الملخص الإنجليزي
Abstract:
The Green tiger shrimp (Penaeus semisulcatus) is, in economic and social terms, the most common shrimp species in the Bahraini waters and the Arabian Gulf as well. The shrimp fishery is limited to artisanal vessels and operates under the supervision of the Agency for Agriculture and Marine Resources. The rapidly growing population needs increasing per capita of commercial shellfish (shrimps, molluscs, and crabs) and finfish. However, illegal fishing and destructive fishing methods have threatened the
sustainability of the fishery. Therefore, this resource has biologically and ecologically based management actions that include regulation measures. Nevertheless, the shrimp population has suffered intense fishing pressure, complicating the governance of the shrimp fishery. This study assessed the shrimp fishery dynamics in the Kingdom of Bahrain from 1990 to 2020 through the ecosystem-based integrated assessment using Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) conceptual framework and the
ecosystem-based shrimp management (EBSM) approach. EBSM focuses on ecosystems, involves stakeholders, and addresses environmental issues in an adaptive, integrated, and holistic manner while also including societal aspects. Two questionnaires have been designed based on the five EBM steps, the first for decisionmakers and the second for fishers, and then data were analyzed using the SPSS
program. Field data was collected from August 2020 to January 2021. A total of 1695 intact P. semisulcatus were isolated. The shrimp were measured (total length in cm). The length frequency on monthly basis were input in FISAT II program to find out the shrimp cohorts by Bhattacharya routine. The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on shrimp catches have also been considered. The results showed that the shrimp fishery
dynamics were affected by high demand, which has promoted the fishing effort (pressure) in response to economic and social factors (driving forces). This scenario indicated that the shrimp catch was exposed to a tendency towards resource overexploitation, negative effects on the state of benthic marine ecosystems, and negative economic impacts that result from reduced fishers’ revenues, social conflicts, and ineffective fishery governance. According to decision-makers and fishers, the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the quantity of shrimp caught, the number of shrimping boats, and fishers. The study recommends more efforts to incorporate all EBM principles into national rules, regulations, and procedures. In addition, the study focuses on future efforts that map out a new interdisciplinary research agenda for
sustainable shrimp aquaculture in Bahrain. Finally, the assessment of the fishery management of the shrimp P. semisulcatus through the ecosystem-based integrated framework allowed to identify the main components that explain the trend towards the deterioration of this fishery over the last decade and propose sustainable management strategies.
