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Atlantic Highly Migratory Management-Based Research Needs and Priorities JUNE 2020 ATLANTIC HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH NEEDS AND PRIORITIES

June 2020

Office of Sustainable National Marine Fisheries Service National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Atlantic Highly Migratory Species | MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH PRIORITIES

This document was developed by the Atlantic Highly Common Name Scientific Name Migratory Species (HMS) Management Division of Night signatus NOAA Fisheries to update and communicate key research needs that directly support Atlantic HMS Sand tiger taurus management. Atlantic HMS include those species listed White shark carcharias in Table 1. This document updates a list last released Cetorhinus maximus in 2014 of near- and long-term research needs and Galeocerdo cuvier priorities that can be used by individuals and groups Ginglymostoma cirratum interested in Atlantic HMS to identify key research Sevengill shark Heptranchias perlo needs, improve management, reduce duplication, Sixgill shark griseus prioritize limited funding, and form a potential basis for future funding. The priorities range from Bigeye sixgill shark Hexanchus nakamurai biological/ecological needs to socioeconomic needs. Shortfin mako shark oxyrinchus Table 1. Species Managed Under the 2006 Consolidated Longfin mako shark Isurus paucus Atlantic HMS Management Plan and Its Amendments Porbeagle shark nasus Smooth dogfish Mustelus canis Common Name Scientific Name smoothhound Mustelus norrisi Skipjack tuna Katsuwonus pelamis Gulf smoothhound Mustelus sinusmexicanus Albacore tuna Thunnus alalunga brevirostris Yellowfin tuna Thunnus albacares Bigeye noronhai Bigeye tuna Thunnus obesus Prionace glauca Bluefin tuna Thunnus thynnus Whale shark Rhincodon typus Swordfish Xiphias gladius Caribbean sharpnose shark porosus Sailfish Istiophorus platypterus Rhizoprionodon terraenovae White marlin Kajikia albida Scalloped hammerhead Sphyrna lewini Blue marlin Makaira nigricans shark Roundscale spearfish Tetrapturus georgii Great Sphyrna mokarran Longbill spearfish Tetrapturus pfluegeri shark Sphyrna tiburo Bigeye Alopias superciliosus Smooth hammerhead shark Sphyrna zygaena Thresher shark Alopias vulpinus Atlantic angel shark Squatina dumeril Carcharhinus acronotus Carcharhinus altimus Narrowtooth shark Carcharhinus brachyurus thisAt this document time, specific will inform funding future for the strategic priorities internal outlined Carcharhinus brevipinna NOAAin this Fisheriesdocument HMS has researchnot been identified.resource allocations. However, Carcharhinus falciformis This priorities document may also be used by Carcharhinus galapagensis interested scientists who are applying for federal Carcharhinus isodon funding opportunities (FFOs) as a way to highlight the relevance of their research to HMS management needs. Carcharhinus leucas There are several FFOs that support different types of Carcharhinus limbatus competitively awarded funds for research including the Carcharhinus longimanus Reduction Engineering Program, Cooperative Carcharhinus obscurus Research Program, and Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Carcharhinus perezii Program. More information on these FFOs is available Carcharhinus plumbeus on the NOAA Fisheries website and grants.gov. Smalltail shark Carcharhinus porosus

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | National Marine Fisheries Service 3 Atlantic Highly Migratory Species | MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH PRIORITIES

