ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT OF BELUGA Huso huso STOCK FISHERIES IN SERBIA

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ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT OF BELUGA Huso huso
STOCK FISHERIES IN SERBIA

• Predrag SIMONOVIC Vera NIKOLIC
• University of Belgrade, Faculty of Biology

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Introduction (1) Life History

• Beluga Huso huso is a sturgeon fish species (f.
  Acipenseridae, o. Acipenseriformes, cl.
  Osteichthyes). It is the anadromous relict of
  paleoniscid fish dating from mid-Mesozoic of
  Ponto-Caspian province in Holarctic zoogeographic
  region. They are of the biggest fish of the world
  that enter into inland waters, since they grow up
  to 9 m in length and over 2 tons in weight. Their
  fecundity is up to 8 million eggs (Simonovic
  2001).
• Beluga have two migration waves the autumn one
  from the end of September and the spring one from
  March. Autumn migrants overwinter in the vicinity
  of spawning places.

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Introduction (2) Fisheries Utilization
The sustainability of the fisheries exploitation
of beluga stock is determined by its biological,
primarily reproductive features. Females of Black
Sea stock mature in age of 13 15, whereas males
mature at age 10 13. The contemporary lifespan
recorded in Black Sea beluga is 36 years
historic lifespan was much greater. Minimal time
of doubling the population is over 14 years.

• The mass proportion of ripe roe in the total
  weight is about 15 - 20 in beluga of average
  catch size in the Danube River basin.
• The commercial value of beluga is tremendous.
  Fertilized eggs achieve the price up to 150
  kg-1, flesh the price about 6 kg-1, whereas the
  roe of beluga (purchase price about 150 kg-1),
  processed in black caviar, has both great
  wholesale (400 500 kg-1) and retail (50 - 150
  oz-1, i.e., up to 5291 kg-1) market prices.
• The total global number of sturgeon fish
  estimated on their annual catch is in prominent
  decline, from 30 thousand tons in 1978 to less
  than 5 thousand tons in 2003. Whereas, the total
  annual production of sturgeon fish in aquaculture
  is still less than 5 thousand tons. The Black Sea
  region participates in total world trade of
  sturgeon caviar and meat with only 6.5 tons and
  50 tons, respectively

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Introduction (3) Conservation status

• Lelek (1987) considered beluga vulnerable (VU) to
  endangered (EN) in their whole dispersal area.
• The status of beluga in the Danube River basin
  was estimated as endangered EN A2d (IUCN 2000),
  i.e., due to the small number of adult mating
  individuals, long generation period, reduction in
  overall number, reduced extent of occurrence and
  area of occupancy, but mainly due to the actual
  level of exploitation, what was inferred from the
  decline in catch that occurred due to decrease in
  the extent of natural spawning ground areas and
  break of migration routes after the construction
  of hydro power-plants Ðerdap I and II in
  seventies and eighties of XX century (Jankovic
  1993), which consequently reduced the natural
  production.
• Spindler (1995) denoted beluga extinct (EX) in
  Germany and Austria,
• Guti (1995) considered it endangered (EN) in
  Hungary, and
• Hensel Holcik (1997) and Bacalbasa-Dobrovici
  (1997) denoted the status of beluga extinct (EX)
  in upper, critically endangered (CR) in middle
  and vulnerable (VU) in lower course of the Danube
  River.
• International trade with beluga and its products
  is limited (CITES, Appendix II), and beluga is
  placed in Appendix II (i.e., it is liable to the
  control of utilization) of the Bern Convention of
  protected species.

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Introduction (4) National administrative
management

• The administrative organ in charge of fisheries
  and nature protection, as well as of
  implementation of the CITES Convention is
  Ministry of Science and Environment Protection
  Directorate for Environment Protection, which
  succeeded the Ministry for Natural Resources and
  Environment Protection.

