBA diving small-scale "shers resident on the Pedro Cays using motorised canoes; SCUBA diving mainland divers operating from motorised canoes around the Pedro Cays and on the
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Fig. 1. (a) Jamaica showing-100 m contour and proximal oceanic banks. (b) Pedro bank, the major conch "shing area.
south island shelf and; large, decked `mothera vessels 20}25 m in length with SCUBA/hookah equipped divers working from small boats. This latter category of vessel is referred to as the `industriala "shery and operates exclusively on Pedro Bank. Each can have up to 20, but on average, approximately ten divers [5,6].
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Fig. 2. Jamaica queen conch (Strombus gigas L.) exports: 1980}1998.
Most `mothera vessels take their catch to Kingston for processing, while one or two operating on the western end of the bank take their catch to a processing plant at Whitehouse. There are 14 processing plants and three are considered large plants. At least 1000 artisanal free divers contribute a small proportion of the catches landed at numerous smaller sites and mainly taken to processing plants. Between 1980 and 1988 annual exports were approximately 50 t [7]. In 1989 conch exports increased to 100 t (Fig. 2), then rose almost exponentially from 1991 to 1995 to a maximum of 2132 t recorded from CITES sources [7]. Almost all originated from the newly opened Pedro Bank industrial "shery. Up to 1993/1994 most exports were to the United States. The 1995/1996 conch exports had a value of US$7.8 million. An annual quota of 1900 t with an annual reduction of 100 t was introduced in 1995, so that in 1996/1997 exports were 1800 t worth approximately US$6 million. Since 1995 most conch (60% clean) was exported to France (Martinique). The 1998/1999 season did not open on 1 November, 1998. There is minimal processing of conch as only plastic wrapping and simple consumer packs are provided. Conch, removed from the shell is laid on ice. After processing it is exported frozen in 5 kg consumer packs. Processing is labour intensive and conducted under closely supervised, sanitary conditions, mainly in Kingston [8]. Frozen conch are taken in refrigerated containers from the Kingston commercial port facility. The procedure for export of conch from Jamaica under CITES rules is that the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA), already informed of the annual export quota by the Fisheries Division, has its CITES Scienti"c Authority make recommendations for approval to CITES, which approves the quota and informs NRCA. The NRCA informs the Fisheries Division, which then opens the "shing season. Export applications are received for processing by NRCA, during which time there may be inspection of conch products by the Fisheries Division. If approved, a Zoo Sanitation certi"cate is then issued by the Veterinary Division of the Ministry of Agriculture prior to export of product. The NRCA then faxes permits to CITES.
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3. Fishery assessments A review of the conch stocks on the main "shing ground of Pedro Bank was conducted in 1991, based on existing published data, by the CARICOM Fisheries Resources Assessment & Management Programme (CFRAMP) and the University of the West Indies (UWI) in conjunction with the Fisheries Division [5]. That review provided approximate estimates of biomass and of maximum sustainable yield (MSY). The preliminary estimate of MSY that was produced was 800 t yr~1. This was incorporated into a preliminary management plan [5]. Later, an accurate ground survey-based estimate of MSY for Pedro Bank conch was done in late 1994 by the Fisheries Division, the University of Puerto Rico & CFRAMP (partly underwritten by the industrial "shers) that produced an estimate of MSY for all three depth zones exploited, (0}10, 10}20 and 20}30 m) of 1818 t yr~1 [9]. This estimate deliberately did not consider the deeper ('30 m) resources which were thought to function as additional spawning stock. Conch density on Pedro Bank were later found by these diver assessments to be a remarkable 10}100 times that in other Caribbean "shing grounds [2]. The stock, interestingly, consists of a large percentage of stoned conch (older than 5 yr), although younger conch comprise the bulk of current catches [9]. A second assessment again by the same group was done in late 1997. The preliminary results suggest a signi"cant decline in the number of adult conch and stoned conch in the 0}20 m depth stratum since 1994 [10]. Using the Gulland (1971) MSY model an estimate was made which totalled 1350 t yr~1. The exploitation rate, however, has totalled 5809 t or an annual mean of 1936 t yr~1 for three years. This rate was thought to be unsustainable [10,11]. Another small conch stock was assessed at the Morant Bank some 50 km southeast of Kingston (160 km upcurrent of Pedro Bank), using the same diver-based stock assessment methods which yielded an MSY of 18 t yr~1 [12] and showed stock structure similar to Pedro Bank conch with adult and stoned conch dominating. We speculate that this stock may serve as a minor source of Pedro Bank larval recruits, as recent research by Stoner and his colleagues suggests that recruitment across this distance could be possible [13}16]. This is part of a growing body of information on conch that is assisting the development of suitable regulations and management plans. The source(s) of recruitment is an area that is in need of investigation.
