Dubai: Hamour sold less than 20cm or 30cm long are juvenile and have been caught before they have been able to reproduce and spawn.
To try and revive current stocks which have been heavily depleted environmentalists and the government are working to limit the amount of juvenile fish caught.
A Hamour reaches sexual maturity when it is around 45cm long and will have been through a reproductive cycle and spawned at least once — which might not be enough but is a step in the right direction.
Small, and therefore young, fish should be thrown back to avoid catching them in the first place, giving fish numbers a chance to bounce back to meet demand.
Decision
An administrative decision has been issued banning fishing and marketing of longtail silver biddy or badah, bluespot mullet or beyah arabi and white spotted spinefoot or safi fish in Abu Dhabi from April 1 to May 31 to allow these fish to reproduce.
Surveys conducted by the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi found that in 2009 the total amount of these fish caught amounted to about 217. 7 metric tonnes.
This is equivalent to 0.04 per cent of the total stock in the waters of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
