Socioeconomic profile and ethnobiology knowledge of the crabbers about Uçá crab, Ucides cordatus (Linnaeus, 1763) at mangrove of the Iguape (24° 41’ s), sp, Brazil

Abstract

The present study outlines the socioeconomic profile of fishermen involved in crab-catching activities at Iguape, SP, Brazil (24° 41’ S), and to record their perceptions concerning the conservation of this ethno-species and its mangroves. Individual Interviews employing a structured questionnaire including closed and open questions, were conducted to obtain information concerning the socioeconomic profile of the fishermen, their capture techniques and their awareness of both conservation policies and issues related to the biology and trophic ecology of this mangrove crab. Seventeen fishermen were interviewed from August to November 2000, comprising 42.5% of the total community involved in the exploitation of U. cordatus at Iguape. The ages of the persons interviewed ranged from 16 to 58 years, of which 88% were men. Most of them had not concluded their elementary education and subsisted via the exploitation and sale of this natural resource, yielding a mean familial income of US$160/month, which is above the figure which delimits the 10% poorest segment of the Brazilian population  (IBGE,  1999).  The  biological  information  obtained  from  the  fishermen  was  compared  to  scientific  data obtained from October 1998 to September 2000, with a 70% coincidence among them. Most fishermen were aware of thenon-fishing season for this target species (70.6%), but 41.7% could not specify the correct period due to deficiencies in the oral method of communicating this information throughout the community. Several bird, mammal and fish species, such as the saracura (15%), the raccoon (40%) and the snook (2.5%), were found to be well known by some of the fishermen interviewed, indicating some degree of knowledge of the mangrove trophic chain in which the Uçá is involved. The Information obtained highlighted the importance of consulting traditional communities, since ethno-biological studies maybe of extreme usefulness in elaborating future hypotheses for scientific study, which may be employed in the definition of environmental policies for the sustainable management of this natural resource.