4. A participatory framework and preliminary management plan The marine "sheries of Jamaica have a history of high levels of "shing e!ort, poor enforcement and data collection and a record of little success in controlling "shing e!ort [17,18]. However, in contrast, from the earliest stage of the development of industrial "shing, there was an expression of concern from the "shers themselves, that their large catches could probably be unsustainable. This was the start of the consultation with the operators of the "shery which was the "rst priority of the
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Table 1 Early management suggestions for the Jamaican conch "shery 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Licensing of conch "sheres Licensing of conch vessels Minimum meat weight of 84 g processed meat Recommendation for three month closed season Exploration of measures to minimise con#icts among and between industrial and small-scale conch "shers 6. Implementation measures to collect conch landings and e!ort data 7. Recommendation for establishing o!shore security base on Pedro Bank to deter foreign poaching 8. Formalisation of communication network among Coast Guard and industrial "shers
Fisheries Division. This cooperation was by itself notable, as the large artisanal "shery was generally characterised by considerable suspicion and mistrust between both sides. We suggest here that the current cooperation may be the result of regular consultations between the parties. This resulted in a series of meetings and two management workshops assisted by CFRAMP by the end of 1992. A draft preliminary conch "shery management plan was the direct result of these workshops and was presented to the industry for discussion in early 1993 [5]. First management measures introduced are listed in Table 1 and included, licensing of (a) vessels, (b) "shers/processors, and (c) a minimum meat weight of 84 g for processed meat based on the Belize "shery. Later, a closed season was introduced in the 1994/1995 season from August to October inclusive, thereby restricting the "shing season to eight months. The major managerial concern however, is over"shing. For example, conch exports during the 1993/1994 season were so large that the conch "shery in the US Virgin Islands closed, as it was uneconomical to compete with Jamaican conch. Export "gures re#ected a harvest close to 3000 t in that season. It was agreed in June 1995 in a national conch management meeting, that there would be a 100 t reduction in the quota each year until 2000 AD to attain an MSY of not more than 1500 t yr~1, starting with the 1995/1996 season. Between 1991 and 1994 when the "rst Pedro Bank assessment survey was done, the "shery had operated at "shing levels uncontrolled by quotas. The closed season was also increased to four months (July to October) in the 1995/1996 season. The earliest management plan (Table 1) therefore utilised best assumptions about stocks extrapolated from what was known about conch in similar habitats regionally. Early recommendations also drew on management options for Caribbean conch [17]. There was an emphasis on measures to reduce "shing e!ort, monitoring the "shery and collecting data. Table 2 lists current measures and Table 3 some of the main features of management strategy. Under the regulations for the "shery, individuals, companies, restaurant operators, and other organizations have to declare all conch in their possession to the Fisheries Division, before the start of the closed season on 1 July. During the four months of the closed season it is illegal to harvest, sell or possess any conch or conch products,
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Table 2 Management regulations currently in place (1999) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Licensing of "shers Licensing of vessels Minimum weight of 84 g processed meat weight Four month closed season (July to October) NTAC reduced by 100 t annually from 1995 No new conch "shers No new industrial vessels Transferable quotas
Table 3 Characteristics of Jamaican conch "shery management strategy Feature
Result
1. Participation of third party without political/ personal plan connections in early management plan formulation 2. Early consultation with industry by technocrats 3. Involvement of CITES in regulation export and management 4. Funding of stock assessment research by industry on two occasions 5. Regular meetings with industry
Increased acceptance of plan
Early realisation of need for management Increased acceptance of regulations by industry Timely implementation of assessment project. Management possible Early information on problems. Fewer industry problems
unless a declaration of the amount and condition is made to the Fisheries Division prior to the start of the close season. Conch to be exported during the closed season is declared to the Fisheries Division. On receipt of declaration, the Fisheries Division authorises the transaction. Thus far, most private sector "rms have collaborated relatively well with these regulations. Nevertheless, "shing levels and exports between 1991 and 1995 appeared greatly above the MSY and potential yield estimates from the 1994 survey. The damage to stocks caused by this over"shing is unknown, but stock levels were thought to be high enough not to have resulted in serious damage.