Management Division while developing and proposing Priorities for All managementPriorities were measures. identified Many by the of Atlanticthe research HMS priorities Atlantic HMS mortality and/or bycatch to more effectively manage address key data gaps and/or ways to reduce fishing Near-Term Priorities • Improve the accuracy and precision of all HMS Fisheries’HMS fisheries, broad either efforts directly to improve or by -basedimproving stock assessments. Some items also reflect NOAA catch data with an emphasis on non- or under- change, advance habitat conservation, and other fisheries management (EBFM), address climate reported catches in international fisheries, artisanal fisheries, bycatch and discards in HMS priorities. Because these needs were identified by federal and state recreational catch statistics. differ somewhat from more technical priorities and non-HMS fisheries, data-limited stocks, and fishery managers, these research priorities may • Provide estimates of at-vessel and post-release mortality rates of all HMS across gear types, While some of the priorities were derived from identified by the scientists across NOAA Fisheries. regions, and age classes and identify factors (e.g., soak time, temperature, handling, etc.) that contribute to that mortality, with an emphasis on notstock repeated assessment verbatim reviews, here. stock-specific In general, the priorities Atlantic HMSidentified Management in published Division stock implicitly assessment considers reports any are research that would improve an HMS stock assessment, • overfishedAssess the ecologicalor more frequently and socioeconomic encountered impacts stocks. or increase stock assessment output, to be a priority. of HMS spatial management and closed areas. Please refer to the relevant stock assessment reports • Identify and address factors limiting the ability of (links below) for more detailed information on

• Develop and examine the feasibility of alternative Ongoing survey and monitoring programs are not certain HMS fisheries to achieve optimum yield. research priorities supporting specific assessments. gear types (e.g., buoy gear), conservation engineering technology (e.g., weak hooks, expansion of an existing program. These survey anddiscussed monitoring unless programs, there is a whichspecific include suggestion but are for net checks, best practices for safe release) to reducemagnetic bycatch deterrents), and discard and fishing mortality methods rates (e.g., while andnot limitedobserver to programs,shark nursery are vitaland essentialto stock fish habitat studies, fishery independent surveys, assessments and effective HMS management. maintaining target catch and seafood quality. These ongoing survey and monitoring programs Long-Term Priorities should continue to be considered a high priority. • Enhance routine biological sampling of HMS Except for those priorities that are applicable across for studies of age, growth, maturity, longevity, all Atlantic HMS, the list is broken down by species or population genetics, stock composition, and total species group. These research priorities are further reproductive contribution by size and age. characterized as near-term or long-term priorities. • Characterize the economic value and impact of Near-term priority items are generally those that are needed to address more pressing management by region, and reassess the socioeconomic needs. Long-term priorities would provide for more all recreational and commercial HMS fisheries, effective HMS management, despite lacking an immediate need. Within the near-term and long- status of key HMS fishing communities by term priorities lists, the needs are not prioritized. • updating the HMS community profiles. Develop a site selection model economics,that will estimate and oceanographic when and where conditions fishermen (e.g., will go fishing depending on their port of departure,

4 U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | National Marine Fisheries Service Atlantic Highly Migratory Species | MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH PRIORITIES

FishSet for HMS, www.afsc.noaa.gov/REFM/ • Evaluate the impacts of offshore energy Socioeconomics/current_research.php) to help development activities (including construction estimate impacts of management measures. and post-installation monitoring) on • Expand the use of species distribution and habitat modeling to address spatial management priorities, • HMSDevelop and management associated fisheries. strategy evaluation and examine the feasibility of dynamic area processes to address impacts of current management based on oceanographic conditions management, various harvest control rules, (hindcasts as well as short- and long-term forecasts). and alternative management objectives. • Continue conventional and electronic tagging • studies across HMS stocks, regions, and life tagging) to develop empirical estimates of natural mortalityUse fishery-independent rates across species methods and (e.g., size/age electronic classes. movements, seasonal migration and residency stages with an emphasis on filling gaps on • labeling, and marketing campaigns (includingExamine the NOAA effects FishWatch) of seafood on certification, consumer susceptibility,patterns, habitat age use, validation, stock identification and survival rates. and mixing rates, fisheries exposure, bycatch perceptions and consumption of HMS. • Develop more cost-effective electronic • tag and telemetry products. • Advance the implementation of EBFM and Develop methods that can efficiently consideration of integrated ecosystem measure the socioeconomic benefits of • Collect social science information on assessments for HMS,in line with the 2018 regulatory measures to end . safe handling and release practices. Stock Assessment Improvement Plan update and HMS EBFM Implementation Plan, with

