U.S. mulls stronger protections for iconic Caribbean conch, raising concern among fishers

Overfishing may put the queen conch—a large marine snail known for its showy shell and delectable flesh—on the path to extinction, U.S. government researchers concluded earlier this year after an extensive review of the species. Federal officials are now considering whether to list the Caribbean species as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, having wrapped up collecting public comments on the proposal last week. But fishing communities in several countries are opposing the move, worried that such a listing could end their ability to export conch meat to the United States, their largest market. “We are not convinced that listing the species under the ESA is justified at this time, or the best option available to protect the species,” said Maren Headley, a fisheries scientist with the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism, an intergovernmental organization, at a public hearing hosted online last month by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Citing “grave concern” about the potential economic impact of listing the species as threatened, she said improving fisheries management should be the objective. The queen conch, which lives in seagrass meadows throughout the Caribbean Sea, has been fished for its meat for centuries. In the Bahamas, where a conch rests atop the country’s coat of arms, large piles of shells are a testament to the history and scale of exploitation. “The extraction from the world’s large...
Source: Science of Aging Knowledge Environment - Category: Geriatrics Source Type: research