The present study describes the status of multiday drift gillnet fishery
for tuna from Chennai fishing harbour based on data for the years
2016 – 2017. The data is also compared with that during 1999-
2006. Both the craft and gear increased in size with consequent
extension of fishing grounds and increase in the number of days/
fishing trip. The size of the boats increased to 20-23 m OAL from
11-12 m OAL and weight of the gear from 1 to more than 6 t.
Annual average catch increased to 8523 t during 2016-2017 from
595 t during 1999-2006. Average catch per unit effort was 8310 kg
as against 730 kg during 1999-2006. Yellowfin tuna, Thunnus
albacares and Skipjack tuna, Katsuwonus pelamis were the dominant
species. The stock position of skipjack tuna and yellowfin tuna vis-àvis
the three indicators indicated that the percentage of mature
yellowfin tuna in the catch in 2017 was 68%, fish in optimum length
35% and mega-spawners 33% whereas in skipjack tuna the
respective percentages were 99.5, 21.1 and 79.1. Problems and
prospects of multiday tuna drift gillnet fishery are also discussed
