Socioeconomic context for fisher-shark interactions in the Marianas

This project was designed in response to Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) fishers’ reports of high or increasing shark impacts to their fisheries through time. Given that limited scientific documentation of fisher-shark interactions is available for the region, this work serves to document fishers’ on-the-water observations through time. We also compare stakeholders’ (fishers, researchers, and managers) perceptions of sharks and mitigation strategies, and contextualize these within the broader socioeconomic environment. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, group discussions, and public meetings with fishers, researchers, and managers in Guam and Saipan, Rota, and Tinian of the CNMI.