PICES Scientific Report No. 19 2001 Commercially Important Crabs
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PICES Scientific Report No. 19 2001 Commercially Important Crabs, Shrimps and Lobsters of the North Pacific Ocean Edited by Robert S. Otto and Glen S. Jamieson December 2001 Secretariat / Publisher North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) c/o Institute of Ocean Sciences, P.O. Box 6000, Sidney, B.C., Canada. V8L 4B2 E-mail: [email protected] Home Page: http://www.pices.int Table of Contents 1 Summary............................................................................................................................... 1 2 Introduction........................................................................................................................... 3 2.1 Terms of Reference...................................................................................................... 3 2.2 An Overview of Crustaceans in the PICES Region..................................................... 5 3 Major Species and Stocks of Crabs in the PICES Region.................................................... 9 3.1 Gazami crab (Portunus trituburculatus, Portunidae, FAO: GAZ, Area 61) .............. 9 3.1.1 China................................................................................................................... 9 3.1.2 South Korea ....................................................................................................... 10 3.2 Snow crabs (Chionoecetes spp., Majidae, FAO: PCR, Area 61, 67)......................... 12 3.2.1 Snow and red snow crabs................................................................................... 13 3.2.2 Tanner crab ........................................................................................................ 14 3.3 Dungeness crab (Cancer magister, Cancridae, FAO: DUN, Area 67, 77)................ 17 3.4 Other crabs.................................................................................................................. 22 3.5 King crabs (Lithodes and Paralithodes spp., Lithodidae, FAO: KCS, Area 61, 67). 22 3.5.1 Blue king crab.................................................................................................... 23 3.5.2 Golden king crab................................................................................................ 26 3.5.3 Red king crab ..................................................................................................... 27 4 Major Species and Stocks of Shrimps in the PICES Region............................................... 33 4.1 Akiami paste shrimps (Acetes spp., Sergestidae, FAO Area 61)................................ 34 4.2 Penaeid shrimps (Penaeidae, FAO Area 61)............................................................... 35 4.3 Pandalid shrimps (Pandalidae, FAO Area 61, 67)...................................................... 38 4.4 Other shrimps.............................................................................................................. 40 4.5 Spiny lobsters (Palinuridae, FAO Area 61, 77) .......................................................... 42 4.6 Mantis shrimps (Stomatopoda, Squillidae, FAO Area 61)......................................... 43 5 Oceanography..................................................................................................................... 45 5.1 Oceanography and recruitment................................................................................... 47 6 Sampling and Data Analysis................................................................................................ 51 6.1 Spatial structuring of crab and shrimp populations .................................................... 51 6.2 Effectiveness of marine sanctuaries and restrictions on fishing activities for crabs and shrimps........................................................................................................................ 51 7 Acknowledgements.............................................................................................................. 53 7.1 Other matters............................................................................................................... 53 8 References............................................................................................................................ 55 9 Appendices........................................................................................................................... 65 9.1 Appendix 1.................................................................................................................. 65 9.2 Appendix 2.................................................................................................................. 66 9.3 Appendix 3.................................................................................................................. 67 9.4 Appendix 4.................................................................................................................. 70 10 Plates 1-5.............................................................................................................................. 75 1 Summary Changes in the abundance of commercially Three families of shrimps are commercially important crustaceans in the North Pacific led important in the PICES Region, and their landings PICES to form Working Group 12 in 1997. have made up 93.8% of shrimp landings within the Objectives were to identify important North PICES Region over the last 15 years. Sergestidae Pacific crustacean stocks, to describe historical includes the akiami paste shrimp (Acetes chinensis changes in their abundance, to identify current and Acetes japonica), that supports the largest research programs on them, and to clarify shrimp fishery in the PICES Region, as well as the mechanisms that might account for their observed world. Penaeidae occur in the waters of China, patterns of abundance. The PICES Region Korea and southern Japan, and major fisheries includes almost all of FAO Statistical Areas 61 exploit Kuruma shrimp/prawn (Marsupenaeus and 67 and a small portion of Area 71. The japonicus); the cocktail, or southern rough shrimp Region in 1998 provided 48% of world crab (Trachysalambria curvirostrus); fleshy prawn landings and 45% of world shrimp landings, (Fenneropenaeus chinensis) and Shiba shrimp excluding data from North Korea. (Metapenaeus joyneri). The Pandalidae include the genera Pandalus and Pandalopsis and this The world-wide importance of the PICES Region family accounts for virtually all shrimp landings with respect to crustaceans has been increasing from northern Japan around the North Pacific rim over the last 15 years, with crab and shrimp to California. In terms of volume, the northern landings increasing at an annual compound rate of shrimp (Pandalus borealis, or eos) and the ocean 7.8% and 8.2%, respectively. Of the 48 crustacean shrimp (Pandalus jordani) have been most species that have accounted for commercial important economically, although six additional fisheries landings in the PICES Region, 33, or species have contributed substantially to the catch 69%, are endemic to it. in various areas. There have been some recent attempts to exploit deepwater glass shrimps, Five FAO species groupings (16 species in four Family Pasiphaeidae. Other species of shrimp families) make up 79% of crab landings in the such as many Crangonidae, which provide PICES Region. Four of these are brachyurans and important commercial fisheries in the northeast the other is an anomuran (king crabs). The gazami Atlantic, are present in the PICES Region but are crab (Portunidae, Portunus trituburculatus) fishery only harvested to a minor extent or as incidental in the Yellow Sea area alone represented 39.5% of catch. landings over this period. Harvested snow and Tanner crabs (Majidae, Chionoecetes spp.) include Mantis shrimps, stomatopods (Squillidae) that are five species. Landings of king crabs (Lithodidae) not closely related to the more familiar decapod include three species of Paralithodes and two shrimps, are briefly discussed for species of Lithodes. The Dungeness crab (Cancer comprehensiveness, although the only species magister) is the largest cancrid in the Pacific and commercially exploited is Oratosquilla oratoria in supports an important eastern Pacific inshore the Bohai Sea. Mantis shrimps are widely fishery from the eastern Aleutian Islands south to distributed in Chinese waters and are also found California. Hair crab (Erimacrus isenbeckii), rock around Korea and Japan, where they used to be crabs (Cancer spp.) and sheep crab (Loxorynchus historically more important. Spiny lobsters grandus) provide small fisheries in the PICES (Decapoda, Palinuridae) are exploited in Japan, Region, but except for hair crab, fisheries are South Korea, and China (Palinurus japonicus), poorly documented. and in California (P. interruptus). 1 2 2 Introduction transport, migration, population dynamics, and Interest in a working group was prompted by large influences of environmental conditions for changes in the abundance of commercially fished crabs and shrimp in the PICES region. crabs and shrimps that occurred in various areas of the PICES Region. Working Group 12 (WG 12) - Identify data that are available that would was established by the Governing Council in assist in the analyses of factors affecting October 1995 upon the recommendation of the abundance trends. Fisheries Science Committee (FIS). Many changes in crustacean abundance have been of - Review current knowledge of factors affecting considerable economic importance and affected abundance