Ecosystem Perception among Artisanal Fishermen: A Case Study of Akpabuyo and Bakassi Coastal Fishing Communities in Cross River State, Nigeria

The link between fisheries and their ecosystems are deeper and more significant than those that exist in mainstream agriculture. It is evident that the fisheries sub-sector is experiencing lots of environmental challenges arising from climate change, ecosystem, global warming, amongst others. Artisanal fish productivity is tied to the health and functioning of the ecosystems on which it depends for food, habitat and seed dispersal. This suggest the need to assess the extent to which artisanal fishers perceives the existence of ecosystem effect on artisanal fisheries. Specifically, the study sets to; assess the demographic characteristics and livelihoods of artisanal fishers in the area; assess the perceived impacts of ecosystem on the livelihood of artisanal fisheries; assess the perceptions of artisanal fishers on the ecosystem; determine the difference between mean fishing income and non-fishing income among artisanal fishers in the area; investigate the adaptation strategies adopted by fisher folks to cushion the effects of ecosystem from where the constraints militating against artisanal fish production were examined. The data were obtained using a well-structured questionnaire and was analyzed using descriptive and a non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis (Chi-square) test. As a major coastal fishing area in the zone and in Cross River State at large, Akpabuyo and Bakassi Local Government Areas were purposively selected. A multi-stage sampling technique was adopted to select sixty (60) artisanal fishers that constituted the sample size for the study. Results of the demographic characteristics showed that majority (82.1% & 71.9%) of the respondents were males who are married within the age bracket of 51–60 years. Artisanal fishers in the area were not just known for having large family size (between 4-8 and 9-12 children) but educationally disadvantaged as majority (59.4% & 57.1%) had only attend primary and secondary education. The respondents (35.7% and 40.6%) in Bakassi and Akpabuyo saw artisanal fishing as their major occupation as majority had been in the business for more than 15 years. In addition, majority of the respondents (75%) were aware of the existence of ecosystem in the area. Also, majority of respondents (39.3% and 59.4%) in both Bakassi and Akpabuyo affirmed that highest catch is usually recorded between April to June and between July to September for lowest catch in the area. Using the Likert scale approach, a weighted mean of 2.86 and Kruskal wallis test value of 22.519 with df =3, p<0.000 was used to assess the perceived impact of ecosystem on the livelihood of artisanal fishers. The result obtained revealed that pollution decreases artisanal fish production, afforestation increases artisanal fish production, increase in rainfall has positive impact on artisanal fish production, soil microbes has positive impact on artisanal fish production, increased temperature from sunlight decreases artisanal fish production, infestation of parasites and soil microbes has a positive impact on artisanal fish production and prolonged dry season decreases fish production. Similarly, a weighted mean of 0.86 and Kruskal wallis test value of 12.617, df = 3, p<0.006 indicated that there is a significant difference in the perception of artisanal fishers to ecosystem in the area.