Current Development in Oceanography

Special Issue of PEACE Symposium

Volume 2, Number 2, 2011, Pages 125-135
Available online at http://pphmj.com/journals/cdo.htm

DENSITY SURVEY OF THE DOG CONCH (STROMBUS

CANARIUM LINNAEUS, 1758) IN SIKAO BAY,
SOUTHERN THAILAND: EVALUATING THE
EFFECTIVENESS OF COMMUNITY-BASED
MANAGEMENT

CHANYUT SUDTONGKONG and PRASARN INTACHAROEN

Faculty of Science and Fisheries Technology

Rajamangala University of Technology Srivijaya
Sikao District, Trang Province, 92150, Thailand
e-mail: chanyuts@gmail.com

Faculty of Science
Burapha University
Muang District
Chonburi Province, 20131, Thailand

Abstract

The effectiveness of local community in managing the dog conch

(Strombus canarium Linnaeus, 1758) was evaluated in Sikao Bay,
Thailand between 2007 and 2008. The dog conch densities were
surveyed in two study sites under two management systems:
community management and non-community management. After
that, the contour maps of the conch density were analyzed and
Keywords and phrases : dog conch (Strombus canarium), community-based management,
GIS, Thailand.
© 2011 Pushpa Publishing House
Communicated by Hyo Choi
Received April 21, 2011
126 CHANYUT SUDTONGKONG and PRASARN INTACHAROEN

demonstrated using GIS tool. The results revealed that low density of
the conch appeared in non- community management area, whereas
high density of the gastropod was recorded in the area that was
managed by local organization. The higher density of the dog conch in
the locally managed area indicated the effectiveness of community
management in protecting mollusk resources. In that area, all
destructive fishing activities were banned by the local people. Based
on this finding, community-based management can be applied as a
management tool to manage and conserve the dog conch in Thailand.

1. Introduction

The dog conch, Strombus canarium Linnaeus, 1758, which is commonly

found within seagrass beds in Southeast Asia, contributes to food and
income, especially for local people living along the coastal area [3-5, 7, 14,
15, 19]. Similar to other fishery resources, dog conch population is affected
by fishing activities. Degradation of fishery resources has motivated local
communities in Trang province to establish local organizations for managing
the resources [16, 18]. Even though local people have managed fishery
resources for a long period, research that assesses the effectiveness and
outcomes of local community management is still lacking for Thailand. The
evaluation of management outcomes is important for all stakeholders because
it provides information on whether community management achieves its
objectives of improved conditions and sustainability of resources.
Management outcomes can be evaluated by comparing quantitative data, e.g.,
resource conditions and abundance [20].
In this research, the effectiveness of community management on the dog
conch population of Sikao Bay, southern Thailand was evaluated by
measuring dog conch density of two sites under two management systems:
community management and non-community management. Dog conch
population on Libong beach is under community management, whereas
another population at Modtanoi beach is not under community management.
The objective of this study is to compare the conditions of the dog conch
under community and non-community management. Based on the results,
local communities have been effective stewards of dog conch population.
 DENSITY SURVEY OF THE DOG CONCH … 127

The findings of this research will be useful for developing dog conch
management using community-based approaches.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Study site

Trang province is located in the south of Thailand between 7°15´-

7°45´N and 99°15´-99°45´E on the coast of the Andaman Sea (Figure 1). The
climate is tropical seasonal monsoon, with a rainy period from June to
November and average rainfall of 1,830-1,861 mm per year. The annual
mean temperature of the study site is 27.5-27.6°C. Local tides have a semi-
diurnal regime with maximum amplitudes of 2.9 m.

Sikao Bay is an important coastal area of Trang province as it is

surrounded by seagrass beds (Figure 1). The dense seagrass meadows are
dominated by Enhalus acoroides, Halophila ovalis, and Cymodocea
serrulata. Dog conch and other fishery resources, e.g. fishes, crabs and squid,
are significant resources for villagers who have long been depended on them.
Coastal villagers still continue to utilize various types of fishery resources for
daily household consumption and sell them in the local market for income.