5. The development of the 5nal management plan As "shery is characterised by high levels of "shing, one major objective was to create a limited entry policy within the national maritime space. However, there are no current regulations in force for the conch "shery. The Fishing Industry Act of 1975 "rst needs to be modi"ed according to the provisions relating to management. Also, in order to properly encompass the many other activities of the industry, other laws
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relating to conch need to be modi"ed. Fortunately, a new Fisheries Bill replacing the older Act is currently being reviewed and should greatly facilitate these changes. A measure of great signi"cance is the National Total Allowable Catch (NTAC) system which speci"es an annual quota limit. The NTAC system has provisions for other conch "shing areas (as may be determined from surveys) outside Pedro Bank. Pedro Bank and these other areas are referred to as the Fishery Management Area (FMA). Importantly, some FMAs are to be reserved exclusively for the artisanal "shery. Incentives in the form of catch quotas are given to individuals and/or companies based on several criteria which have to be satis"ed. These conditions include, ownership of a motor "shing vessel, Jamaican ownership of a "sh processing establishment, and a percentage of Jamaican divers [19]. Planned measures for the near future include a ban on the importation of SCUBA and hookah gear, so as to control "shing e!ort levels. Better control of processors and their standards, minimum meat sizes, storage declaration and licensing of processors, control of sales, processing and export of conch during closed season, as well as the prevention of user con#ict between artisanal and industrial "shers by zoning, are all desirable management objectives. But e!ectively there is little control over processors and sales due to sta! shortages.
6. Discussion Currently, in practical terms, conch "shing is managed under the Fishing Industry Act (No. 17 of 1975) by the Fisheries Division of the Ministry of Agriculture. Other agencies involved with management are the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA), the Jamaica Defence Coast Guard and the Jamaica Constabulary Force (Police). Other organisations that impinge on the conch industry are the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Jamaica Customs, US Customs, CITES, and countries observing the Special Protocol for Protected Areas & Wildlife (SPAW). The Act provides for the regulation of the "shing industry and Section 3 sets out the need for all "shers to have a license to "sh issued by the licensing authority (Fisheries Division). A register of licenses issued under the Act is maintained [20]. Licenses are issued to the conch operators who own decked vessels to "sh for conch. Temporary licenses are issued to foreign divers employed as "shermen on conch boats. Each license is issued for a period of 14 d, and a `peppercorn feea of $US 0.014 (J$1.00) is collected each time the license is renewed. Conch "shers possess this type of license. Export applications to the NRCA cost US$30.00. The "shery is partly managed by limited/restricted entry, and by licensing conch "shing operators/processors and conch vessels. There is also a "ve year variable national quota system in place. Additionally, there is a four month closed season annually. This conch close season was introduced under section 19 of the Fishing Industry Act of 1975 (Fishing Industry * Declaration of Close Season-Conch, (Strombus gigas) Order, 1993. Table 2 lists the measures in place at the start of 1999. If the major management objectives include monitoring and regulating of "shing e!ort at sustainable levels, controlling levels of exported product, optimising earnings,
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integrating local employment and preventing resource overexploitation, then we suggest that there may be a number of problems. These include over"shing, underreporting of catches, the transfer of catches at sea to third parties, poaching by foreign countries, ine$cient policing of quotas and other infringements, under-invoicing of exports, landing of Jamaican conch in other countries, lack of protection of critical biological areas, lack of queen conch marine reserves and lack of realistic license fees. There were considerable changes made in the "shery for the 1998/1999 season as this was not opened on 1 November as scheduled. All quotas were made transferable, and further, the transfer could take place from the industrial to the artisanal "shery. The season was not opened as quota reductions were not properly sorted out. In the meantime, several conch producers had opted not to "sh in the 1998/1999 season and switched to other activities. Adequate enforcement is of paramount importance for the successful implementation of any "sheries management and conservation plan. The main enforcing authorities are the Fisheries Division which issues licenses and allocates industry quotas as part of the NTAC, and the NRCA. The NRCA plays a key role in regulating exports by issuing CITES documentation required to export product successfully. Jamaica acceded to CITES in 1997, implying that observance of CITES rules and regulations relating to trade in conch will continue. This is quite important for the management of the "shery as one of the most signi"cant CITES regulations relate to production and export data collection and reporting these to CITES every year. All necessary institutional, operational and reporting requirements under the CITES have been completed. Another aspect that has considerably assisted in cooperation, enforcement and the general acceptance of management regulations, is the inclusion of conch under Appendix B