A decade ago, the overfishing of sea cucumber (Isostichopus badionotus) was the center of controversy in Celestún, a small community in the state of Yucatán, Mexico. Extraction of the coveted species allowed local fishers to grow but also attracted ambitious businessmen and illegal fishing. Yanely Jasaai May, a biologist from the community, said violence broke out in many coastal communities around that time. So many people died, and boats burned, that Celestún was designated as a “conflict community.” Meanwhile, the sea cucumber, in only a few years, practically disappeared from its natural habitat. “I think the situation leaves its mark on you,” May said. “We were classified as a community that was really using up its resources.” But soon, Celestún would find a solution in the form of a fishing refuge zone (FRZ), she said. A fisherman looking for octopi in Celestún. Image © Oceana/Cuauhtémoc Moreno. In 2019, the community established the 324-square-kilometer (125-square-mile) refuge zone, the largest in the Gulf of Mexico. The goal was to help recover the sea cucumber — permanently banned from capture — and other species that sustain the local fishing industry, including the red grouper (Epinephelus morio), Mexican four-eyed octopus (Octopus maya) and the Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus). But the effort wasn’t easy. It required dialogue, organization and the support of local fishing cooperatives, as well as collaboration with the Secretariat of Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture of Yucatán (SEPASY) and the Mexican Institute for Research in Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture (IMIPAS). Local participation…This article was originally published on Mongabay
Celestún refuge fights illegal fishing & helps revive species in Mexico’s Yucatán