• The fisheries utilization of beluga in Serbia is
  regulated by

Fisheries Act (Anonymous 1994), Order on Closed
Season and Minimal Landing Size for Particular
Fish Species on Fisheries District or its Part
(Anonymous 2003) Decree on Way, Tools and Gears
for Fishing (Anonymous 1995)
Act on Environment Protection (Anonymous
2004) Decree on Natural Rarities Protection
(Anonymous 1993) Decree on Control of Utilization
and Trade of Wild Flora and Fauna (Anonymous
2005).

• Act on Ratifying the CITES Convention (Anonymous
  2001)

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Results (A1)

• Although beluga was considered threatened (Vasic
  et al. 1990-91) and Simonovic (2001) proposed the
  endangered (EN) status for beluga in Serbia, that
  was not implemented into the national
  legislation, since the Decree on Natural Rarities
  Protection (Anonymous 1993) that is still in
  force does not protect beluga, i.e., it does not
  consider it a natural rarity.
• The novelized Order on Closed Season and Minimal
  Landing Size for Particular Fish Species on
  Fisheries District or its Part (Anonymous 2003)
  issued the minimal landing size of 250 cm SL and
  closed season for fishing from 1 March to 30
  September for beluga for the first time since the
  enforcement of the Act on Fisheries in 1994.
• Such minimal landing size was set in order to
  provide the safe return of young ripe beluga
  after the spawning to the Black Sea and their
  repeated spawning.
• The closed fishing period was set to 1 March 30
  September, in order to ensure the undisturbed
  spring spawning of beluga, whose roe matures
  rapidly immediately before the spawning and
  becomes unsuitable for the preparation of the
  market-grade high-quality black caviar with the
  onset of spring
• The intended synergic effect of both measures
  was to facilitate the rising of average age of
  beluga spawners and consequently, of their
  fecundity, as well as to increase the recruitment
  of larvae and juveniles.

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Results (A2)

• The intended effect was remarkably reduced by use
  of carmacs fishing gear that damaged the caught
  fish so much it hardly survived. The ban on this
  fishing gear is not issued yet, in spite of its
  prohibition by Regional Strategy.

The effect is additionally remarkably reduced by
issuing the Decree on Control of Utilization and
Trade of Wild Flora and Fauna (Anonymous 2005).
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Results (A3)

• In 2004, at the most downstream Serbian section
  of the Danube River reportedly eleven beluga
  larger than 250 cm SL were landed, nine of which
  were females of total weight of 1300 kg and roe
  weight of 177.61 kg. Their roe participated
  13.95 in total female weight (data are given for
  the fish for which relevant data were available).
• Until April 2005 when the Decree on Control of
  Utilization and Trade of Wild Flora and Fauna was
  enforced, only one female beluga gt250 cm SL was
  caught.
• Since April 2005 to the end of year, more 15
  beluga individuals lt 210 cm SL were landed, of
  which seven were females and eight were males.
  Two females and seven males were smaller than 250
  cm SL, that is in total 56.25 of fish landed.
• Thus, only seven beluga gt 250 cm SL were landed,
  four less than in 2004. The participation of roe
  in total landed females weight was 4.33.

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Results (B1)

• Decree on Control of Utilization and Trade of
  Wild Flora and Fauna (Anonymous 2005) introduces
  in Article 2. the subject protected species
  that is not defined either by main Act (at all),
  or by its derivatives (properly), which should
  consider natural rarity defined in the Decree
  of Natural Rarities Protection (Anonymous 1993),
  but not protected species as such.
• The Decree on Control of Utilization and Trade of
  Wild Flora and Fauna defines the protected
  species in Article 2. as those which are
  sensitive and rare, but not in threat of
  extinction, those which are not threatened but
  are similar to such ones, as well as those liable
  to the protection proscribed by international
  contracting act. Each of three determinants of
  protected species are far from real meaning of
  that concept.
• In addition, in the Article 12., Paragraph 1.,
  line 4, it is specified that it is forbidden to
  collect, use and trade with the beluga male of
  size less than 180 cm and beluga female of size
  less than 210 cm. Those limiting sizes are
  remarkably less than the one that is proscribed
  as minimal landing size (i.e., 250 cm SL) for
  this threatened fish species by Order on Closed
  Season and Minimal Landing Size for Particular
  Fish Species on Fisheries District or its Part
  (Anonymous 2003).