abundance and improved diet studies on HMS. an emphasis on forage fish distribution and • Collect data that would allow for all HMS essential Near-Term Priorities on more than presence/absence data (e.g., • Assess the effects of eastern and western electronicfish habitat tagging boundary data, designations including spatial, to be based depth Bluefinstock mixing on Tuna stock assessment results and thermal habitat use; catch density correlated and implications for management. with remote sensing data; habitat models). • • variability in oceanographic conditions on spatialInvestigate stationarity potential of Slope spawning Sea spawning in this region, questions, stockExamine productivity, the influence range, of climate seasonal change distribution, and andsuch associated as stock of population-level origin of these fish, implications. temporal and migration, spawning or nursery habitat, prey • Evaluate impacts of oceanographic and climate dynamics on stock mixing, migration, • species, and availability to fisheries for HMS. data from U.S. Caribbean and neighboring countries. productivity, and stock recruitment. Improve fishery- dependent and independent HMS availability to fisheries, trophic dynamics, • Assess long-term socioeconomic and ecological impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Long-Term Priorities including beyond the Gulf of . • Enhance information on larval distribution • to support stock assessments. sustainability, stock status, and seafood • Examine factors that affect the value of safetyAddress and public improve perceptions market opportunities.of HMS fisheries

bluefin tuna landings, including drivers of U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | National Marinefat content Fisheries Service and availability to the fishery. 5 Atlantic Highly Migratory Species | MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH PRIORITIES

• Determine predatory/prey relationships and forage availability. • Determine the western Atlantic stock- recruitment relationship (i.e., low vs. high Near-Term Priorities recruitment) and implications for biological • Investigate methods to reduce bycatch and discard reference points and management. Swordfishmortality rates of non-target species (including • Improve data on juvenile life stages, protected species, bluefin tuna, and overfished/ distribution, and genetic structure. including fishing and natural mortality, overfishing shark stocks) in directed swordfish • Determine factors that affect catchability for • fisheries, with an emphasis on pelagic longline gear. handline gear at basin and local scales. Evaluate possible impacts of deep-drop fishery • on all swordfish size classes and assess bycatch. habitat and environmental information into Bigeye, Albacore, catch-per-unit-effortDevelop methods to incorporate standardization. swordfish Long-Term Priorities Skipjack Tunas • Characterize the demographic changes

Yellowfin,Near-Term Priorities and • inDetermine the HMS thepelagic sales longline pathways fleet. and socioeconomic • Assess the economic effects of retention determine if such illegal sales affect consumer impacts of illegally sold swordfish, and adjustments in the recreational yellowfin • perceptions and consumption of swordfish. and bigeye tuna fisheries. Long-Term Priorities aDetermine domestic socioeconomicconsumer demand impacts function of swordfish • Develop methods to reduce bycatch of juvenile imports on domestic swordfish, including

• andAssess the the effects impact of price of weak and hooks quality. on pelagic bigeye and yellowfin tuna in the purse seine fishery longline gear with a focus on minimizing • withEstimate fish aggregatingthe connectivity devices between (international). and dependence , marine mammals) while maintaining bycatch (e.g., bluefin tuna, white marlin, dusky • ofDetermine U.S. fisheries larval on distribution Gulf of Guinea and reproduction. dynamics. • or increasing target catch (i.e., swordfish, and • bigeye,Identify albacore, spawning yellowfin, areas. or skipjack tunas). Develop in-field, rapid genetic identification techniques to distinguish between species • Determine larval distribution and dynamics. (e.g., are juvenile bluefin tuna misidentified • asModel blackfin effects or ofbigeye retention tuna landings).limits on

recreational fishing effort and locations.

