Avoiding bycatch in U.S. Sea Scallop closed areas fisheries

Since 1999, the scallop fisheries have been granted access to closed areas on Georges Bank, and the access programs have been managed through individual vessel quotas for scallops, and a common-pool total allowable catch (TAC) for yellowtail flounder bycatch. The scallop resource is neither overfished and nor is overfishing occurring, but the yellowtail flounder resource is both overfished and experiencing overfishing according to criteria of U.S. fishery regulations. The yellowtail flounder bycatch TAC has forced early closure of these fisheries in more than half of these access fisheries. We present two programs designed in cooperation with fishermen and permit holders to avoid yellowtail flounder bycatch in these access fisheries, one in Closed Area II (CAII) in 2009 and the other in the Nantucket Lightship Area (NLA) in 2010. For both programs, we mapped the areas of scallop and yellowtail flounder densities and sent the density maps to permit owners and captains. In the second program, we implemented a daily system of captains transmitting daily yellowtail flounder catch and number of tows by area, analyzing the data, and sending messages to captains indicating low, medium, and high scallop densities per pound of yellowtail flounder by area. The 2009 CAII fishery closed three weeks after opening yielding only 61% of the scallop TAC. About 1/3 of vessels participated in the 2010 NLA voluntary reporting program. Observer data indicates that the scallop TAC will be caught for the first time in any closed area access fishery for the first time in the 2010 NLA fishery

Bycatch Avoidance Programs in Two New England (USA) Fisheries

We conducted similar bycatch avoidance programs in two New England fisheries: yellowtail flounder bycatch in the sea scallop closed area fisheries and river herring bycatch in the Atlantic herring and mackerel fishery. These species have different behavioral properties: sea scallops are sessile; yellowtail flounder are demersal with limited but unknown range. Herring and mackerel are pelagic species with wide spatial and temporal ranges; river herring are anadromous. Management actions also differed between the two fisheries. The sea scallop closed area fisheries were limited in time and space with hard quotas for each species. The herring and mackerel fishery was limited in large scale areas by hard quotas, without quotas for river herring. Fishermen were motivated to avoid river herring by strong conservation pressure, river herring are listed as a species of concern and under review for endangered species by the U.S. agencies, which designation would effectively close the Atlantic herring fishery. In the scallop fisheries, we mapped and updated densities for target and bycatch stocks through real-time monitoring and communicated hotspots with captains at sea. In the herring and mackerel fishery we identified densities through port sampling and communicated hotspots to captains at sea. We also reported environmental factors of river herring density such as depth to captains. Percent participation exceeded 75% in each fisheries with evidence of avoidance behavior in both fisheries. Yellowtail bycatch was sharply reduced in the scallop closed area fisheries with some reduction of river herring bycatch in the herring and mackerel fisheries

mass.gov/marinefisheries POTYEAR 2010 Mid-Year Progress Report 2 Participants

Names in bold played a key role in project design and implementation. Major Accomplishments and Milestones Field work for the project was completed in the first half of 2011. Data analysis during the reporting period primarily consisted of exploration of bottom temperature data collected by temperature probes on each pot. As part of this exploration, reported pot locations were also examined and corrected where necessary. The Generalized Linear Mixed Model analysis was revised and recalculated. The primary activity was preparation and delivery of a presentation and manuscript to a Theme Session at the ICES Annual Science Conference. A copy of this report