The return of shellfish to Chicalim Bay has brought a fresh rush of collectors, prompting lo cals to step in and stop the harvesting of juvenile clams and other bivalves near St Jacinto Island. Collectors from outlying areas have been arriving early in the morning to en ter the bay, with locals con cerned over the removal of young tisreo (clams), xina neo or green mussels, and mendios or windowpane oysters before they have matured. ‘Harvesting of tisreo is not an issue if they are above 3cm, but xinaneo and mendios had not even grown to a good size for harvesting,’ said local resi dent Johnson Stephen in a comment to the media.
The rush has also raised safety concerns, with three women reportedly nearly drowning while collecting shellfish and being taken to hospital. Residents have approached police and be gun keeping watch over the area, with harvesting activ ity being stopped near St Jacinto Island. The windowpane oyster, locally known as mendios, has returned to Chicalim after several years and is regarded as brood stock for the wider shellfish popula tion. The species is protect ed under Schedule IV of the Wildlife Protection Act. A study by NIO scientists had earlier estimated that around 10,000 window pane oysters were harvest ed daily from Chicalim Bay, while over-exploitation, metal pollution and habitat destruction were identified as threats to the habitat. The Goa State Biodiversi ty Board (GSBB) guidelines restrict shellfish collection to locals within a five-kilometre radius and prescribe tradi tional hand-picking methods. The guidelines also pro vide for a July-October closed season, extraction fees and no-take zones.
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The latest rush is not the first time Chicalim has faced pressure when shell fish stocks return. Rui Arau jo had in the past spoken about the need to prevent returning stocks from be ing exhausted, while Cyril Fernandes had also raised concerns over the loss of brood stock and damage to the breeding habitat during earlier conservation efforts. Herald had reported in 2022 on the return of shell fish to Chicalim and the pressure from uncontrolled harvesting. An awareness hoarding was also put up to highlight the ecological importance of the Chical im-Sao Jacinto-Sancoale stretch and its shellfish re sources.
The problem has also been seen elsewhere along the Zuari. In the Siridao-Odxel belt, xinaneo has reappeared in larger quantities after several years, with local fisherfolk allowing smaller shellfish to remain and harvesting mature ones. ‘The size of the xinaneo was small and the locals resisted harvesting them, while only adult individuals were taken out in Nauxi and Cacra,’ said Siridao villager Yogesh Santondekar in a comment to the media. For Chicalim, residents say the issue is not stopping traditional shellfish har vesting, but ensuring that juvenile stock is allowed to mature and reproduce. The latest intervention is aimed at preventing the bay’s returning bounty from becoming another cy cle of depletion.
