Current status of conservation and management of reef fish spawning aggregations in the greater Caribbean

A total of 35 species in ten families are known to form spawning aggregations in the greater Caribbean. The current status of reef fish spawning aggregations by country and species is presented for the region. There appears to be a general declining trend in the landings from most spawning aggregation sites. Principally in the past 10 years, several countries in the region have implemented conservation measures to protect spawning aggregation sites. The majority of these measures involve seasonally closed areas and there have been positive effects demonstrated from active management of spawning aggregations. A number of sites (principally Nassau grouper) have disappeared in the past 25 years and urgent management action is required to address increasing fishing pressure. The elements of a regional conservation and management strategy for spawning aggregations are presented as are suggestions for the dissemination of information about spawning aggregations in the region.