The Mexican artisanal shark fishery in the Gulf of Mexico:: towards a regulated fishery

Artisanal shark fisheries have been an important source of food and employment in Mexico for many years. In the Gulf of Mexico, this multispecific fishery is based on the seasonal abundance of several shark and teleost species. To obtain fishery and biological information needed to manage the fishery and conserve shark stocks, intensive monitoring of artisanal shark landings was undertaken from November 1993 to December 1994. The State of Campeche had the highest landings and effort. October 1994 had the highest monthly catch per unit effort for all species and areas combined (27.2 sharks per trip). Rhizoprionodon terraenovae (46%), Sphyrna tiburo (15%), and Carcharhinus limbatus (11%) accounted for most of the landings numerically, and the highest catch per unit effort for C. limbatus occurred late in the year as a result of increased landings attributable to an annual southward migration from USA to Mexican waters. The high proportion of neonate and juvenile sharks in gill-net catches from shallow coastal waters suggests that the main shark nursery areas are under heavy fishing pressure. In light of the heavy exploitation of shark resources, the Mexican National Fisheries Institute recommends a number of precautionary actions to avoid the collapse of this fishery.