Isla Mujeres Fishermen Face Grouper Shortage as Catch Barely Covers Local Demand

Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo — Fishermen on Isla Mujeres are reporting a persistent shortage of scaled fish, with catches of grouper, snapper, cobia, yellowtail and mullet so low that they barely cover local demand and do not even appear in the state’s production figures, according to members of local fishing cooperatives.

Lobster, by contrast, keeps the municipality among Quintana Roo’s leading producers.

According to the Fishing Yearbook published by Conapesca, the National Commission of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Quintana Roo recorded 589 tons of scaled species in 2025, a 171 percent increase over the 217 tons reported the previous year.

Isla Mujeres does not appear as a separate line in that total, however, because cooperatives such as Patria y Progreso fill orders for assorted varieties only for beach clubs.

Lobster Remains the Mainstay

Of the 603 tons of lobster registered in the same period, roughly 100 tons came from Isla Mujeres, Baltazar Gómez Catzín, president of the Federation of Cooperatives of Quintana Roo, recently confirmed.

Producers estimate they could reach a similar volume this season, as the north wind season approaches. The winds typically push schools of the species toward the fishing grounds.

On other varieties, Miguel, a crew member aboard a local boat, said the scaled catch includes snapper, cobia, yellowtail and mullet, among others.

“People ask us for everyday fish, but we focus on lobster, on moving traps and Cuban shades. There is no time to throw lines,” he said.

His skipper, Martín, does target popular consumption species such as chac-chi, supplying the food stalls at the Javier Rojo Gómez municipal market as well as families who request other products, including grouper and snapper.

On many occasions, the supply is not enough to meet demand.