Knowledge related to barnacle shellfishing in Salango:

diagnosis of a heritage practice at risk

Abstract

The barnacle is a crustacean that lives attached to the rocks where the sea waves hit. Historically barnacles have been an abundant resource in the Salango Island and Isla de la Plata, south of the province of Manabí. These territories are part of the protected areas of the Machalilla National Park (MNP), which in pre-Hispanic times were part of the Salangome Lordship, home to fishing villages since 3600 BC. This work is a record of the memory of the Salango fishermen, knowledge-bearers about the harvest of barnacles, an activity that forms part of their fishing cultural repertoire and expresses the link with their ancestral maritime territory. Today, barnacle harvesting is considered a prohibited extractive activity within the reserve areas of the MNP, which makes its bearers subject to control and sanctions. Barnacle shellfishing is a risky activity, and its contribution to the subsistence economy of families in Salango precedes its fame in the 1980's, when it became a sought-after resource in markets outside of Salango due to the influence of Spanish tourists. We present a diagnosis based on ethnographic research carried out between October 2022 and March 2023 to evaluate the situation of the practice and the factors that put its continuity at risk. We describe the transformations of barnacle shellfishing, its consumption in the family, commercial and tourist contexts, and the perceptions about its conservation status based on the testimonies of the knowledge-bearers. This work constitutes a reference resource for the development of policies to safeguard the manifestation that go hand in hand with policies for the conservation of marine species in the Salango area.