6 U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | National Marine Fisheries Service Atlantic Highly Migratory Species | MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH PRIORITIES

census or video surveys, and population genetics (e.g., close-kin mark-recapture) approaches.

Near-Term Priorities Long-Term Priorities Billfish• Determine white marlin and roundscale • Determine catch and mortality rates of sharks in current and historical catch data. circle hooks and wire and non-wire leaders, and spearfish species composition in commercial and recreational fisheries using J- and • Develop methods to incorporate blue marlin habitat and environmental information into • consider implications for international fisheries. cost-per-unit-effort standardization. in catch monitoring and enforcement (e.g., education,Improve methods machine for learning, accurate rapid species DNA identification tests). Long-Term Priorities • Identify and characterize use of key habitats • (e.g., nursery areas, pupping grounds, mating grounds, feeding aggregation sites) Characterize and quantify changes in the fishing to improve spatial management. power (i.e. vessel horsepower and speed, quality/ speeds, etc.) of the recreational/tournament • Calculate average weight, conversion factors for quantity of electronics used to locate fish, trolling

fleets as they pertain to the catchability of different landing conditions (dressed, whole, fins • for primary commercial and recreational species. blue marlin, white marlin, and sailfish. attached), and fin-to-carcass ratios, particularly • Quantify rates of shark depredation in all Improve species identification methods for white • marlinDetermine and larvalroundscale distribution spearfish and for dynamics. fishermen. and develop ways to reduce depredation. • Determine spawning areas and spawning fisheries, estimate associated economic impacts, seasonality, seasonal migration and localized • abundance, distribution, and stock structure. shark landings and evaluate assumptions aboutImprove when estimates stocks wereof historical at virgin species-specific biomass. Sharks • For each species, identify the appropriate age/ mortality reductions. Identify important habitat/areassize/stage classes for these on which age classes.to focus fishing Near-Term Priorities • Determine socioeconomic impacts on shark • Determine if species life history characteristics (growth, maturity, fecundity, reproductive periodicity, etc.) have changed over time. fisheries due to state shark fin possession • Characterize non-consumptive values of • bansDevelop and new shark methods fin consumption/trade. (e.g., other than vertebral band counts) to estimate and shark populations (e.g., shark dive tourism, validate age and longevity for sharks. ecosystem services), and compare them to • Develop a comparison and standardization of regional shark surveys, and ensure surveys • theImprove socioeconomic electronic value monitoring of shark and fisheries. effectively sample the geographic range of stocks. reporting of shark bycatch. • Develop innovative population monitoring and • Evaluate public perceptions of rebuilding shark stock assessment methods for sharks to address stocks (depredation, public safety, etc.). data limitations, including data-limited models, mark-recapture, aerial surveys, underwater visual

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | National Marine Fisheries Service 7 Atlantic Highly Migratory Species | MANAGEMENT-BASED RESEARCH PRIORITIES

Other Resources HMS annual Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation Report, which summarizes HMS gaps, and research needs: stock statu and key fishery-dependent data and may reflect additional priorities, data. www.fisheries.noaa.gov/atlantic-highly-migratory-species/ atlantic-highly-migratory-species-stock-assessment-and-fisheries-evaluation-reportsInternational Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas Standing Committee on Research and Statistics website, which includes data, reports, and stock assessment documents for internationally managed HMS and internationally assessed HMS: www.iccat.int/en/scrs.html. Southeast Data, Assessment, and Review website, which includes stock assessment documents and research recommendations for domestically managed HMS: sedarweb.org. Annual Shark Finning Report to Congress, which highlights ongoing research projects conducted by NOAA Fisheries scientists on sharks:

Atlantic States Marine Fisherieswww.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/laws-and-policies/shark-conservation-act. Commission Coastal Sharks Research Priorities and Recommendations to Support Interjurisdictional Fisheries Management document: www. asmfc.org/uploads/file/5ac3aa21ResearchPriorities_CoastalSharks_2017.pdf.

8 U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | National Marine Fisheries Service