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There are conflicts among fishermen and local environmental protection agencies that regulate fishing in the area, concerning the official closure periods of the fisheries. The fishermen affirm that the dates established for protection of spawning do not correspond to the spawning season of the primary commercialized species, and that this could be hindering the local fish markets. This report compares the traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) with information obtained from experimental fishery and scientific data covering the reproduction periods of the primary categories of fish market in the region. Of the 28 fish categories analyzed, 14 (50%) were captured in experimental fishing and were evaluated. The TEK confirmed the experimental information for 10 categories of fish (72%). The results suggest the necessity of adjusting the official protection dates stipulated for the following fish categories: caparari (Pseudoplatystoma tigrinun), Sorubim (P. fasciatum), tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum), pescada (Plagioscion squamosissimus) and tucunaré (Cichla ocellaris). The discussion deals with a possibly inadequate period of protection based on the information obtained from different basins applied to larger and more diverse areas of the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest. This study confirms the refined biological knowledge that the fishermen have of the species they exploit and suggests that the traditional ecological knowledge can be useful to adjust political issues dealing with the regional protection agency of fishing.

Ethnoichthyological contribution to the offi cial fi sheries document concerning fi sheries closure of some commercial fi sh categories in the western Brazilian Amazon, Guaporé River, Rondônia, Brazil. There are conflicts among fishermen and local environmental protection agencies that regulate fishing in thearea, concerning the official closure periods of the fisheries. The fishermen affirm that the dates established forprotection of spawning do not correspond to the spawning season of the primary commercialized species, and that this could be hindering the local fish markets. This report compares the traditional ecological knowledge(TEK) with information obtained from experimental fishery and scientific data covering the reproduction periods of the primary categories of fish market in the region. Of the 28 fish categories analyzed, 14 (50%) were captured in experimental fishing and were evaluated. The TEK confirmed the experimental information for 10 categories of fish (72%). The results suggest the necessity of adjusting the official protection dates stipulated for the following fish categories: caparari (Pseudoplatystoma tigrinun), Sorubim (P. fasciatum), tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum), pescada (Plagioscion squamosissimus) and tucunaré (Cichla ocellaris). The discussion deals with a possibly inadequate period of protection based on the information obtained from different basins applied to larger and more diverse areas of the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest. This study confirms the refi ned biological knowledge that the fishermen have of the species they exploit and suggests that the traditional ecological knowledge can be useful to adjust political issues dealing with the regional protection agency of fishing. Conflitos pesqueiros têm sido observados na região do Guaporé entre pescadores e órgãos gestores quanto ao período oficial de defeso reprodutivo. Os pescadores afirmam que o defeso não corresponde à época de reprodução das principais espécies comercializadas, o que pode estar prejudicando os estoques locais de peixes. Este trabalho comparou o conhecimento ecológico tradicional (CET) com informações obtidas em pescarias experimentais e informação obtida da literatura científica sobre os períodos de reprodução das principais categorias de pescado desembarcadas naquela região. Das 28 categorias de pescado analisadas, 14 (50%) foram capturadas na pesca experimental e puderam ser avaliadas. O conhecimento ecológico tradicional confirmou a informação experimental para 10 categorias de pescado (72%). Os resultados sugerem a necessidade de ajustes no período oficial de defeso para as categorias: caparari (Pseudoplatystoma tigrinun), surubim (P. fasciatum), tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum), pescada (Plagioscion spp) e tucunaré (Cichla spp). A discussão aborda a possível inadequação do período de defeso estabelecido com bases em informações geradas em diferentes bacias e aplicados para grandes áreas da Amazônia brasileira. Este estudo confi rma o refinado conhecimento do pescador sobre a biologia das espécies que ele explora e sugere que este CET pode ser utilizado para ajustar políticas de gestão pesqueira regionalmente.