The community-based coastal resources management (CBCRM) has

been operated in Sikao Bay since 1989 [16]. The degradation of the coastal
resources caused by villagers and outside harvesters forces them to be
concerned about this situation that may affect their livelihood. The situation
stimulated villagers to solve their problem autonomously. On their own
initiative, informal discussions among villagers often included issues related
to coastal resource degradation and its causes. After that, a local organization
that aims to protect and conserve the coastal resources was established in
Libong village in 1991. At that time, the major activities of the organization
are to ban destructive fishing gears conducting near the village, especially
near the seagrass beds that provide habitat and feeding grounds to aquatic
animals. Moreover, rules to restrict fishing efforts and fishing areas were set
up by villagers.
128 CHANYUT SUDTONGKONG and PRASARN INTACHAROEN

Patrolling and enforcing to illegal fishing was operated by villagers. In

addition, collaboration between Libong villagers and external sectors, e.g.,
NGOs, increased their knowledge and information exchange related to the
ecology and management of coastal resources after community management
was established in the village. Local NGO played a key role in transferring
management knowledge to the leaders and community members in Libong
site. Early in the development of coastal community management, NGO
supported funding to leaders and members to participate in conferences,
meetings and training courses related to coastal resources management. The
NGO staff brought them to visit villages that had successful community
management. After coming back to their own villages, they transferred that
knowledge and experience concerning coastal management to other villagers.
Presently, CBCRM operates in Libong village, even though local people use
de facto rights over coastal resources management.

2.2. Survey design

To compare the dog conch condition of community and non-community
managed areas, density survey of dog conch was conducted monthly between
January and December 2007 using methods adopted from English et al. [6]
and Maliao et al. [10]. Dog conch density was surveyed along a line transect,
approximately 500-800 m apart from each beach. The survey was usually
undertaken in the daytime during low tide. Nine 5 m × 5 m quadrats along
the transect line were taken on each beach. When water levels were low, dog
conch were collected by walking along transect. All dog conch individuals
encountered within each quadrat were removed, counted, and brought to the
laboratory for measuring length and weight. Shell length was measured with
a vernier caliper to the nearest 1.0 mm while fresh weight was measured to
the nearest 0.1 g using an electronic balance. The total number of dog conch
in each site was divided into eight size classes (1.0-9.9, 10.0-19.9, 20.0-
29.9, 30.0-39.9, 40.0-49.9, 50.0-59.9, 60.0-69.9 and 70.0-79.9 mm), and
observed frequencies of the conch in each class size. This analysis provided
information on population structure of the conch in the research site. During
collecting the dog conch, fishery activities regarding to dog conch population
 DENSITY SURVEY OF THE DOG CONCH … 129

of both study sites were also observed and recorded. This data provides
information of fishing efforts that affected to conch population. The contour
maps of the conch density were manipulated and displayed using GIS
software as well.

2.3. Data analysis

We tested whether there was a difference in population density between
community and non-community management sites. For density data, we used
a parametric T-test to make paired comparisons between the two study sites
[17]. In addition, we compared the average conch size between community
protected and unprotected area. For mean conch size, we used a non-
parametric Mann-Whitney test across study sites [17]. These analyses
evaluated whether enforcement in different management areas has resulted in
measurable population differences.

