■fflE CARIBBEAN AREA. — DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 



Production 



Catch statistics were made available for 1939, 19^0, and ig-il by the Secretary of State 

 for Agriculture, Industry, and Labor of the Dominican Republic. These figures indicate that 

 the total recorded catch for 1939 was 731,3^3 pounds; for 1940, 913,84.0 pounds; and for 1941, 

 1,105,957 pounds. Data were obtained for 27 ports. In 1939 the largest catches were report- 

 ed from La Romana, 143,609 pounds; from Calderas, 125,046 pounds, and from Boca del Soco, 

 117,220 pounds. In 1940 the principal port was Calderas, with 156,619 pounds. Bayahibe 

 reported 145,261 pounds and San Pedro de Macoris, 104,963 pounds. Samana, with reported 

 landings of 191,781, was the principal fishing port in 1941. Barahaia was second, with 

 104,350 pounds, and (Jiavon and Bayahibe third, with 103,325 po^inds, 



the principal species in 1939 were Colorado (probably red snapper) with 86,697 pounds 

 landed, cojinuda (hardtail Jack) with 58,784 pounds, and jurel (jacks) with 34,927 pounds. 

 In 1940 the greatest amounts reported were of Colorado, 77,523 pounds; cojinuda, 62,499 

 pounds; and mero (grouper) 54,272 pounds. In 1941 landings included 140,224 pounds of 

 Colorado, 67,957 pounds of cojinuda and 56,963 pounds of carite (Spanish mackerel). Listed 

 in the landing records are reported catches of 42 kinds of fish and shellfish in 1941, 40 in 

 1940, and 29 in 1939. 



Ihe largest catches during 1939 were made in September and October with an average of 

 about 95,000 pounds for each of these months. Catches in January and February were less, 

 with only about 6,000 pounds reported for eadi. During 1940, the best catches were reported 

 for April, 113,233 pounds; August, 111,360 pounds; and May, 110,375 pounds. The variation 

 in the amo\int of fish landed by months indicates that seasonal variations of abundance of 

 fish does not seem to have a very great effect on the size of the catches but that they are 

 affected by other factors. 



Distribution 



The largest market for fresh fish is Ciudad Trujillo and its nearby towns, and fish is 

 supplied to this market usually frcm Azua, Palenque, Nizao, Haina, and Nigua and from around 

 Ciudad Trujillo itself. At times, some fish is shipped in by truck from Samana Bay and fi-ooi 

 other points. At Ihe more isolated localities, local demand only is supplied. Fish are pur- 

 chased by irtiolesalers from the fishermen at the point of landing. The wholesalers carry them 

 to the city and sell to retailers. In Ciudad Trujillo fish is sold at the Model Market, in 

 the the Plaza, and in the Hospedaje; but the best and most modem retail outlet is the Model 

 Market. Practically all transportation of fish is by truck, with the fish packed in boxes 

 with crushed ice. In small commxmities fish may be sold in the local markets, by hawkers, or 

 by the fishermen themselves at the landing point. 



In Ciudad Trujillo fish may be sold only in the Model Uaricet, where a rental of $40 

 (U. S. currency) a month is charged for a stall, in the Plaza, or in the Hospedaje, where a 

 rental fee of one cent a pound is charged for a table. 



Fishermen 



Tlhile there is no census of fishermen, a good indication of the nunfcer may be gained 

 from the license records. Thus in 1940, 1,284 men were engaged in fishing from boats and 

 87 from shore, and the total recorded number was 1,371. In 1941, there were 1,373 boat 

 fishermen and 26 shore fishermen — a total of 1,399. In the first nine months of 1942 there 

 were 1,169 boat fishermen and 214 shore fishermen, totaling 1,383. To these figures must 

 certainly be added the considerable number of persons who fish for their own use. In the 

 first nine months of 1942, it was reported that 22 percent of the fishermen of the Republic 

 were fishing in the Province of Samana, 19.2 percent in the Province of Barahona, and 15.7 

 percent in the Province of Seibo. 



The typical Dominican fisherman lives with his family in very simple fashion, usually 

 in small fishing villages. He handles his boat and fishing gear well and prefers fishing to 



192 



