title: Drivers of the Distribution of Fisher Effort at Lake Alaotra, Madagascar.
abstract: Understanding how fishers make decisions is important for improving management of fisheries. There is debate about the extent to which small-scale fishers follow an ideal free distribution (IFD) - distributing their fishing effort efficiently according to resource availability rather than being influenced by social factors or personal preference. Using detailed data from 1800 fisher catches and from semi-structured interviews with over 700 fishers at Lake Alaotra, the largest inland fishery in Madagascar, we show that fishers generally conform to IFD. However, there were differences in catch: effort relationships between fishers using different gear types as well as other revealing deviations from the predictions of IFD. Fishers report routine as the primary determinant of their choice of fishing location, explaining why they do not quickly respond to changes in catch at a site. Understanding the influences on fishers' spatial behaviour will allow better estimates of costs of fishing policies on resource users, and help predict their likely responses. This can inform management strategies to minimise the negative impacts of interventions, increasing local support for and compliance with rules.
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Sciences, Silwood Park Campus, Imperial College London, Ascot, SL5 7PY UK ; Frankfurt Zoological Society, PO Box 450189, Musakanya Drive, Mpika, Zambia.
authors.forename: Andrea P C
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Wallace
authors.affiliation: School of the Environment, Natural Resources and Geography, Bangor University, Bangor, LL57 2UW UK.
authors.forename: Julia P G
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Sciences, Silwood Park Campus, Imperial College London, Ascot, SL5 7PY UK ; Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS UK.
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Milner-Gulland
authors.affiliation: Frankfurt Zoological Society, PO Box 450189, Musakanya Drive, Mpika, Zambia.
authors.forename: Graham E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Wallace
authors.affiliation: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Les Augres Manor, Trinity, Jersey, JE3 5BP Channel Islands UK ; Department of Biology & Biochemistry, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY UK.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Young
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Sciences, Silwood Park Campus, Imperial College London, Ascot, SL5 7PY UK ; Deakin University, Geelong, Australia. School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Centre for Integrative Ecology, (Burwood Campus), 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, VIC 3125 Australia.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Nicholson
keywords: Adaptation; Fisher spatial behaviour; IFD; Madagascar; Multi-habitat fishery; Risk