3. Results

In this study, 1,869 individuals of Strombus canarium were collected

from the two study sites. Dog conch densities varied significantly across the
two sites, and were higher in the community management (Libong site) than
non-community protection area (Modtanoi site) (Figure 2; Independent
sample t-test; df =22; t = 3.331; p<0.05). Dog conch density on Libong beach
that is managed by local community was found in the range of 15-88
individuals per 100 m2, whereas density of the conch on Modtanoi beach
which is not community protected was in the range of 9-44 individuals per
100 m2. Average conch density in Libong and Modtanoi were 52±24 and
26±13 individuals per 100 m2, respectively. In addition, conch size (shell
length) differed across two study sites (Mann-Whitney U test, p<0.001).
Difference in size class distribution was displayed in Figure 3. Median shell
length of the conch collected from Libong, and Modtanoi were 47.0 and 43.1
mm, respectively. In addition, contour maps of the conch density in the two
study sites were displayed in Figure 4. Overall, the dog conch on the
community management area (Libong site) was more abundant and larger
than those found on the open-access area (Modtanoi site).
130 CHANYUT SUDTONGKONG and PRASARN INTACHAROEN

4. Discussion

The results are consistent with research on coastal community

management in Southeast Asia that also reveal significant enhancement of
management outcomes after the implementation of community management
[8, 9, 13].
The difference in the dog conch condition between Libong village and
Modtanoi village is a function of differences in management practices. The
betterment of the dog conch conditions at Libong is a result of community
management that strictly forbid destructive fishing gear in the community
managed area, especially near the seagrass beds. Protection of seagrass
meadows, which is the primary habitat and feeding areas of the conch [5, 7]
would lead to a higher rate of regeneration and abundance of that species.
The protection of seagrass does not only provide habitat and feeding areas,
but also provide the chances of natural regeneration to aquatic animal,
including dog conch.
Institutional arrangements in Libong are the component of critical factors
for sustainability on the commons [1, 2, 11]. Self-initiated of organization,
rules, monitoring, enforcement, and sanction are also key factors affecting
the success of community management at Libong. Locally-initiated
organization in Libong village influenced three critical processes of
community-based management, including (1) making rules governing use,
management, and protection of resource, (2) implementation of the rules
created, and (3) resolution of conflicts that arose during the application of
rules. Naturally, it is easy for Libong villagers to recognize and understand
community management rules that were created with their approval.
Furthermore, monitoring and enforcement by leaders and community
members inhibited users who might break the rules because they were
observed by others. Libong villagers had a comparative advantage in
monitoring resource use and rule compliance because they stayed near the
community managed area. Moreover, local management costs are lower
because non-compliance with regulations is more easily observed. To reduce
inappropriate activities, leader and community members explained to
 DENSITY SURVEY OF THE DOG CONCH … 131

violators the objectives of coastal community management. They also apply

graduated sanctions, with more severe punishments for repeat offenders, that
made it unattractive to continue breaking the rules. No one had an advantage
by breaking the rules [12].

Summary

Quantitative evidence from this study indicates the better condition of the
dog conch managed under community approach. In addition, we suggest that
strengthening the community-based management is important for Thailand
rather than trying to eliminate and exclude them from coastal resource
management processes. Building community-based management systems
provide harvester incentives to conserve fishery resources. More secure
resource use rights of the local community precipitate a change in behavior
and attitude. We also recommended more research conducted on the effects
of different management approaches on the condition of coastal resources.
The present single case study may not be representative for all community-
based coastal resource management. Therefore, further research on the
effectiveness of community-based management in Thailand is necessary.

Acknowledgments

The funding of this research was supported by Rajamangala University

of Technology Srivijaya (RMUTSV), Thailand. Thanks are expressed to Dr.
Thorsten Balke (Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands) for editing
this manuscript and for his helpful suggestions on the document. We also
thank FORUM 953 for inspiration research atmosphere at RMUTSV, Trang
campus.

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Figure 1. Map of the study sites at Sikao Bay, Trang province, Thailand
(LB= Libong site; MTN= Modtanoi site).
134 CHANYUT SUDTONGKONG and PRASARN INTACHAROEN

Figure 2. Dog conch densities (individuals /100 m2) collected from the two
study sites.

Figure 3. Size class distribution of Strombus canarium collected from the

two study sites.
 DENSITY SURVEY OF THE DOG CONCH … 135

Figure 4. Contour maps of mean conch density (individuals/100 m2) in the

two study sites.