Drivers of change in the spatial dynamics of the Central Amazon artisanal fishing fleet

The use of fishery resources by artisanal fishers in the Amazon is highly adaptive and may be influenced by environmental drivers such as river level fluctuations and seasonality, as well as anthropogenic factors like fuel prices and the creation of protected areas. These factors may limit access to habitats and species and thereby affect the spatial distribution of the fishing fleet. This study investigated whether and, if so, how the spatial distribution of the Central Amazon fishing fleet (CAFF) was affected by a series of environmental and anthropogenic variables over an 11-year period (1994–2004). We analyzed landings of the artisanal commercial fleet in Manaus and identified habitat types, target species, as well as hydrological anomalies, variations in fuel prices and the increase in the number of protected areas. In addition, we evaluated the drivers that determine the distribution of the CAFF. Our results demonstrated a contraction in the distance covered and surface explored by the CAFF, especially since 1998. River types, river levels, CPUE of river-lacustrine species, oil prices and hydrological anomalies had a significant effect on the dynamics of the CAFF. [Display omitted] •Data covering an 11-year period revealed that the spatial dynamics of the Central Amazon fishing fleet (CAFF) were significantly affected by a combination of environmental and anthropogenic variables.•We observed a contraction in the distance traveled by the CAFF and the surface area explored and a decrease in the number of fishing grounds exploited.•Hydrological anomalies and fuel prices affected the CPUE for river-lacustrine species.