Poverty may be an important influence on the exploitation of marine resources in tropical developing countries. A number of studies have hypothesized that destructive fishing gears, which can degrade habitat, capture high proportions of juvenile fish and ultimately lead to reduced yields, are primarily used by the poorer segments of society. However, few studies have empirically tested this relationship. This paper examines relationships between the use of destructive seine nets and thirteen socioeconomic conditions in communities adjacent to three peri-urban marine protected areas in east Africa. Fishers using destructive gears were younger, less likely to have capital invested in the fishery, had lower fortnightly expenditures and were poorer in two multivariate indices of material style of life. Based on the two multivariate material style of life indices, a binary logistic regression model classified whether fishers used destructive gears with almost 70% accuracy. These findings are broadly consistent with the literature on poverty traps, which are situations in which the poor are unable to mobilize the resources required to overcome low-income situations and consequently engage in behaviour that may reinforce their own poverty. Managers aiming to reduce destructive gear use may need to partner with civil society and donors to help break poverty traps.

Changes in nekton community structure in north Brazilian intertidal mangrove creeks were studied by setting block nets at high water in the wet season 1999. From a total of 47 species (27 families), the most abundant were: Cathorops sp. (Ariidae), Colomesus psittacus (Tetraodontidae), Hexanematichthys herzbergii (Ariidae), Pseudauchenipterus nodosus (Auchenipteridae), the shrimp Fenneropenaeus subtilis (Penaeidae), Anchovia clupeoides (Engraulidae), Mugil spp. (Mugilidae), and Anableps anableps (Anablepidae). Diversity H' was low (0.9). Mean values of fish density and biomass (± S.E.) were 0.2 ± 0.1 fish m-3 and 2.6 ± 0.7 g m−3 or 1.4 ± 0.4 g m−2, respectively. The high proportion of juvenile fish (87%) and shrimps point to the importance of intertidal mangrove creeks for fish nurseries. The number of species was highest at spring tide-night and lowest at neap tide-day. Evenness J' was lowest at spring tide-night when more rare species entered and dominant species increased in quantitative proportions. Four different species assemblages were identified as being triggered by factor combinations such as “tide” and “time of day”: spring tide-night, spring tide-day, neap tide-night and neap tide-day. High-water level influenced the species assemblages, but salinity and water temperature did not. Abundance of 14 species correlated positively with the high-water level. Strong spring tides yielded extraordinary high nekton catches, suggesting that high-water level is an important parameter in the tidal migration of fish. Most fish entered the mangrove to feed. Predation pressure was considered to be low because of the presence of only a few, mainly juvenile predators. Beach seining in the subtidal parts at low water revealed a high biomass (30 ± 14 g m−2). Larger fish withdraw to depressions, small fish and juvenile shrimp were abundant near the shallow banks, suggesting inter- and intraspecific splitting of the migration routes when returning from the intertidal zone at ebb tide. To cover the entire short-term range of tidal ichthyofauna responses, a sample design should consider the spring/neap and the day/night cycle.