Barcelona in Spain. Overfishing and degradation are the main causes of the decline of the Atlantic sea in the last decades of the South Atlantic Ocean, according to a study led by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (ICTA-UAB), in Spain. .
The research, published in the journal “PLoS UNA”, sheds light on the magnitude of human impact on these once prosperous marine areas, based on the archaeological analysis of fish remains from various sites in Brazil.
A researcher from ICTA-UAB and the UAB Department of Prehistory, Thiago Fossile, highlighted the growing anthropogenic pressures facing the aquatic fauna in Brazil, “a country known for its impressive beaches and diverse fauna”.
According to Fossilthe indigenous communities that inhabited the coast of southern Brazil enjoyed abundant and diverse marine ecosystems for thousands of years, with large, high-trophic fish and important predators that played an important role in food security in the past.
This allowed, according to the researcher, regular exploitation by indigenous peoples with simple fishing technology for thousands of years.
Comparing the archaeological remains of fish species of the past with the populations existing today; Researchers have shown significant declines in many species, especially sharks and rays, possibly linked to increasing human impacts such as overfishing and habitat degradation in recent decades.
According to Fossil, “many species documented in archaeological sites are now in danger of extinction; but of the other species there is insufficient information on their distribution and quantity. Using archaeological data, we can better understand these lost environments and bring back conservation bases.”
André Colonese, also an ICTA-UAB researcher, highlighted the importance of marine and marine ecosystems in sustaining subsistence fishing for thousands of years along the Brazilian coast.
“This study”, he added, “introduces the importance of inserting archaeological data into conservation discussions in Brazil”, confirming the importance of this discipline to environmental issues.
The study, led by ICTA-UAB researchers, also with Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität (Germany), University of São Paulo (Brazil), Federal University of Pelota (Brasil), Federal University of Rio Grande (Brasil. Universidade da Região de Joinville (Brazil) and the Federal University of Santa Maria (Brazil).
