Paper short abstract:

Recurring to different early modern written sources we compared the listing of marine species for Portugal mainland and archipelagos. We aim at addressing the pertinence, preferences and motivations of such productions for the developing field of history of ichthyology.

Paper long abstract:

Knowing local marine environments and animals as well as the availability of resources was of utmost relevance for early modern nations, namely for feeding a growing Europe following the so called ‘fish revolution’. Information about halieutic species was obtained by different actors and was kept in different records ranging from letters, written surveys and inquiries, natural history treatises, to travel literature and poetry. These different typologies of sources give indicate patterns of circulation of the information and contacts among different countries in order to access to information both of commercial and natural/scientific character. Addressing these historical sources, in a comparative manner, allows to understand the most valued species, the origin of the catches and the markets they supplied, or even peoples’ preferences and taste. At the same time, historical species’ distribution range, seasonality and the state of marine ecosystems and populations can also be inferred. In this paper we will approach such questions and we will compare data between regions regarding marine species, the knowledge provided about them and its contribution for the construction of the history of ichthyology.