About the project

At MARES Comunidad, we have partnered with artisanal fisheries to tackle the issue of sea turtle bycatch in Mexico. Our collaborative efforts with fishers and their communities have led to innovative solutions safeguarding North Pacific loggerheads (Caretta caretta), East Pacific leatherbacks (Dermochelys coriacea), and other sea turtles, paving the way for a brighter future for these endangered species.

We developed effective and feasible measures that focused on three mechanisms to reduce sea turtle bycatch in Pacific Mexico:

  1. Reduce fishing pressure.
  2. Reduce the frequency of bycatch interactions.
  3. Reduce the severity of bycatch interactions.

Our ultimate goals are to:

  • Co-develop sustainable fishing practices that will support coastal communities.
  • Support alternative livelihood opportunities to fishing.
  • Promote healthier sea turtle populations throughout Pacific Mexico.

A HOLISTIC APPROACH

We approached this project through a holistic strategy because we recognized and considered it necessary to address a wide range of activities needed to help us achieve our goals and objectives.

Furthermore, the successful implementation of conservation initiatives depends on many interconnected factors (ecological, economic, social, and regulatory) requiring multidimensional attention.

In addition, we considered that a holistic strategy would focus our conservation efforts on activities that are of greatest interest and relevance to the communities where they would be carried out.

Our holistic strategy has focused on the following 4 main action lines:

  1. Rapid Bycatch Assessments (RBAs): Gather data through fisher surveys to identify high-bycatch areas in Pacific Mexico, understand fishers' perspectives about bycatch and potential solutions, and inform follow-up activities with community partners.
  2. Fisheries Learning Exchanges (FLEs): Facilitate knowledge-sharing among fishers and stakeholders about best fishing practices, alternative economic opportunities, and other activities to promote sustainable fishing and human well-being.
  3. Bycatch Reduction Technology (BRTs): Testing and implementing modified fishing gear intended to reduce bycatch while maintaining target catch.
  4. Community Projects: Supporting initiatives that offer alternative economic activities to fishing to reduce unsustainable fishing pressure and foster community resilience and environmental stewardship.
MARES Comunidad is developing a reference manual for holistic initiatives that seek to strengthen long-term community well-being through sustainable fishing and bycatch reduction. The manual will be shared here soon!

Results: RAPID BYCATCH ASSESSMENTS (RBAs)

Bycatch in coastal fisheries is among the highest threats to sea turtles in the eastern Pacific.

MARES Comunidad's approach rests on the understanding that reducing bycatch on Mexico's Pacific coast requires custom approaches built collaboratively with small-scale fisheries that would not compromise the fishers' livelihoods.

To start, we needed to know in which zones to focus our work and resources by improving our understanding of potential high-bycatch areas, characterizing the nature and frequency of fisheries interactions with sea turtles, and understanding the current artisanal fishers' and their communities' perceptions of bycatch.

To achieve this, we used Rapid Bycatch Assessments (RBAs), a systematic and scientific approach to rapidly collecting essential information on small-scale fisheries and bycatch interactions with non-target species such as sea turtles.

GENERAL OBJECTIVES

  • Through structured interviews with fishers, establish a baseline of information about the coastal communities, the characteristics of fishing operations, possible bycatch interactions with non-target species such as sea turtles and other megafauna, and fishers' ideas on potential solutions.
  • Field visits to socialize the project's objectives and proposed activities.
  • Identify key people and organizations—social, government at all levels, academic, and the fishing sector—to facilitate the next steps of collaboration.
  • Return to communities to share and discuss results with fishers and other community members to add their perceptions and further contextualize our interpretation of results.

GENERAL METHODOLOGY

  1. Establish baseline information from previous RBAs in Central America, South America, and Mexico.
  2. Address data gaps found for Pacific Mexico by adapting existing interview protocols and questionnaires into our RBA.
  3. Carry out RBAs through in-person surveys across 11 Mexican states.
  4. Combine results from previous RBAs conducted in Mexico with our own results to provide the most complete picture possible.
  5. Return to communities to share and discuss results with fishers and community members to add their perceptions and further contextualize our interpretation of results.

GENERAL SURVEYING METHOD

Our surveys were conducted in person. Respondents were presented with the survey scope and informed that all surveys were confidential and that they were free to accept or decline participation. If they decided to participate, they could skip questions they were uncomfortable answering.

The survey questions, tailored to collect information about fisher perceptions of bycatch, were comprised of the following sections:

  • Fisher's age & fishing experience.
  • Gear types and modifications, fishing techniques, species fished.
  • Turtle sightings and bycatch.
  • Fishers' perceptions of conflict, bycatch, and solutions.

