The traditional ichthyological knowledge of fishermen from the city of Barra, median region of San Francisco, state of Bahia, Brazil

Abstract

This paper deals with the traditional ichthyological knowledge of fishermen’s community from the city of Barra, which is located in the west region of Bahia State, Northeast Brazil. These fishermen develop their usual activities at the edges of São Francisco and Grande rivers. Fieldwork was carried out from January to June 2000. A total of 15 informants (ten male and five female) were consulted through open and semi-structured interviews, with the aim to record both the cognitive (ethnotaxonomy, reproduction, behaviour, food ecology, habitat) and cultural aspects (restrictions to the fish eating and their use as folk medicine) towards the local fish species. Eighteen fish specimens were usually collected and identified, and they are deposited at the Laboratory of Ichthyology of the Feira de Santana State University. Results show that Barra’s fishermen still hold an important theoretical and practical knowledge that should be taken into account in the management, conservation actions, and sustainable use of the local fishing resources. As noted, men-made ecological problems such as predatory fishing and the introduction of exotic species, have been already affecting fishermen’s ordinary life both from the city of Barra and surroundings.