Fishers’ Knowledge Reveals Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Billfish Sport and Tourist Fisheries on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica

Résumé fourni par la source

Introduction: Addressing ecological and social knowledge gaps is essential for the sustainable management of recreational fisheries. Costa Rica is internationally recognized as a premier sport fishing destination, particularly for billfish such as sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus) and blue marlin (Makaira nigricans). Despite their socioeconomic importance, major knowledge gaps remain in the dynamics of sport and tourist fisheries, hindering effective management. Fishers involved in tourist and sport fishing can provide valuable social-ecological insights into their fisheries and target species. Objectives: This paper seeks to identify the spatio-temporal patterns of billfish sport and tourist fishing activity along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and to assess regional differences shaped by social and ecological factors, drawing on the knowledge and perceptions of fishers. Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with sport fishing captains (n=62) from private and charter operations across eight Pacific coast communities: Golfito and Puerto Jimenez in the Southern Pacific (n = 14); Quepos and Herradura in the Central Pacific (n = 34); and Tamarindo, Flamingo, Cuajiniquil, and El Jobo in the Northern Pacific (n = 14). Interviews included a participatory mapping activity to identify key fishing grounds for sailfish and blue marlin, along with a standardized questionnaire on fisher demographics, fishing seasonality, billfish and non-billfish species caught on the most recent trip (and their reported abundance), offshore distances of their most recent trip, and changes in fishing equipment and technology over time. Results: Analyses of fisher responses revealed nearshore fishing hotspots within 60 nautical miles of the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and regional differences in fishing seasonality, likely shaped by both oceanographic variability and tourism. Based on reported values, the Central Pacific exhibited the highest mean releases of sailfish and blue marlin and longest mean offshore distances in their most recent trip, compared to fishers operating in the Northern and Southern Pacific. Fishers in the Northern and Central Pacific reported overall improvements in fishing equipment and technology. Conclusions: These findings underscore the value of integrating fishers’ knowledge into fisheries research, enabling the management of billfish fisheries of Costa Rica to better reflect region-specific fishery dynamics. By capturing fishers’ lived experiences and observations, this study supports a participatory approach to billfish fisheries management in Costa Rica.

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