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The Amazon basin is home for the silver arawana ( Osteoglossum bicirrhosum ), a fish better known in the international aquarium business as the “ dragon fish ” due to its phenotypic characteristics that makes it resemble a Chinese dragon, which has turned it into a highly popular pet in Asian countries. In such countries, this fish is believed to bring good luck and prosperity. Although not famous for its good looks, it is still an interesting fish that presents parental care by the male. Silver arawana ( Osteoglossum bicirrhosum ).  Image from http://www.acuamanus.com.ar At the tripoint where the borders of Colombia, Brazil and Peru meet in northwestern Amazonia, the ornamental fishing of the silver arawana is a highly important economic activity for many riverine communities of the three countries. However, the management policies vary greatly between countries to the point where what Brazil implements is exactly the opposite of what the others do. In Brazil its ornamental fishery is

It is widely recognized that marine resources, although renewable, are not endless and need to be properly managed if their contribution to the nutritional, economic and social well-being of a fast growing human population have to be sustained. In this sense, maintaining long-term marine fisheries sustainability entails not only socio-political significance, but also economic and ecological importance. So far, most of the fish stock assessments* performed rely on methods proposed in the first half of the twentieth century. Although robust, these methods are clearly outdated and inflexible because they demand b ig data set and they do not take into account the interactions that exist between the biological, physical and anthropic components. However, most of the ongoing fisheries research has to face the lack of regular data, making conventional stock assessment tools usually not applicable to data-poor situations. This is particularly a concern for developing countries, where fishe