Estimates of total seabird bycatch by Atlantic pelagic longline fisheries from 2003 to 2006

Results of recent seabird bycatch studies in the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas Convention Area were combined to estimate total seabird bycatch of pelagic longline fishing in the Atlantic Ocean, and bycatch per selected species. Available studies do not apply to the full spatial and temporal extent of the fishing effort, so assumptions were made to account for missing information. Over the 4 years from 2003 to 2006 the total seabird bycatch estimate was 48,500. Results indicate that about 57% of the pelagic longline seabird bycatch was albatrosses (Diomedea, Phoebastria, Thalassarche, Phoebetria spp.). This mortality is at a level to cause concern for the smaller and more vulnerable albatross populations in the region. Variation in annual seabird bycatch was caused by variation in total fishing effort, and movement of effort away from areas of higher seabird bycatch rates.

Fish lost at sea: the effect of soak time on pelagic longline catches

Our analyses of observer records reveal that abundance estimates are strongly influenced by the timing of longline operations in relation to dawn and dusk and soak time— the amount of time that baited hooks are available in the water. Catch data will underestimate the total mortality of several species because hooked animals are “lost at sea.” They fall off, are removed, or escape from the hook before the longline is retrieved. For example, longline segments with soak times of 20 hours were retrieved with fewer skipjack tuna and seabirds than segments with soak times of 5 hours. The mortality of some seabird species is up to 45% higher than previously estimated. The effects of soak time and timing vary considerably between species. Soak time and exposure to dusk periods have strong positive effects on the catch rates of many species. In particular, the catch rates of most shark and billfish species increase with soak time. At the end of longline retrieval, for example, expected catch rates for broadbill swordfish are four times those at the beginning of retrieval. Survival of the animal while it is hooked on the longline appears to be an important factor determining whether it is eventually brought on board the vessel. Catch rates of species that survive being hooked (e.g. blue shark) increase with soak time. In contrast, skipjack tuna and seabirds are usually dead at the time of retrieval. Their catch rates decline with time, perhaps because scavengers can easily remove hooked animals that are dead. The results of our study have important implications for fishery management and assessments that rely on longline catch data. A reduction in soak time since longlining commenced in the 1950s has introduced a systematic bias in estimates of mortality levels and abundance. The abundance of species like seabirds has been over-estimated in recent years. Simple modifications to procedures for data collection, such as recording the number of hooks retrieved without baits, would greatly improve mortality estimates.

Incidental capture of loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) sea turtles by the pelagic longline fishery off southern Brazil

Incidental capture in fishing gear is one of the main sources of injury and mortality of juvenile and adult sea turtles (NRC, 1990; Lutcavage et al., 1997; Oravetz, 1999). Six out of the seven extant species of sea turtles — the leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), the green turtle (Chelonia mydas), the loggerhead (Caretta caretta), the hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), the olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea), and the Kemp’s ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) — are currently classified as endangered or critically endangered by the World Conservation Union (IUCN, formerly the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources), which makes the assessment and reduction of incidental capture and mortality of these species in fisheries priority conservation issues (IUCN/Species Survival Commission, 1995).

Diets of thornback ray (Raja clavata) and tope shark (Galeorhinus galeus) in the bottom longline fishery of the Azores, northeastern Atlantic

Tope shark (Galeorhinus galeus) and thornback ray (Raja clavata) are the two most captured elasmobranch species by the Azorean bottom longline fishery. In order to better understand the trophic dynamics of these species in the Azores, the diets of thornback ray and tope shark caught in this area during 1996 and 1997 were analyzed to describe feeding patterns and to investigate the effect of sex, size, and depth and area of capture on diet. Thornback rays fed mainly upon fishes and reptants, but also upon polychaetes, mysids, natant crustaceans, isopods, and cephalopods. In the Azores, this species preyed more heavily upon fish compared with the predation patterns described in other areas. Differences in the diet may be due to differences in the environments (e.g. in the Azores, seamounts and oceanic islands are the major topographic features, whereas in all other studies, continental shelves have been the major topographic feature). No differences were observed in the major prey consumed between the sexes or between size classes (49−60, 61−70, 71−80, and 81−93 cm TL). Our study indicates that rays inhabiting different depths and areas (coastal or offshore banks) prey upon different resources. This appears to be related to the relative abundance of prey with habitat. Tope sharks were found to prey almost exclusively upon teleost fish: small shoaling fish, mainly boarfish (Capros aper) and snipefish (Macroramphosus scolopax), were the most frequent prey. This study illustrates that thornback rays and tope sharks are top predators in waters off the Azores.

