Understanding juvenile fish distribution across habitat mosaics is essential for interpreting ecosystem connectivity and function. This study assessed seasonal variations in juvenile reef fish assemblages across a mangrove-seagrass-coral reef continuum in Shimoni, southern Kenya. Using a beach seine net, sampling during the Northeast Monsoon (NEM) and Southeast Monsoon (SEM) seasons, a total of 8,575 individuals representing 2...

Mangrove forest ecosystems provide essential services to tropical coastal communities, includ- ing as a source of food, fuel and building materials. During the Covid-19 pandemic human movements were restricted at all levels, including locally in coastal communities. The impact of these measures on marine ecosystems such as mangroves were not well understood. A household survey was conducted in a mangrove-dependent community at...

Marine fish is a rich source of minerals in the diet of humans, but seasonal variation in fish mineral concentrations is relatively unstudied. We investigated seasonal mineral concentrations among four marine fish species retained by small scale fishers in Msambweni and Vanga fishing villages in Kenya. The fish species were Siganus sutor (rabbitfish) in Msambweni and Decapterus macarellus (mackerel scad), Sphraena forsteri (bi...

The artisanal fishery is one of the sources of livelihood along the Kenya coast. Catches of retained fish of artisanal fishers between two fishing areas on the south coast of Kenya were compared. Artisanal fishers usually retain a portion of their daily catch which is reserved for family consumption while the rest is traded for cash to meet other family needs. This study hypothesized that retained fish catches were influenced...

Community Based Ecotourism (CBET) has the potential to both improve the conservation status of mangrove ecosystems and stimulate local economies. However, these ecotourism initiatives often fail due to a lack of active local participation, poor management and a lack of an appropriate benefit sharing scheme. This paper explores perceptions, opportunities and challenges of community mangrove-based ecotourism in Gazi Bay, Kenya....

In order to achieve collaborative action in nature conservation and natural resources management, stakeholders have to understand and acknowledge other stakeholders’ interests, values, world visions and objectives and they have to overcome the problem of irrational decision-making through innate opposition discourses. In this paper we developed the Mangal Play, an experiential learning method to have participants adopt the rol...

Meiobenthos respond to variability in salinity gradients in estuarine habitats and are thus suitable organisms for ecological studies. The vertical and horizontal distribution of the meiofauna community structure of two major estuaries (Sabaki and Tana) on the north coast of Kenya were compared. The aim was to draw a meiofaunal dataset inventory of the two estuaries and to examine how salinity gradient, seasonality and sedimen...

Estuarine socio-ecological systems (SES) in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) region face mounting pressures from overexploitation, habitat degradation, impacts of climate change and governance inadequacies. A regional assessment of seasonal-to-decadal change in SES of three estuaries (Bons Sinais in Mozambique, Ruvu in Tanzania and Tana in Kenya) was undertaken along 2000 km of tropical coastline (3°-18°S), using a systems-orien...

Household survey data and spatially explicit Sentinel-2 satellite images of land cover and land use during the dry and wet seasons were used to investigate livelihood strategies in the Lower Tana River Delta in Kenya, where food security and economic activity rely almost exclusively on ecosystem goods and services. Land cover classification of satellite imagery successfully showed seasonal changes to estuary-related vegetation...

The role of small-scale fisheries in maintaining socio-ecological systems (SES) in the Western Indian Ocean is well-documented, yet few studies have addressed estuarine fisheries in the region. Small-scale fisheries in the Tana Estuary in Kenya are described in this paper, accounting for location along a salinity gradient, seasonality, gear types used, species composition and relative abundance of landings. Monthly shore-based...

Estuaries provide unique ecosystem goods and services and have been focal points for human settlement andresource use throughout recorded history. In the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) region, the effects of human population growth, rapid economic development and climate change on estuaries threaten their ecological functioning and the sustainability of estuary-dependent livelihoods. Governance systems are ill-equipped to deal wit...

Endophytes are bacteria or fungi living asymptomatically in the internal tissues of plants. They are symbiotic in nature and can be exploited for novel bioactive metabolites with applications in agriculture, medicine and industry. Mangrove fungal endophytes from the marine environment are abundant and have been recognized as sources of bioactive natural products. The study was designed to isolate, purify and identify mangrove...

Assessments of coastal artisanal fisheries are progressively adopting a social-ecological system (SES) approach as an effective means to accumulate knowledge and integrate findings on different aspects of the fisheries. Ostrom’s SES framework was used to guide assessment of interactions between and within the harvesting and supply-chain processes and the effect of external drivers, seasonal monsoons and tourism, on both proces...

Shore-based assessment of fisheries resources in Ngomeni, Kipini and Ozi fishing areas of Malindi-Ungwana Bay and the Lower Tana Delta on the north coast of Kenya was conducted from January to December 2017 to establish catch composition, species richness, and fishing effort (catch-rate, number and types of fishing gears and crafts) in the marine, estuarine and riverine habitats. Distinct catch composition (R = 0.27, P

The biology of the sparid, Acanthopagrus berda (goldsilk sea bream) was investigated using catch samples obtained from artisanal fishers at selected fish landing sites in the Marereni and Ngomeni fishing areas on the north coast of Kenya. This species has not previously been studied in Kenya although it forms significant proportions of artisanal fish landings and is also a promising aquaculture species. In order to contribute...

The Pinkear Emperor (Lethrinus lentjan, Laćepède, 1802) is among the three demersal species dominating fish catches in the artisanal fishery on the Kenyan coast. Available data indicate that total landings of L. lentjan have declined over the past decade due to possible over-exploitation. This paper provides a brief account of the stock status of this species and biological aspects including length-weight relationship, body co...