Rewriting the sawfish story: Inspiring community driven conservation of sawfishes in Papua New Guinea. (Old ID 27112)

Principal Investigator

Recent surveys in Papua New Guinea (PNG) have identified the region as a global refuge for one of the most threatened elasmobranch families, sawfish (Pristidae). Unfortunately, the same surveys also indicated negative population trends with incidentally caught sawfish being retained for consumption and sale, or killed and discarded by small-scale fishers. Communities in PNG share rich traditional land and water ownership values, and legislative protection is unlikely to manifest any changes in attitudes without additional community driven education and conservation effort. Distribution of educational materials provide an effective and alternative method for initiating community driven conservation of sawfish in PNG.

01 Jun 2021 - 01 Jun 2022

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