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Discussion (1)

• Considering that its lowest 800 km are not
  seriously deteriorated by dam construction or
  other kind of river bed regulation, the Danube
  River is the greatest and most significant
  remaining natural spawning area of Black Sea
  beluga all the way up to the Iron Gate II dam.
• Therefore, the shortening of the closed fishing
  season and decreasing of the minimal landing size
  issued by Decree on Control of Utilization and
  Trade of Wild Flora and Fauna are essentially
  wrong for the improvement of current status of
  beluga stock and in contrast to the measures and
  procedures of the Regional Strategy for
  Conservation and Sustainable Management of
  Sturgeon Populations of the North-East Black Sea
  and Lower Danube in Accordance to CITES
  Convention.

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Discussion (2)

• CITES Scientific Advisory Authority of Romania
  reported in its 2005 report the low recruitment
  of larvae and juveniles in 2001, 2002 and 2004,
  and the extremely bad recruitment in 2003. In
  2002 catches the most frequent were females of
  size 220 250 cm and males of size 200 220 cm.
  Whereas, in catches 2003 and 2004 the most
  abundant females were those of age 19, 20 and 22
  and the most abundant males were those of age 17
  and 19. It is evident that majority of beluga
  females die on their second spawning migration,
  which additionally questions the justification of
  decrease in minimal landing size issued by Decree
  on Control of Utilization and Trade of Wild Flora
  and Fauna.
• The data from 2004 catch in Serbia support the
  conclusion on decline in fecundity of landed
  females and those from 2005 catch do that even
  stronger.

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Discussion (3)

• Article 27., Paragraph 6. of the Act on
  Environment Protection
• (1) control of introduction and rearing of
  non-indigenous species,
• (2 and 3) prohibition on disturbing, mistreating,
  injuring and destroying of wild flora and fauna,
  as well as destroying of habitats,
• (4) possibilities and terms for collection,
• (5 and 6) obligation of paying of fees that is
  proscribed by Government of the Republic of
  Serbia, and
• (7) fees which are incomes of the budget of the
  Republic and is to be used specifically for the
  protection and improvement of environment.
• The trade of threatened and protected species of
  flora and fauna, i.e., their export, import and
  transit, are determined by Article 28. of the Act
  on Environment Protection, which Decree on
  Control of Utilization and Trade of Wild Flora
  and Fauna does not refer to, at all.
• The issuing of Decree on Control of Utilization
  and Trade of Wild Flora and Fauna is contrasted
  to the Precautionary Principle the Action Plan
  for the Protection of Sturgeon Species
  accomplished in accordance to the Regional
  Strategy for Conservation and Sustainable
  Management with Sturgeon Populations in
  North-East Black Sea and Lower Danube in
  Accordance to CITES was finished and approved in
  November 2005, almost half of year after the
  issuing of the Decree on Control of Utilization
  and Trade of Wild Flora and Fauna.

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Conclusion

• The Decree on Control of Utilization and Trade of
  Wild Flora and Fauna fails to provide the
  successful administrative management and
  sustainable utilization of sturgeon stocks in
  Serbia, as declared in Article 3. of that Decree.
  
• The more restrictive Order on Closed Season and
  Minimal Landing Size for Particular Fish Species
  on Fisheries District or its Part derived in
  accordance to the Act on Fisheries has to be
  supplemented with the upgraded Decree on Way,
  Tools and Gears for Fishing that would prohibit
  the use of carmacs fishing gear and provide that
  utilization of the beluga stock in Serbia would
  be completely in accordance with the CITES
  regulations.
• Finally, the Decree on Natural Rarities
  Protection should be modernized in concept
  according to the contemporary conservational
  theory and harmonized with the rest of both
  fisheries and nature protection legislation.