Mapping Illegal Fishing Hotspots and Their Ecological Consequences in Niger Delta Inshore Waters

This study mapped the spatial distribution of illegal fishing hotspots and assessed their ecological consequences in the inshore waters of the Niger Delta, focusing on Bayelsa and Delta states, South South Nigeria. Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing practices, including the use of fine-mesh nets, explosives, and plant poisons, are widespread in Nigerian coastal waters and pose severe threats to marine biodiversity and fisheries sustainability. A participatory geographic information system approach was combined with ecological fish community assessments and key informant interviews to identify, verify, and characterise hotspots of illegal fishing activity. Forty-two hotspot locations were identified through fisher interviews and corroborated by fisheries officer field observations. Fish community assessments using standardised sampling at hotspot and reference stations were conducted over two seasons. Results showed that hotspot areas had 54 percent lower fish species richness and 61 percent lower fish biomass compared to reference stations. Species most severely impacted included juveniles of commercially important Pseudotolithus spp. and Lutjanidae, targeted by fine-mesh operations. Ecological recovery rates were estimated to be slow due to the absence of refuge areas within inshore hotspot zones. Enforcement activities were minimal within identified hotspot areas, with zero documented prosecutions in the preceding 24 months in the study area. The study recommends the development of a geospatial IUU fishing monitoring system for Niger Delta inshore waters, the establishment of no-take buffer zones at critical nursery hotspot locations, and increased interagency enforcement operations targeting the most ecologically destructive illegal fishing methods. Keywords: illegal fishing, IUU fishing, Niger Delta, ecological impact, fisheries enforcement