of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora & Fauna (CITES) in 1992. During the 1993/1994 season the export of conch from Jamaica came to a halt when several containers of conch were detained in Miami, Florida until CITES documentation was completed. This was resolved only after a draft conch management plan was agreed upon with the industry, that included an undertaking for a resource survey which would be funded by the industry, along with an interim quota system. Signi"cant loss of product resulted by the time this siezure was sorted out. Since this incident, cooperation by larger producers with authorities has generally been good. Support by pertinent high level Government o$cials has been high throughout the development of the industrial "shery with strong support for the enforcement of the rules and regulations of the conch "shery. This political support in turn has greatly assisted the observance of the regulations governing the "shery by licensees. Typical of the now familiar pattern of exploitation, there has been increased capitalisation through boat hiring, processing plant construction, scuba gear purchase, and increased diver numbers. Although data are scarce, it would appear that operating expenses have increased, with some decrease in pro"tability. A proper socioeconomic study of the "shery needs to be conducted as soon as possible. Areas for which data are insu$cient include, (a) licensed harvester's incomes, (b) operational costs, (c) processing costs, and (d) break-even point. Another aspect with bio-medical
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implications, is the increased frequency of conch diver decompression sickness and its economic impact on decompression chamber use. The ocurrence of diver illnesses was studied [21] and it was found that almost every diver had some form of decompression sickness. Levels of training among divers is virtually nonexistent. This area is in need of improved management. All the management plans for the Jamaican conch "shery are generally in keeping with the Acceptance of the Precautionary Approach to Fisheries [22]. Most recently, it has been suggested that the quota system be modi"ed so as to reduce the size of the "shery [23]. Closely linked with spawning stock protection is the future banning of SCUBA gear. This gear has allowed expansion into previously unexploited areas, placing deep water populations at risk [8]. We suggest that hookah be the only permitted commercial gear as this will e!ectively limit exploitation to approximately 30 m, thereby protecting deeper stock. Marine reserves must be set up for Jamaican queen conch stocks. Such areas closed to "shing will function as reproductive reserves for the future. It is thought that parts of Pedro and Morant Bank having adults must be set aside for this purpose. Closed areas such as reserves represent one mechanism for maintaining high densities of adult conch [16]. Morant bank which lies upcurrent of Pedro Bank is one site that could play a role in larval supply, at the very least, to the east side of the latter. The NTAC system may be #awed in that the catch data reporting system is perhaps de"cient and in need of cross-checking of the reliability of statistics. Suspected under-reporting by licensees has serious implications for long-term stock status if allowed to continue or not to be accounted for in assessments. All the national management plans and regulations, while being important for the sustainability of the local stock, should be viewed as part of a regional attempt to manage all conch resources [24]. Given the history of regional over-exploitation of the resource, a number of measures is suggested for consideration as part of a regional management approach. Conch management, it must be noted, has been limited in e!ectiveness by a paucity of reliable, up-to-date information on stock status, the signi"cance of larval transport and poor enforcement, among other de"ciencies [3]. We therefore suggest that there are areas in need of investigation for management purposes (Table 4). These include, (a) the need for oceanographic studies that would be important in assessment of recruitment sources and the extent of stock sharing between countries. It is thought that, (b) centralised data dissemination facility would facilitate regional management. We also share the view that given the extent of economic pressures on the resource and its impact on management that, (c) jointly managed marketing agencies may be a key area for driving regional management. Another aspect with potential regional management value would be, (d) the accession of all regional producer countries to CITES regulations. This would a!ect all exporting countries (which are the majority) and would greatly facilitate the implementation of basic standards of record-keeping and export regulation. That the industry paid for the "rst assessment in 1994 may not by itself seem important. But it clearly demonstrated rare cooperation between operators of the "shery and Government's enforcement arm, and was a landmark event, as was their
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Table 4 Areas of Jamaican & Caribbean-wide concern critical to successful conch management and suggestions for implementation Area of concern 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.
How to resolve
Extent of larval transport 1. Extent of larval retention in gyres 2. Extent of stock sharing 3. Recruitment sources 4. Re"nement of closed season 5. Extent of critical habitat areas e.g. for 6. juveniles Changed age-structure of stocks 7. Need for centralised data centre for 8. information sharing Jointly administered marketing 9. Annual regional conch management meeting 10. All Caribbean producer nations to accede 11. to CITES Better diver mangement and safety 12.