Predation of tuna longline catches in the Indian Ocean, by killer-whales and sharks

Since the inception of the tuna long line fishery in the Indian Ocean in 1952, an annual average of 10% of the number of tunas and spear fishes caught continues to be damaged by sharks. In spite of the fact that this method of fishing for tunas is also resulting in the exploitation of a significant quantity of the tuna-preying sharks, the extent of the damage by these predators continues to be fairly constant. Quite often the damaged tunas are acceptable to the market, especially for canning. On the other hand report of damage caused by killer-whales, occasional at the beginning of the fishery in the Indian Ocean, has been increasing in frequency each year and since 1960 tuna fishermen have been desperately calling for ways and means of reducing the damage caused by these mammals. Unlike sharks killer-whales do not get hooked on the tuna long line; and tunas damaged by killer-whales are almost always unfit even for canning. The problem of predation by killer-whales exists not only in the whole of the Indian Ocean including the Timor and Banda Seas but also in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, especially in the seas around New Guinea, Samoa, Caroline and Marshal Islands. The seriousness of this problem of predation was highlighted at the annual tuna research conference held in Kochi, Japan, in February 1963, and steps were taken to devote considerable attention to this problem.

Ceylon's tuna longline fishing effort and catch distribution in the Indian Ocean, 1967-70

The present report was prepared to evaluate the performance of two fishing vessels, study trends in fishing condition, the status of the stocks exploited and also to contribute basic information required by the Indian Ocean Fisheries Commission for management of the tuna resources.

Ocean-wide tracking of pelagic sharks reveals extent of overlap with longline fishing hotspots

Overfishing is arguably the greatest ecological threat facing the oceans, yet catches of many highly migratory fishes including oceanic sharks remain largely unregulated with poor monitoring and data reporting. Oceanic shark conservation is hampered by basic knowledge gaps about where sharks aggregate across population ranges and precisely where they overlap with fishers. Using satellite tracking data from six shark species across the North Atlantic, we show that pelagic sharks occupy predictable habitat ‘hotspots’ of high space use. Movement modelling showed sharks preferred habitats characterised by strong sea-surface-temperature gradients (fronts) over other available habitats. However, simultaneous Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking of the entire Spanish and Portuguese longline-vessel fishing fleets show an 80% overlap of fished areas with hotspots, potentially increasing shark susceptibility to fishing exploitation. Regions of high overlap between oceanic tagged sharks and longliners included the North Atlantic Current/Labrador Current convergence zone and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge south-west of the Azores. In these main regions, and sub-areas within them, shark/vessel co-occurrence was spatially and temporally persistent between years, highlighting how broadly the fishing exploitation efficiently ‘tracks’ oceanic sharks within their space-use hotspots year-round. Given this intense focus of longliners on shark hotspots our study argues the need for international catch limits for pelagic sharks and identifies a future role of combining fine-scale fish and vessel telemetry to inform the ocean-scale management of fisheries.

Habitat use and diel vertical migration of bigeye thresher shark: overlap with pelagic longline fishing gear

Pelagic longliners targeting swordfish and tunas in oceanic waters regularly capture sharks as bycatch, including currently protected species as the bigeye thresher, Alopias superciliosus. Fifteen bigeye threshers were tagged with pop-up satellite archival tags (PSATs) in 2012-2014 in the tropical northeast Atlantic, with successful transmissions received from 12 tags for a total of 907 tracking days. Marked diel vertical movements were recorded on all specimens, with most of the daytime spent in deeper colder water (mean depth = 353 m, SD = 73; mean temperature = 10.7 °C, SD = 1.8) and nighttime spent in warmer water closer to the surface (mean depth = 72 m, SD = 54; mean temperature = 21.9 °C, SD = 3.7). The operating depth of the pelagic longline gear was measured with Minilog Temperature and Depth Recorders (TDRs), and the overlap with habitat utilization was calculated. Overlap is taking place mainly during the night and is higher for juveniles. The results presented herein can be used as inputs for Ecological Risk Assessments for bigeye threshers captured in oceanic tuna fisheries, and serve as a basis for efficient management and conservation of this vulnerable shark species.

Investigations on Longline Fishing in Lakshadweep Sea with special reference to Bycatch Issues Bait and Hook Selectivity

The main objectives of the present study have been studies on the operational performance of tuna longline in Lakshadweep Sea studies on the efficiency of hooks in the longline operation studies on the efficiency of baits in the longline operation studies on bycatch in longline operation studies on predation on the longline catch and the hook loss encountered during the fishing operation