There is great need to identify simple yet reliable indicators of fishing effects within the multi-species, multi-gear, data-poor fisheries of the Caribbean. Here, we investigate links between fishing pressure and three simple fish metrics, i.e. average fish weight (an estimate of average individual fish size), fish density and fish biomass, derived from (1) the parrotfish family, a ubiquitous herbivore family across the Caribbean, and (2) three fish groups of “commercial” carnivores including snappers and groupers, which are widely-used as indicators of fishing effects. We hypothesize that, because most Caribbean reefs are being heavily fished, fish metrics derived from the less vulnerable parrotfish group would exhibit stronger relationships with fishing pressure on today’s Caribbean reefs than those derived from the highly vulnerable commercial fish groups. We used data from 348 Atlantic and Gulf Rapid Reef Assessment (AGRRA) reef-surveys across the Caribbean to assess relationships between two independent indices of fishing pressure (one derived from human population density data, the other from open to fishing versus protected status) and the three fish metrics derived from the four aforementioned fish groups. We found that, although two fish metrics, average parrotfish weight and combined biomass of selected commercial species, were consistently negatively linked to the indices of fishing pressure across the Caribbean, the parrotfish metric consistently outranked the latter in the strength of the relationship, thus supporting our hypothesis. Overall, our study highlights that (assemblage-level) average parrotfish size might be a useful alternative indicator of fishing effects over the typical conditions of most Caribbean shallow reefs: moderate-to-heavy levels of fishing and low abundance of highly valued commercial species.

Queen conch (Strombus gigas Linnaeus, 1758) populations in Barbados support a small-scale unregulated fishery and government efforts are now underway to improve knowledge about the status of this valuable resource. In the present study, we contribute to these efforts by performing the first rigorous underwater assessment of queen conch on the shallow shelf. Between July and october of two consecutive years, we surveyed a total of 1210 10-m radius circular plots across 65 sites along the south (year 2007) and west (year 2008) coasts at depths of 2–15 m, representing the majority of conch fishing grounds in Barbados. Overall, conch density was low (south: 14.4 conch ha^–1; west: 4.3 conch ha^–1) and patchy, and most (approximately 90%) conch found were immature. Habitat had a significant effect on conch occurrence and conch shell characteristics over distances of several hundred meters: (1) within sites, the likelihood of finding conch increased with depth; and small, immature conch were found mainly in algal habitat, whereas larger, more mature conch were found mainly on coral habitat; (2) sites that were a few hundred meters apart tended to exhibit similar conch occurrence estimates, suggesting the existence of conch patches over such distances, and this effect was associated with habitat characteristics. Over distances of kilometers, considerable variability in conch occurrence across sites could not be accounted for by habitat alone suggesting an important role of unmeasured factors. Overall, our findings indicate that conch populations on the shallow shelf of Barbados are patchily distributed, severely depressed, and overexploited.

Here we provide an illustrated and annotated checklist of brachyuran crabs associated with shallow water marine habitats (nearshore rubble and subtidal) in Barbados, West Indies (13.1939°N, 59.5432°W). Twenty-one (21) survey sites in nearshore rubble and shallow subtidal habitats were surveyed between October 2018 to September 2021. Nearshore rubble habitats were surveyed at low tide during the day and night periods. Shallow nearshore subtidal habitats were surveyed every 9–12 days from February to October 2019 using crab traps placed ~ 4 m deep on sandy and rocky bottoms. A total of 1,640 specimens were recorded, belonging to nine (9) superfamilies, 14 families, 34 genera, and 44 species. The genera Charybdis De Haan, 1833, Pitho Bell, 1835, Thoe Bell, 1835, and Uhlias Stimpson, 1871 are here reported for the first time for Barbados. Thirteen (13) species are first records for Barbados, thus extending their geographic range. The most abundant and widespread species collected was Mithraculus coryphe Herbst, 1801, which accounted for 35% (N = 570) of the specimens, occurring in both nearshore rubble and subtidal habitats.