The minimum BECCA question structure

Opening language

The opening script should be simple, respectful, and transparent. It should explain that the survey is not designed to judge individual fishing activity, but to understand long-term change in the fishery. For example:

“We are asking fishers and harvesters about their best catches, both now and in the past. We are doing this because many fisheries do not have long-term catch records, but local fishers often hold detailed knowledge of how catches have changed. We are not asking this to check or judge individual fishing activity. We are trying to understand long-term change in the fishery. Your answers will be combined with other fishers’ answers and reported as community-level patterns, not as individual records.”

Respondent background

The background section should establish who the respondent is in relation to the fishery, how long they have been involved, where they fish or harvest, and how much effort they normally expend. In a community fishery this may be done conversationally. In an online survey it may be asked through short, fixed questions.

At minimum, the survey should record the respondent’s role, year they started fishing or harvesting, years of experience, main fishing area, main gear or method, typical number of fishing or harvesting days per year, and typical number of hours per fishing or harvesting day. Where appropriate and ethical, age and gender can be collected to assess whether the respondent pool is diverse.

Current year best catch

The current-year question is mandatory. It anchors the assessment in present conditions and provides the comparison point for historical best catches.

A general version is:

Thinking about the current year, what was your best fishing or harvesting day for [species or fishery]? How much did you catch, collect, see, hook, or encounter on that day? How many hours did you fish or harvest? What gear or method did you use? Where did this happen?

Best-ever catch

The best-ever question reconstructs historical peaks. It should be asked separately for each major metric. The best day for catch amount may not be the same as the best day for size.

A general version is:

Thinking across your whole fishing or harvesting life, what was your best ever day for [species or fishery]? What year was this? How much did you catch, collect, see, hook, or encounter? How many hours did you fish or harvest? What gear or method did you use? Where did this happen?

First-year catch

The first-year question is especially valuable for shifting baseline analysis. It links each respondent’s starting point to a catch amount and year.

A general version is:

Thinking back to the year you started fishing or harvesting [species or fishery], what was your best catch or best fishing/harvesting day in that first year or early period? What year was this, how much did you catch, and how many hours did you fish or harvest?

This question may be difficult for some respondents, especially if they started fishing as children. If they cannot remember the exact first year, an early-career period can be used, but the uncertainty should be recorded.

Size questions

For single-species fisheries, or fisheries where body size is central to value, ecology, or management, BECCA should include a size metric. Size can be reported as weight, length, shell length, carapace width, market grade, or another locally meaningful measure.

The question should make clear that the largest individual may come from a different year than the largest catch. For example:

Thinking across your whole fishing life, what was the largest [species] you ever caught or harvested in this area? What year was this, how large was it, and was that size measured, weighed, estimated, sold at market, photographed, or remembered visually?