ABSTRACT
This study was carried out in Burutu community to provide a data on the various fishing methods used by fisherfolks in the study area and investigate the various challenges faced by these fisherfolks.
Data for the study was obtained by visual observation, personal interviews and well structured questionnaires administered to 80 fishers strategically sampled from four (4) communities around the Burutu river.
The results show that sixty-three (63%) of the respondents were women, and seventy five (75%) of the respondents were aged forty (40) and above, More fishers were full time rather than part time, majority of the fisherfolks have been fishing from birth therefore have fishing experience of 15 years and above with a decent amount of them having basic education. The survey showed that the preferred fishing method are netting followed by angling and trapping, the commonest gears are gill nets, native nets, hooks and lines, traps and castnets. Fishers vary these gears and methods depending on time and season and targeted fish species which are available in several times of the year. The kind of craft mostly used was dugout canoes with paddles for propulsion, just a few fishers possessed Outboard engines for propulsion. More than half of fishers were aware of local laws against the use of chemical for fishing from the study, the most pressing challenges facing these fisherfolks are the high cost of fishing materials, lack of access to credit facilities, stealing of fishing gear and craft, problem of aquatic plants and crude oil pollution.