Once the surveying was finished, we quality checked the data and standardized answers where needed.

GENERAL RESULTS

The surveys were completed by 1357 respondents across 99 communities in 11 different Mexican states. To facilitate a more efficient summary and presentation of results, communities were grouped into 7 regions, which generally correspond to similar fishing areas and methods.

COMMON ISSUES IDENTIFIED ACROSS ALL STATES

  • Industrial fishing significantly impacts sea turtles and commercial species.
  • Illegality and lack of surveillance lead to an increase in unregistered vessels using harmful fishing methods.
  • The lack of organization among legal fishers complicates surveillance and marine resource protection.
  • Pollution is a major cause of habitat destruction and species decline.
  • Turtles often get caught in nets or longlines while feeding.

PROPOSED SOLUTIONS

  • Modifying fishing gear.
  • Environmental protection initiatives.
  • Developing alternative economic activities to fishing.
  • Increased government involvement.
  • Better organization within the fishing sector.
If you want to know more about our process and results, read our final RBA report.
download full report
Disclaimer: Technical reports did not undergo official peer-review. Questions? Email us!

results: FISHERIES LEARNING EXCHANGES (FLEs)

Fisheries learning exchanges are events or gatherings that promote knowledge exchange, capacity development, and collaboration among parties interested in fishing and related activities to improve or enhance the sustainable management and conservation of marine resources.

They also are a platform to exchange and document fishers' general perceptions of and ideas about how to reduce bycatch. FLEs also allow people with similar interests and experiences to make connections across communities and regions to enhance activities they are carrying out in their own communities.

Each FLE represented an opportunity for each group or community to recognize that they can become its agent of change, move towards sustainable fishing practices, and explore other economic alternatives that contribute to their well-being and food security while reducing the mortality of sea turtles and other species at risk.

GENERAL OBJECTIVES

  • Formally present the scope of the conservation project or program.
  • Learn the ideas and opinions of fishermen about the most effective strategies to reduce bycatch in the fisheries located in each community.
  • Provide a space for fishers and other partners to interact, share experiences, and find ways to work together.

GENERAL METHODOLOGY

Within the framework of this project, four types of learning exchanges were carried out:

  1. Exchanges for feedback on information generated by surveys (RBAS): Shared and validated the results of the rapid surveys conducted by the MARES project with fishers and community members.
  2. Exchanges of experiences: Provided dialogue platforms for fishers and other community members to share experiences, learnings, and challenges about various activities carried out within the framework of the MARES project.
  3. Multi-thematic workshops: Served the dual purpose of informing about the MARES project's vision, activities, and results and creating spaces for dialogue on various topics.
  4. Training based on community needs: Organized to provide training for individuals and community groups on specific topics they suggested.

GENERAL RESULTS

We organized 27 FLEs between July 2022 and June 15, 2024, in Baja California Sur, Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco, Michoacán, and Guerrero. From 51 communities, 419 people participated (346 men, 65 women, and eight young people).

  • 17 FLEs for feedback on information generated by surveys (RBAS)
  • 2 exchanges of experiences
  • 4 multi-thematic workshops
  • 5 training sessions
If you want to know more about our process and results, read our final FLE report.
download full report
Disclaimer: Technical reports did not undergo official peer-review. Questions? Email us!

Results: BYCATCH REDUCTION TECHNOLOGIES (BRTs)

To reduce interactions with sea turtles, modifications to fishing gear, particularly gillnets, were designed to increase their selectivity (i.e., maintain target catch while reducing bycatch), in collaboration with the fishing sector.

GENERAL OBJECTIVES

  • Increase the selectivity of fishing gear and reduce bycatch.
  • Identify successful fishing gear modifications that could be adopted.
  • Involve the fishing sector from the beginning to the end of the project.

GENERAL METHODOLOGY

To increase the chances of successful fishing gear modification being adopted, we involved the fishing sector from the beginning to the end of the project. Such involvement entailed the following steps:

  1. Define the problem of bycatch.
  2. Define what constitutes a successful modification in collaboration with fishers.
  3. Identify the areas, seasons, target species, and fishing gear with the highest interaction with sea turtles through detailed interviews or consultations with experts.
  4. Train the team of fishers and external observers in data collection.
  5. Carry out the trials.
  6. Share the results once the experiments are completed.

GEAR MODIFICATION

In collaboration with volunteer fishers from three communities, Guerrero Negro (Baja California Sur), Bahía de los Ángeles (Baja California), and La Reforma (Sinaloa), we conducted experimental trials using three major fishing gear modifications.

