Non-endemic Fish for Marind People’s Survival

Ikan mujair brought to Merauke has shifted the native fish population. On the other hand, this non-endemic fish has now provided a source of living for Marind Anim people.

KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO

A man brings tilapia fish caught from the Kumbe River to sell to a collection agent in Baad Village, Animha District, Merauke Regency, Papua, Saturday (12/11/2022).

Ikan mujair (Oreochromis mossambicus), or Mozambique tilapia,is an introduced species in Merauke, Papua. However, the fish is dominating the lowland rivers and marshes of the region. Ikan mujair not only serves as a source of food, but it has also become a source of income for the Marind Anim people, who are facing increasing difficulty with hunting animals for food.

For the people of Baad village, Animha district, ikan mujair is the most important economic resource. Almost every day, the village residents go out to catch ikan mujair in Rawa Yakau, a swamp that surrounds their village, to sell to middleman traders.

Paijan, 45, a transmigrant from Java who works as a middleman trader in Baad, said he delivered an average of more than 200 kilograms of ikan mujair to the city each day. In the raining season, the fish harvest can double to 400 kg and frequently, even more.

Gastor, the local name for ikan gabus (Channa striata) or striped snakehead, has the second largest catch at around 20 kg per day.

“Gastor has lately become even harder to catch, but ikan mujair is still abundant," said Paijan.

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Paijan usually buys ikan mujair from local fishermen at Rp 15,000 per bundle of 3-4 fish, weighing an average of around 2 kg a bundle. In the city center of Merauke, traders normally sell ikan mujair for Rp 15,000 per kg.

In Baad are three middleman traders like Paijan who deliver a total of around 1.2 tonnes of ikan mujair per day to Merauke. From ikan mujair alone, income worth at least Rp 9 million is earned by residents of Baad, with a population of 445.

More than just an economic resource, ikan mujair is also a main source of protein for the people of Baad village, as it is available every day. Lambert Ndiken, 67, a customary leader in Baad village, said: “While we used to consume meat every day, now we eat fish daily. Meat is now hard to find."

The same situation is seen in Zanegi village, which is located relatively far from a river and has relatively smaller marshes than those in Baad. Still, fish has become a main source of protein instead of meat.

As meat is now hard to get, we depend on fish.

Bonifasius “Boni” Gebze, 62, a customary leader of Zanegi village, said that in fact, the Marind Anim people had long consumed fish. But when animals were abundant and the community could hunt, meat was prioritized.

“As meat is now hard to get, we depend on fish," he underlined out.

Boni said the fish he had consumed as a child was not ikan mujair. “There was no ikan mujair at that time, it [was introduced] only recently. The fish found here are ikansembilan (eel-tailed catfish) and barramundi, which are now scarce," he said.

A Kompas survey conducted in Baad, Zanegi, Wonorejo and Bokem villages has found that ikan mujair, also called ikan nila in some parts of Papua, is the most consumed fish at 78.5 percent, followed by ikan gastor at 25.7 percent and ikan betik (perch) at 21.2 percent. Meanwhile, the local fish consumption of ikan sembilan is just 3.1 percent, freshwater snapper 8 percent and ikan duri (Sagor catfish) 1.4 percent.

KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO

Tilapia fish caught by residents from the Kumbe River are ready to be brought to a collecting agent in Kampung Baad, Animha District, Merauke Regency, Papua, Thursday (10/11/2022).

Shift from endemic fish

Biologist Henderite L. Ohee from Cenderawasih University said that the ikan mujair currently dominating the waters of Merauke was a newly introduced species to Papua. Ikan mujair not only dominated the waters in Merauke and other areas of southern Papua like Asmat and Timika, but also major lakes like Lake Sentani in Jayapura.

“The introduction of fish from other regions to Papua began in 1937, during the Dutch era. In 1969, it was carried out on a massive scale by the Indonesian government with the support of the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization]," he said.

The non-endemic fish released earlier in Papua were mostly ikan mujair, ikan tawes (Java barb) and the common carp. The release of non-endemic fish, according to Henderite, was meant to provide a source of protein from fish species that reproduced quickly in the wild.

“Ikan mujair was later found thriving in lowland lakes and marshes, while carp mostly flourished in the highland regions, like Wamena," he noted.

Non-endemic fish continued to be introduced to Papua, with the latest introductions ikangastor (Channa striata), ikanbetik (Anabas testudineus), ikanlele (Clarias batrachus) and ikangurame (Osphronemus goramy).

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“The introduction of non-endemic fish from long ago has been based more on considerations of fulfilling nutritional needs. It’s because the fish endemic to Papua are deemed to develop more slowly," he said.

It turned out that these introduced fish species, added Henderite, were highly adaptable to the environment in Papua, especially ikan mujair, which later grew to dominate local marshes and rivers, pushing out indigenous fish species.

“In the south, introduced fish have been spreading easily because of the long chain of marshes. Merauke, Boven Digoel, Mappi, Asmat are all abundant in ikan mujair, gastor, betik and lele," he said.

In Henderite’s view, Papua’s freshwater system has a wealth of native species, such as ikan gabus (Oxyeleotris heterodon), freshwater ikan pedang (Pristis microdon), freshwater ikan pari (Himantura chaophraya), ikanpelangi bleher (Chilatherina bleheri), ikan pelangi merah (Glossolepis incisus) and ikanarwana Papua (Scleropages jardinii).

“Lately, native fish species have become even more difficult to find, as they are losing the competition to non-endemic fish. Papua’s native gabus, for instance, has been pushed out by gastor and ikan mujair," he said.

KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO

Three local fisherman are preparing to go home after netting fish in the Kumbe River in Kampung Baad, Animha District, Merauke Regency, Papua, Thursday (10/11/2022).

The sidelining of native fish species could lead to a threat of their extinction. “This is what is most feared in terms of conservation," said Henderite.

Another impact is a change in local food consumption.

“In several regions, endemic species have had a sociocultural influence on local communities, such as in Sentani, where native gabus was used in traditional ceremonies. In the past, the people prepared ikangabus fish and serve it to the ondoafi, or customary chief, at every ceremony as a form of respect. Now, as the fish is rarely found, this tradition has also disappeared," he said.

Henderite went on that the domination of non-endemic fish species in Papua’s freshwater system had become a dilemma.

“In the early attempts to introduce [non-endemic] fish, no adequate feasibility study was conducted, only the need for protein was considered. But the other issues were disregarded," he said.

The fact is that the domination of non-endemic fish can no longer be reduced, like ikan mujair, which almost has no natural predator in Papua. It is also invasive and can live in nearly all parts of the habitat into which it is introduced.

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For example, certain endemic species only inhabit shallow waters near the shore, while others live in deeper waters. Ikan mujair can inhabit a river from the banks to the channel.

“It can fill all areas of a habitat and supplant endemic species," said Henderite.

As soon as an alien species like ikan mujair was introduced to an open body of water like lakes, rivers and marshes, they became difficult to control. “It’s only a matter of time before native fish vanish from the wild," he added.

As part of the local food chain, Henderite said, the change in species would have an impact on the ecosystem as a whole, affecting other species in the links of the chain, such as birds of prey.

Although the introduction of non-endemic fish species has given rise to environmental problems, it also provided benefits in economic and nutritional terms.

“It’s a dilemma. It’s like what is happening to indigenous Papuans. So, I often advise our children in Papua to be stronger to avoid the same fate as the native fish, currently shrinking [in number] and threatened with extinction some day," said Henderite.

This article was translated by ArisPrawira.