Fishing on web: a snapshot of recreational fishing in Bedok Jetty

• Main Author: Ng, Ying Xuan
• Other Authors: Joyce Ong
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2023
• Subjects: Science::Biological sciences::Ecology
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/165762
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Bedok Jetty is a known and popular fishing sites in Singapore, offering a diverse landscape for recreational fishers’ of varying experience. Despite the popularity of Bedok Jetty as a recreational fishing ground, few studies had been conducted and little is known about the recreational fishers’ activites and the marine fish catches. This knowledge gap is significant as it can inform efforts to promote responsible fishing practices and raise public awareness about the importance of marine conservation. With the recent Covid-19 pandemic, more people have turned to outdoor recreational activities. Based on this observation, we hypothesize that there has been a significant increase in the frequency of recreational fishing at Bedok Jetty after the pandemic. This study will also provide an insight on the trend in species richness and species diversity based on observations. To fill this gap, we examined the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the frequency of recreational fishing in Bedok Jetty (number of fishing hours per trip) via online and on-site surveys. We also explored the species richness and diversity of Bedok Jetty based on fish catches by inspecting YouTube videos posted from 2018 to 2022. The study found a significant increase in the number of fishing hours per trip after the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic based on a survey with 101 respondents. Additionally, there was an increasing trend in observed species richness and diversity at Bedok Jetty absed on YouTube data. These findings help fill the knowledge gap on Bedok jetty as a recreational fishing site.