Fishers' interactions with endangered "rhinorays" in Karimunjawa National Park, and factors influencing willingness to engage in pro-conservation behavior

Faqih Akbar Alghozali; Ashma Hanifah; Muhammad Wiralaga Dwi Gustianto; Maula Nadia; Taufiq Qur'rohman; Kinanti Amalia Niloperbowo; Diah P. Suyanto; Muhammad Ichsan; Andhika Prasetyo; Mahardika Rizqi Himawan; Hollie Booth

doi:10.1111/csp2.70038

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Fishers' interactions with endangered "rhinorays" in Karimunjawa National Park, and factors influencing willingness to engage in pro-conservation behavior

Journal article

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Fishers' interactions with endangered "rhinorays" in Karimunjawa National Park, and factors influencing willingness to engage in pro-conservation behavior

Faqih Akbar Alghozali, Ashma Hanifah, Muhammad Wiralaga Dwi Gustianto, Maula Nadia, Taufiq Qur'rohman, Kinanti Amalia Niloperbowo, Diah P. Suyanto, Muhammad Ichsan, Andhika Prasetyo, Mahardika Rizqi Himawan, …

Conservation Science and Practice, Vol.7(4), pp.1-17

2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.70038

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Abstract

behavior

conservation

fisheries

guitarfish

Indonesia

Karimunjawa

national park

rhinorays

shark

wedgefish

The "rhinorays" (giant guitarfish-Glaucostegidae and wedgefish-Rhinidae) are a critically endangered group of "shark-like rays," which have experienced steep global population declines in the past decade due to overfishing. Their slow life histories and high market value increase the risk of trade-driven extinction and lead to trade-offs between conservation objectives and fishers' economic objectives. As such, it is important to understand the social and ecological dimensions of risk to rhinorays to identify feasible conservation interventions. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 162 small-scale fishers in Karimunjawa National Park (KJNP), Indonesia. We collected data on fisher interactions with rhinorays, the technical and socio-economic characteristics of the fisheries, key risks to rhinorays, and potential leverage points for management, including feasible pro-conservation actions that fishers could engage in. We then constructed a linear model to identify socio-demographic predictors of fishers' stated willingness to engage in pro-conservation actions for rhinorays (specifically, willingness to release), to inform the design of future interventions. Our results indicate that socio-economic factors-fishers' perceived income contribution from catches of rhinorays and formal education levels-were significant predicators of fishers' willingness to release rhinorays. In contrast, awareness of rhinorays threat status was not a significant predictor. These findings are a first step toward understanding barriers and opportunities for engaging fishers in rhinorays conservation in KJNP. Our findings and recommendations also offer lessons learned for other marine conservation interventions at the intersection between small-scale fisheries management, marine protected areas, and marine megafauna conservation.

Details

Title: Fishers' interactions with endangered "rhinorays" in Karimunjawa National Park, and factors influencing willingness to engage in pro-conservation behavior
Authors: Faqih Akbar Alghozali - Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation
Ashma Hanifah - Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation
Muhammad Wiralaga Dwi Gustianto - Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation
Maula Nadia - Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation
Taufiq Qur'rohman - Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation
Kinanti Amalia Niloperbowo - Indonesian Coral Reef Foundation
Diah P. Suyanto - Karimunjawa National Park (Indonesia)
Muhammad Ichsan - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Andhika Prasetyo - National Research and Innovation Agency
Mahardika Rizqi Himawan - University of Mataram
Hollie Booth (Corresponding Author) - University of Oxford
Publication details: Conservation Science and Practice, Vol.7(4), pp.1-17
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Date published: 2025
DOI: 10.1111/csp2.70038
ISSN: 2578-4854
Copyright note: © 2025 The Author(s). Conservation Science and Practice published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Data Availability: The data used for this study will be shared upon reasonable request and approval to/from the authors and in alignment to any legal requirement in regards to data usage under the jurisdiction of Indonesia government and ethical commitment of the authors.
Grant note: This research was funded and supported by Save Our Seas Foundation Small Grant (Small Grant SOSF 560), New England Aquarium-Marine Conservation Action Fund (MCAF Award 22-01), and Darwin Initiative (grant number 30-008).
Organisation Unit: School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991127098602621
Output Type: Journal article

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Web Of Science research areas: Biodiversity Conservation

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