The three major modifications that were experimented with are:

  • Low-profile nets
  • Buoyless nets
  • Nets with different mesh sizes

At each location, the gear modifications were designed collaboratively based on the results of interviews with voluntary participants. The participating fishers chose the nets' modifications that they believed were the most promising for their problems and work area.

Low-profile nets: Panel A represents the control (normal) net, and panels B and C allow for testing shorter heights and fewer buoys than the control.
Buoyless or less buoys: Panel A represents the control (normal) net with the typical number and spacing of buoys, and panels B and C allow for testing fewer or no buoys.
Different mesh size net: Each panel has a different mesh size to compare the mesh sizes fishers typically use.

GENERAL RESULTS

During the project, a total of 101 sets were conducted from June 11, 2022, to April 16, 2024:

  • Experimental trials with low-profile nets: 24 sets
  • Experimental trials with buoyless nets: 39 sets
  • Experimental trials with nets of different mesh sizes: 38 sets

In total, 15 interactions with sea turtles were recorded; 11 turtles were released alive.

Captured species, including targeted capture and bycatch, were classified into major groups: scaled fish, sharks and rays, billfish, turtles, and 'other'.

At the end of the experimental trials and after analyzing the data, the results were presented to experiment participants in the three communities in person or online.

Then, the participants reported their perspectives, challenges by type of experiment, and suggestions for the next round of trials. All expressed interest in being involved in future trials.

If you want to know more about our process and results, read our final BRT report.
download full report
Disclaimer: Technical reports did not undergo official peer-review. Questions? Email us!

RESULTS: SUPPORTING COMMUNITY PROJECTS TO REDUCE HEAVY FISHING PRESSURE

For over twenty-five years, conservation activities have focused on sea turtles in coastal communities throughout the Baja Peninsula. During this time, trust-based connections with community actors have been cultivated to facilitate the development of research projects that support conservation efforts.

In the last two years, thanks to work carried out mainly by Grupo Tortuguero de las Californias (GTC) in northwest Mexico, trust-based relationships with community actors have fostered grassroots initiatives that benefit sea turtles and coastal communities in BCS—and other regions of the Mexican Pacific coast—through the MARES Comunidad Project.

GENERAL OBJECTIVES

  • Fortify socio-environmental community initiatives that alleviate pressure on fishery resources, thereby reducing sea turtle bycatch.
  • Support initiatives that safeguard and rehabilitate key ecosystems for sustainable fishing and the conservation of sea turtles.

GENERAL METHODOLOGY

  • A work plan was developed to integrate community groups with socio-environmental proposals aligned with the objectives of the MARES Comunidad project.
  • Various groups were visited to share the vision of the MARES Comunidad project and invite them to collaborate to find the best ways to strengthen their projects and contribute to mitigating sea turtle bycatch in the region.
  • A participatory diagnosis was conducted, involving each community group and focused on personal, family, and community well-being as central themes.
  • The diagnosis identified the groups' activities to benefit their community and the significant obstacles to their implementation.

We strengthened 7 grassroots initiatives that contribute to participants improving their quality of life by generating benefits such as economic income diversification, job creation, and the possibility of offering education to their children:

  1. Ecotourtugas, Fishing and Ecotourism Company
  2. Vida Marina, Community Group
  3. Pachico's Ecotours, Ecotourism Company
  4. Productores Laguna 26, Community Group
  5. Balejimajawi, Community Group of Artisan Women
  6. Guardianes de La Laguna, Community Group
  7. Tierra Salada, Community Group

The constant support we provided throughout 2 years to strengthen community projects involved the following activities throughout 28 support visits, with an average of 7 in-person visits to each community group:

  • Training in resource management.
  • Training in administrative tracking of resources.
  • Purchasing equipment, materials, and supplies.
  • Hiring consultants and services for their specific needs.
  • Logistics planning for learning exchanges and training sessions.
  • Advising on brand development, communication strategy, and sales strategy.
  • Designing procedures and protocols to improve their group activities.

Finally, we have identified four key areas to strengthen efforts contributing to mitigating sea turtle bycatch while improving the quality of life for those involved:

  1. Strengthening economic alternatives to fishing.
  2. Strengthening alternative fisheries that do not interact with sea turtles.
  3. Introducing practices to increase the survival of bycaught sea turtles
  4. Strengthening habitat conservation initiatives for sea turtles.
If you want to know more about our process and results, read our final report.
download full report
Disclaimer: Technical reports did not undergo official peer-review. Questions? Email us!

Would you like to dive deeper into our data?

EXPLORE OUR DATA DASHBOARD

Please visit our dashboard for more information and a summary of project results relating to our work with the communities, fisheries, and fishers.
Open Dashboard
Data for display purposes only, not for public distribution or use. Questions? Email us!