Preliminary investigation of artisanal deep-sea chondrichthyan fisheries in eastern Indonesia

White, W.T., Fahmi, , Dharmadi, and Potter, I.C. (2006) Preliminary investigation of artisanal deep-sea chondrichthyan fisheries in eastern Indonesia. FAO Fisheries Proceedings, 3 (2). pp. 381-387.

Abstract

Indonesia has one of the richest elasmobranch faunas and the largest chondrichthyan fishery in the world, with an estimated 87138t and 100000 t landed in 1993 and 1996, respectively (Bonfil 1994, Monintja and Poernomo 2000, Widodo 2000). However, there are few data on the species or size composition of these landings. The only information available on the catches of individual species is that provided by pelagic tuna fishers, who estimated that in 1999 they landed 5 217 tonnes of mako sharks (Isurus paucus and I.oxyrinchus) and 47079 tonnes of other species (Priyono 2000). The high diversity of the elasmobranch fauna in Indonesia has been well documented by Gloerfelt-Tarp and Kailola (1984), Last and Stevens (1994) and Carpenter and Niem (1998, 1999). These authors highlighted the need for research in certain areas and in particular the acquisition of sound taxonomic data so that the various species could be readily identified and reliable data could be obtained for the geographical distribution and biology of many of the species.

All of the body parts of landed elasmobranchs are used. The flesh, which is often dried, is used for local consumption whereas the fins are dried and exported to other Asian countries where they are highly valued (Chen 1996). Squalene oil from the livers of some shark species (mainly squaloids) is also commonly exported with several companies in Indonesia exporting as much as 48000 kg of liver oil annually (Chen1996). Other exported shark products include the dried cartilage of larger individuals and there is a growing demand for specialist products at particular locations, such as the gill rakers of mobulid rays. The flesh of shark and rays are typically salted and dried and used for human consumption within Indonesia or exported.

The first detailed assessment of the compositions and relative abundances of species of chondrichthyans in the target and non-target fisheries of eastern Indonesia was conducted between April 2001 and December 2003. This project, which was funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), involved staff at Murdoch University and the CSIRO Marine Research laboratories in Australia and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) and Research Institute of Marine Fisheries (RIMF) in Indonesia.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Murdoch Affiliation(s):	School of Biological and Environmental Sciences
Publisher:	Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Copyright:	© FAO 2006
Notes:	Paper presented at Deep Sea 2003: Conference on the Governance and Management of Deep-sea Fisheries, Queenstown, New Zealand, 1 - 5 December, 2003
URI:	http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/19610

Item Control Page

Downloads