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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:The Nile Perch in Lake Victoria: Local Responses and Adaptations
Author:Pringle, Robert M.ISNI
Year:2005
Periodical:Africa: Journal of the International African Institute
Volume:75
Issue:4
Pages:510-538
Language:English
Geographic term:East Africa
Subjects:inland fisheries
indigenous knowledge
biodiversity
Agriculture, Natural Resources and the Environment
Economics and Trade
Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
External link:https://www.jstor.org/stable/3556959
Abstract:Introduced into Lake Victoria in the 1950s, the Nile perch has gained fame for prompting rapid regional economic growth and for driving scores of endemic fish species into extinction. This study uses archival and oral data to trace the historical development of the Nile perch fishery on Lake Victoria. Particular emphasis is placed on local responses and adaptations to 1) the Nile perch itself; 2) the abrupt integration of the Lake Victoria fishery with the global economy; and 3) the ecological changes that the Nile perch has precipitated. The author situates Lake Victoria's history in the larger debate about environment and African livelihoods. The data suggest that species diversity is important and highly resolved in the world views of Lake Victoria's fishermen; yet, although the will for conservation is present, poverty obstructs its realization. These findings are discussed in relation to other work on indigenous environmental knowledge and ecological ethics. The author argues that 'intrinsic' valuation of species diversity and ecological processes may be more widespread in rural societies than has traditionally been assumed by scientists, and that the preponderance of social studies highlighting opppositions between Western science and ethno-science, and between conservation concerns and local livelihoods, may have blinded us to the synergies between them. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. in English and French. [Journal abstract]
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