Ecuador's artisanal fishermen are fighting against the current - Photo Gallery

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Portrait of Narciso Baque (60) as he leaves his community of Machalilla, in Manabí province, to go fishing. After almost 50 years in the trade, he recognizes that the challenges fishermen currently face force them to look for all kinds of ways to maintain a minimum economic income in order to survive © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Junior Ramírez (28) prepares the bait - pieces of bottlefish - early in the morning at the fishing port in the city of Manta. He works as a caretaker of larger boats in order to complement his income. He sleeps on the boats and then goes out to work on his own © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Artisanal fishermen invest an average of US$15 to US$20 per fishing trip, which includes gasoline and bait for the hooks of the fishing gear they use. Fishermen with small boats generally tend to use two lines, totalling approximately 350 hooks © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Seabirds are looking for the fish skeletons that Junior throws into the water on his way back to the port of Manta. He takes advantage of the return trip to prepare bottle fish that serve as bait. The day's catch allowed him to make a bunch that he can sell for about $20 © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Carlos (real name redacted) was one of the few fishermen who knew how to clearly and concisely refer to the situation of artisanal fishermen in the face of piracy and illegal fishing. None of his 4 children know how to fish. He believes that there is no future here as an artisanal fisherman © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

The threat of semi-industrial boats (left) in artisanal fishing zones (right) in the community of Machalilla is another situation that pushes them to go to prohibited areas to fish or fish for animals that are prohibited © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Jefferson Mero has a degree in Fishing Biology from a university in Manta. He comes from a family of fishermen and comments that he understands his career thanks to his experience as a fisherman. He works as a supervisor in a fishing company that prepares fish for export © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Shark fins declared as bycatch in the port of San Mateo. Decree 486, which allowed the commercialization of fish declared as bycatch, has brought Ecuador to the sixth position worldwide in the export of this product © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Most artisanal fishermen on the Ecuadorian coast work with nets and trammel nets. They generally make their own nets and periodically have to repair the nylon nets © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Ignacio Valverde (foreground), artisanal fisherman for about 40 years, with his crew preparing to leave San Mateo artisanal fishing port © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

The dorado fish is the most fished by artisanal and semi-industrial fishermen in the San Mateo area. It has a closed season that extends from July 1 to October 7, when fishermen are prohibited of fishing for it © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

The "pulpero" is a kind of bait that simulates the shape and movement of an octopus, attracting fish to the fishing gear. This device is periodically alternated with bottlefish hooks on the longline © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Narciso Baque on the bow of his boat going fishing. He has lived in Machalilla since he was 8 years old and has been dedicated to artisanal fishing since he was 11. He recounts how fishing has changed and now faces corruption and piracy © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Sunset in the waters in front of Machalilla National Park, one of the largest protected areas of the Ecuadorian coast and comprises two zones: one terrestrial (56,184 ha) and one marine (14,430 nm) © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Narciso Baque, together with his son Javier Baque, release the trammel net into the sea at the beginning of the fishing operation. This type of fishing gear is the most popular among the artisanal fishermen of the Machalilla community. During the fishing operation, 2 to 3 trammel nets are set and it is expected that this will be enough to have a good catch © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

While Narciso and Javier pull the trammel net out of the sea, some fishermen come to see if their catch was good, and they also cast their nets in the same area. Today, fish are becoming scarce in the artisanal fishing zone © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Javier Baque (28) is a native of Machalilla and works with his father in fishing and offering tourist services to visitors. He is a tourism engineer and is aware that fishing is no longer enough to sustain his family's livelihood. That is why he proposes tourist activities such as boat tours, snorkeling and whale watching © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Back home after the fishing trip. There are times when the fishermen return to land with a very poor catch or simply with no fish at all, and the money they invested in the outing results in an economic loss that they do not recover. Narciso and Javier Baque say that now they go fishing with a lot of uncertainty © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Each boat has a light that allows it to be seen by other boats and thus avoid collisions. Due to piracy, artisanal fishermen are forced to do without this light. When they are on their way back, they turn off their lights to avoid possible pirate attacks despite the risk of colliding with each other © Andrés Yépez

Artisanal fishing in Ecuador

Artisanal fishermen like Javier and Narciso are an embodiment of the challenges that fishermen face on a daily basis to avoid falling into illegal practices, be it illegal fishing, drug trafficking, or corruption © Andrés Yépez