THE CARIBBEA^' AREA — PAJJAIIA 



may be productive in some areas but is definitely not as rich in fish as the Pacific side. 



A report of the Pacific Sailfish Club reports that bonito, dolphin, Spanish mackerel, 

 marlin, sailfish, wahoo, and tuna are abundant from May to I.'ovember and most abundant from 

 June to October (the rainy season). From December to April, corbina, pompano, snook, and 

 groupers and snappers are most abundant. Groupers, jacks, roosterfish, sharks, and snappers 

 are available all year around. The variation in water temperatures has a considerable effect 

 on the abundance of certain species such a.s the Spanish mackerel, mullet and threadfin and 

 on the migratory pelagic fishes such as tunas and sailfish. Greatest catches are taken from 

 March through August. 



PRESEJrr FISHERY INDUSTRIES 



In spite of tremendous possibilities for expansion, the fishery industries of Panama 

 have not assumed an important place in the economy of the Republic, Production, handling, 

 and marketing facilities are rudimentary and Panama is almost entirely dependent on imports 

 of fishery products. 



The fishery resources of Panama have been 3ub;)ected to no extensive exploration in the 

 historj'' of this republic. Only her pearl fisheries, now virtually non-existent, were exploit- 

 ed commercially in colonial days when the population in business centers was busily engaged 

 in the concentration and passage of world trade in and through the Isthmus. 



The native Indians have always used fish for food and quite a large catch has been taken 

 for years by these people for their home use. On the Pacific coast they still employ brush 

 weirs for this purpose. 



The larger conraunities grot^jcd aloijg the Canal have received comparatively little native 

 fish. A few local fishermen, mostly Indians or blacks, living in coastal villages, supply 

 irregular quantities of Pacific fish to the market in Panama City. Other fishermen fi^jm 

 Panama City operate boats and nets in nearby waters. The food supply is further augmented in 

 normal times by fresh fish from the Caribbean brought into Colon by Cayman Island live-well 

 fishing vessels. At the time of the visit of the fishery mission, commerce in fresh fish 

 had declined severely from that of several years earlier. 



All local fish is sold fresh. None i's salted, pickled, or canned. The demand for fish 

 is so great that there is no surplus from sales of local fish even during times of relatively 

 large seasonal catches. It is reported that never since the Japanese £Lshermen were ejected 

 from Panamanian waters has fish been abundant on Panama markets. Considerable quantities of 

 frozen fish fillets were being imported from the United States for sale in the Canal Zone 

 commissaries at the time of the Uission's visit and this was described as usual practice. 

 Some fillets from the United States were offered to the retail buyers at prices lower than 

 those of some locally-caught fish. 



Rationing of tires was reducing the truck deliveries of Panama fish to the markets. 

 Distribution of fish from Panama City to points of sale along the Caxial was unaffected by 

 rationing as this was accomplished by rail, 



Inports of fishery products for the Republic for the years 19-^0 and 1941 averaged 2§ 

 million pounds with a value of approximately 250,000, In terms of raw fish (before process- 

 ing) these imports represent a total of 7-1 million pounds. Exports, including reshipaents, 

 were negligible, 



Conbining imports and local fish production, a normal total for fish consumption in 

 terms of ravf fish can be set roughly at 10 million pounds, Con^saring this total with a 

 normal population of 632,000 in the Republic, a per capita consumption of 15 pounds per 

 year is calculated. This is the highest average in Central America but it is much less 

 than that of most other areas with similar abundance of nearby food fish supplies. 



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