Oceanographic studies Oceanographic studies m-DNA studies Oceanographic studies Reproductives studies Mapping of critical conch habitats Investigation on Age of stocks Identify facility Discuss establishment Con"rm regional interest Peer pressure at all regional meetings Diver training
assistance with the 1997 survey. We highlight the focus on management on a participatory, consensual approach with meetings with all players in the industry. The continued cooperation between the participants is important for the sustainability of the resource. It is important that the Fisheries Division be given the "nancial support and trained personnel to enforce regulations. The Natural Resources Conservation Authority needs similar support as CITES enforcer and thus both organisations will be dependent upon public sector funding. This is one of the potential weak points in the long term management policy, because we perceive that the relative importance of the environment and natural resources tends to #uctuate with political change. Finally, we urge a region-wide approach to conch "shery management as it is a shared resource [25] (See Table 4). Both the SPAW Protocol and Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) "sheries regulations could provide opportunities for the development of regional management plans for this resource [7,24]. The Declaration of San Juan of 1996 is perhaps a step in this direction, but more regional discussion and cooperation are necessary. CITES also represents another opportunity to hold exporters to share data with researchers. Unfortunately, it is reported that much large-scale conch trading appears to go on outside the control of CITES [7] despite the listing of conch under Appendix B, thereby limiting its e$cacy as a regulatory mechanism. The record of Caribbean-wide over-exploitation, under-reporting of catches and illegal trade in our view, clearly shows the need for more e!ective regional management measures along with trade controls. Queen conch is one of the largest remaining marine "shery export products, and the sustainability or collapse of the Jamaican conch "shery will probably serve as an index of the fate of other valuable and heavily exploited marine resources in the region. Increasingly, economic pressures
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on this "shery will need to take into consideration the issue of sustainable "sheries. The main challenge is to be able to distinguish the thin line between optimal earnings from conch exports and the biological sustainability of the living renewable resource that is queen conch.
Acknowledgements The authors thank the industrial conch "shers and processors for access to data and facilities. They also thank Yvette Strong, NRCA and Professor Emeritus Ivan Goodbody, Department of Life Sciences, U.W.I., Mona, for comments on drafts of this paper.
References [1] Appeldoorn RS, Rodriguez B, editors. Queen conch biology, "sheries and mariculture. Fundacion Cienti"ca Los Roques, Caracas, Venezuela, 1994. 358pp. [2] Aiken KA, Kong GA, Smikle S. Status of the "sheries and regulations regarding queen conch in Jamaica in 1996. Proceedings of the Gulf & Caribbean Fisheries Institute 1997;49:485}98. [3] Chakallal B, Cochrane KL. The queen conch "shery in the Caribbean * an approach to responsible management. Presented at International Marketing on the Queen Conch "shery, Puerto Rico, 29}31 July, 1996. 18pp. [4] Munro JL, Thompson RW. Areas investigated, objectives and methodology. Caribbean Coral Reef Fishery Resources. ICLARM Studies & Reviews 7, Manila, 1983. p. 15}25 [Chapter 3]. [5] Mahon R, Kong GA, Aiken KA. A preliminary assessment of the conch "shery on the shelf and banks o! the south coast of Jamaica. CARICOM Fishery Research Doc. No. 8, Belize, 1992. 17pp. [6] Mahon R, Kong GA, Aiken KA. The status of the conch "shery on the shelf and banks o! the south coast of Jamaica. 45th Annual Meeting, Gulf & Caribbean Fisheries Institute, Yucatan, Mexico, 1992, in press. [7] Mulliken TA. Status of the queen conch "shery in the Caribbean. Tra$c Bulletin 1996;16(1):17}28. [8] Smikle S. Conch and lobster "sheries of Jamaica. Lobster & conch Subproject Speci"cation Workshop, Kingston, Nov. 1995, CARICOM Fisheries Research Doc. No. 19: Belize, 1997. p. 46}55. [9] Appeldoorn RS. Stock abundance and potential yield of queen conch of Pedro Bank. Univ. Puerto Rico/Fisheries Division Jamaica, May 1995. 30pp. [10] Tew"q A, Appeldoorn R. Investigation of Queen conch (Strombus gigas) abundance and potential yield estimates for Pedro Bank, Jamaica. Fisheries Division, Ministry of Agriculture, Kingston, 1998. 33pp. [11] Tew"k A. An assessment of the biological characteristics, abundance and potential yield of the queen conch, Strombus gigas "shery, on Pedro Bank. Unpublished Masters Thesis. Acadia University, Canada, 1996. 139pp. [12] Stephens I. An assessment of the queen conch, Strombus gigas population around the Morant Cays, Jamaica. Unpubl. Marine Project Report, Queen Mary & West"eld College, UK, 1997. 85pp. [13] Stoner AW. The status of queen conch, Strombus gigas, research in the Caribbean. Marine Fisheries Review 1997;59(3):14}22. [14] Stoner AW, Davis M. Abundance and distribution of queen conch veligers (Strombus gigas Linne) in the central Bahamas. I. Horizontal patterns in relation to reproductive and nursery grounds. Journal of Shell"sh Research 1997;16(1):7}18. [15] Stoner AW, Hanisak MD, Smith NP, Armstrong RA. Large-scale distribution of queen conch nursery habitats; implications for stock enhancement. In: Appeldoorn RS, Rodriguez B, editors. 1994. pp. 169}89.
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