ELSEVIER 0006-3207(95)00019-4 Biological Conservation 74 t 1995) 107 113 © 1995 Elsevier Science Limited Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved 0006-3207/95/$09.50+.00 QUANTIFICATION OF ILLICIT FISH HARVESTING IN THE LAKE ST LUCIA GAME RESERVE, SOUTH AFRICA B. Q. Mann Oceanographic Research Institute, PO Box 10712, Marine Parade, 4056, South Africa (Received 14 October 1994; revised version received 6 December 1994; accepted 8 December 1994) Abstract Illegal gill and seine netting has taken place in the north- ern parts of the Lake St Lucia Game Reserve, South Africa since the late 1960s. Although active law enforce- ment by the Natal Parks Board was able to prevent the large-scale commercialization of this activity, illegal net- ting has continued to take place. The present policy to prohibit netting in the lake has resulted in conflict between the rural communities and the conservation author- ities. An attempt was made to quantify the catch taken by illegal netting by analysing data collected during anti- netting patrols and by negotiating with rural communities living in areas adjacent to the lake. Results showed that approximately 72 people were actively fishing with nets in Lake St Lucia during 1992, and their annual catch was estimated at between 91 and 135 tonnes. Competition with the recreational line fishery was limited as mugilids and other detritivorous fish species made up 47% by mass of the total catch taken by netting. Legalisation of a controlled net fishery in St Lucia is discussed as a manage- ment option to integrate rural development with conservation of the lake ~'fish resources. Keywords." gill netting, resource utilisation and management. INTRODUCTION Lake St Lucia is the largest estuarine system in Africa, covering an area of 35,000 ha with a mean depth of 1 m (Blaber, 1985). It makes up approximately 80% of the estuarine area in KwaZulu-Natal (Begg, 1978) and is an extremely important nursery area for numerous species of marine fishes (Wallace & van der Elst, 1975). The lake is subject to long-term salinity fluctuations due to its shallow nature and irregular inflow of fresh water (Blaber, 1980). The natural beauty and biotic diversity of Lake St Lucia led to the area being pro- claimed a game reserve in 1895, which makes it one of the oldest game reserves in Africa (Taylor, 1991). The lake now forms part of the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park, which has been recognised as a wetland of inter- national importance by the Ramsar Convention (Tay- lor, 1991) and an application has been made recently for World Heritage Site status. Despite its importance as a conservation area and a marine nursery habitat, fishing in the Lake by means of 107 rod-and-line has been permitted since the reserve's inception, and today recreational angling forms one of the main attractions for thousands of tourists who visit the area each year (Mann, 1993). Line fishing is regu- lated by means of bag limits and size limits set for cer- tain angling species (see Penney et al., 1989). Boat numbers are restricted to the capacity of boat launch- ing and parking facilities and approximately 40% of the lake has been declared a wilderness area and is closed to fishing. The capture of fish using methods other than line fishing (e.g. nets, traps, spearing, etc.) was difficult to control in remote areas of the lake and was conse- quently prohibited. This regulation (section 164 of the Natal Nature Conservation Ordinance 15/1974) has been actively enforced by the Natal Parks Board (NPB), who are the custodians of the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park. Despite the prohibition of netting in Lake St Lucia, people living in rural areas adjacent to the lake have persisted in catching fish and prawns by means of gill and seine nets. The catch taken in this manner is either sold or used for local consumption. Although these people may catch fish legally by means of rod-and-line, this method is relatively inefficient for the capture of detritivorous fish species such as mullet (Mugilidae), which are relatively abundant in the system (Wallace, 1975). Attempts by the NPB to prevent netting in the lake have resulted in numerous arrests and the confis- cation of many thousands of metres of net. Unfortu- nately, law enforcement of this nature has resulted in the NPB being regarded with antagonism by the local inhabitants of the tribal areas adjoining the lake. These tribal areas formed part of the KwaZulu home- lands declared during the apartheid era in South Africa and they are still governed by the traditional system of a tribal chief and an elected tribal authority who are responsible to the Zulu Government. Illegal netting in the Lake St Lucia Game Reserve is, in many respects, analogous to the poaching of game that occurs in many terrestrial conservation areas throughout KwaZulu- Natal (Infield, 1988). With the current change in con- servation thinking to that of sustainable development, which may include the wise and sustainable use of wild species in protected areas (IUCN, 1993), it was the ini- tial task of the present study to quantify the catch taken by illegal netters in the lake. This formed part of