Ciguatera in the Eastern Caribbean

Ciguatera fish poisoning plays an important role in Caribbean marine resource development. Many independent eastern Caribbean island nations rely heavily on marine protein. Current demand in these areas for seafood approaches 775,000 t, a figure greatly in excess of the 200,000 t potential yield, as well as current landings which are near 87,000 t. Annual incidence of ciguatera fish poisoning may reach nine per thousand residents in Caribbean communities like St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. These high rates affect public health, fishery development, and liability aspects of island life. Distribution of ciguatera in the Caribbean indicates that it is found most frequently north of Martinique. Three areas of "high risk," as well as "high risk" species, are identified. In St. Thomas nearly 50 percent ofthe 84 species in the catch and 56 percent of the total landings by weight bear some risk of intoxication if eaten. 46( I) bados) among the top ten in world population density. As part of their continuing political and economic evolution, emphasis is being placed upon economic development of the limited resources available. Fish have traditionally been a primary source of protein for island residents, a fact which has resulted in a high demand for them and heightened the impact of ciguatera within the communities. Fisheries development is a frequent and important strategy for the region since primary production of marine protein both enhances the local diet and eliminates the need to import expensive substitutes, which may exacerbate serious balance-of-payment deficits that normally characterize small-island economies. There are two features of fishery resources in the eastern Caribbean which override the best intentioned plans for development. The first of these is the inability of the resources to support the additional levels of exploitation implied by most projected development schemes. Many island platforms are simply too small to support additional exploitation, and development must concentrate upon optimization of resource uti Iization and distribution. Evidence to this effect is presented subsequently. The second feature limiting CaribThe authors are with the Division of Fish and Wildlife, 101 Estate Nazareth, SI. Thomas, Virgin Islands 00802. The current affiliation of David A. Olsen is: Managing Director, Thompson Management Inc., 740 Scallop Drive, Port Canaveral, FL 32920. Views or opinions expressed or implied are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. bean fishery development is tropical fish poisoning, which affects and limits every serious or responsible attempt to develop fisheries in areas where ciguatera occurs. Ciguatera problems may range from the unquantifiable loss of productivity of poisoned workers to lack of product export and public health problems stemming from insufficient protein in the diet. Tacket! estimated that the annual incidence of fish poisonings reported to the emergency room in St. Thomas, V.I., was around 4.2 cases per thousand population. In a household survey, she reported a level of 7.3 per thousand, indicating that 43 percent of the cases are not reported to the emergency room. McMillan et al. (1980) found in their household survey that only 45 percent of those poisoned reported to the emergency room. They also found that 22 percent of all households surveyed experienced at least one poisoning in 5 years. Taylor (cited by Tacket, footnote I) reported that this figure was as high as 31 percent in homes where fish was eaten. In this regard, St. Thomas is probably typical of other islands where ciguatera is a normal risk associated with the consumption of marine protein. Ciguatera poisoning is not only frequent but dangerous: Scheuer2 has reported that ciguatoxin is possibly the fifth most toxic chemical compound 'Tacket, C. 1981. Studies of epidemiological and cI inical aspects of ciguatera. Presentation at Ciguatera Conference, San Juan, Puerto Rico, unpubl. 2Scheuer, P. 1981. Chemistry of ciguatoxin. Presentation at Ciguatera Conference, San Juan, Puerto Rico, unpubl.