More Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Allocation for Anglers?
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) recently released an Options Paper to amend the current Individual Bluefin Quota (IBQ) strategy, implemented to reduce incidental bycatch of bluefin, in the pelagic longline fishery for public review. The allocation of bluefin tuna to all user categories may be changed. Why should the recreational community care? For two primary reasons, the NMFS is advancing an amendment (13) to the Atlantic Consolidated Fishery Management Plan for Highly Migratory Species. One, the U.S. commercial fleet is not landing its international allocated Atlantic bluefin quota, leaving the unused portion subject to reallocation to other
NMFS Discussing New Ways to Allow Commercial Fishing Vessels Inside Closed Zones
NEEDS ALL ANGLERS ATTENTION – The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) launched a new and very comprehensive process for evaluating the success or inefficiencies of current Pelagic Longline Closed Zones and Gear Restricted Areas to achieve full swordfish quota utilization and reduction of seafood trade imbalance. The text makes clear billfish are not priorities for NMFS, rather pelagic longline fishing for tuna and swordfish are priorities with sea turtles, marine mammals, and sharks. TBF will be issuing a CALL TO ACTION soon. Details provided below: To evaluate success or inefficiencies of current Pelagic Longline Closed Zones and
Panama on the Chinese Maritime Silk Road?
Could China’s heavy financial investments in and aid to Panama along with the 47 recent trade agreements between the two nations possibly lead to a diminishment of Pacific fish stock abundance and sportfishing experiences in Panama? Possibly. That was the fear among sportfishing and eco-tourism interests in Panama when recently learning that 13 large purse seine fishing vessels currently in Peru may soon be catching cobia and black skipjack tuna (bonito) off Panama, as part of an agreement with China. The purse seine caught fish are to be transshipped to a large Chinese processing vessel offshore in international
Recreational Fishing Opportunities Maybe Threatened in Panama
A nice yellowfin tuna caught off Panama
Recreational fishing in Panama and throughout Central America is likely to feel negative impacts from a fishery partnership between Panama and China established through recent trade agreements on December 3, 2018. The agreement will allow tons of skipjack tuna to be caught by purse seine vessels and transshipped to Chinese commercial factory trawlers in international waters. TBF has learned that 13 purse seine vessels in Peru are being brought to Panama to fish in Panama’s waters. Debate on whether purse seine vessels can fish in Panama’s waters has been on-going since
Changes in Mahi-Mahi allocation coming up in the Atlantic?
Fly Navarro and Adrienne Katz with a nice mahi-mahi
The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) is considering management options to Amendment 10 on the Dolphin Wahoo Fishery Management Plan. The Amendment offers an important opportunity to modify management strategy for mahi mahi that would better insure healthy population levels intothe future. Central to protecting mahi mahi is restriction of pelagic longlinegear by not authorizing the fishery an allocation. Overfishing mahi-mahi stocks are a genuine concern if
Deep-set Buoy Gear set for California
Deep-set buoy gear finally has management alternatives for use in a swordfish fishery off southern California, where the fishery will be a limited entry to approximately 300 commercial vessels. Once the fishery opens (off the Southern California Bight, southeast of Point Conception), 50 permits will be issued immediately, with 25 more permits following each year. The gear lessens the amount of bycatch, which is a major improvement over the previous gillnet gear used for swordfish. Outside the government-specified area for the fishery, anyone can use the gear with a general highly migratory fishery permit. The Pacific Fisheries Management
Chub Mackerel Fishery in the Mid-Atlantic?
Illustration courtesy of DRNEC of Delaware
Chub mackerel, which are important prey species for billfish and other apex predators and to the healthy functioning of the ecosystem, are being considered for inclusion into the Mackerel, Squid and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. The current large trawl commercial fishery desires to increase their authorized landings, but this could have significant negative impacts on the stocks, the ecosystem, and recreational fishing opportunities. In light of the huge harvesting capacity of the giant commercial trawlers targeting low-dollar-value forage fish species, expanding the commercial harvest limit for that
