Short Communication Captures of Swordfish Xiphias Gladius Linnaeus
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Journal of Applied Ichthyology J. Appl. Ichthyol. 26 (2010), 126–127 Received: March 20, 2009 Ó 2010 The Authors Accepted: May 6, 2009 Journal compilation Ó 2010 Blackwell Verlag, Berlin doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2009.01342.x ISSN 0175–8659 Short communication Captures of swordfish Xiphias gladius Linnaeus 1758 and loggerhead sea turtles Caretta caretta (Linnaeus 1758) associated with different bait combinations in the Western Mediterranean surface longline fishery By J. C. Ba´ez1,2, R. Real2, D. Macı´as1, J. M. de la Serna1, J. J. Bellido2,3 and J. A. Camin˜ as1,4 1Instituto Espan˜ol de Oceanografı´a (IEO), Centro Oceanogra´fico de Ma´laga, Ma´laga, Spain; 2Departamento de Biologı´a Animal, Universidad de Ma´laga, Ma´laga, Spain; 3Aula del Mar de Ma´laga, Ma´laga, Spain; 4COPEMED, Oficina de Ma´laga, Ma´laga, Spain Fisheries worldwide use longline surface driftnets mainly for the 18 combinations included fish-only bait, and eight were for targeting swordfish Xiphias gladius Linnaeus, 1758, billfishes a combination of squid ⁄ fish bait. and sharks. Sea turtles Caretta caretta can be incidentally The number of turtles captured using fish-only bait was captured in these surface longlines, considered to be one of the significantly lower than when using squid ⁄ fish baits (per set most dangerous types of fishing gear for sea turtles (Camin˜ as v2 = 238.33; P < 0.0001; per 1000 hooks v2 = 237.296; et al., 2006; Lewison and Crowder, 2007). Thus, there is P < 0.0001) (Table 2). However, there was a significant increasing global interest in strategies to reduce their fishery- reduction in target species catch efficiency when using related incidental catch. Several experiment-based studies fish-only bait, with 245.62 kg ⁄ set compared to 379.58 kg ⁄ focused on the differences associated with the use of fish and set obtained when using squid ⁄ fish (n = 798, W of squid as bait (e.g. Watson et al., 2005; Gilman et al., 2006, Wilcoxon = 47409.5; P < 0.001) (Table 2). 2007; Rueda et al., 2006), and recommended the use of fish- Consequently, when the Spanish surface longline fishery only bait rather than a squid ⁄ fish bait combination in order to targeting swordfish use fish-only bait, sea turtle captures are reduce loggerhead turtle by-catch. In some cases implementa- reduced, confirming the results of Gilman et al. (2006, 2007); tion of these recommendations has reduced fishery income however, economic profit is also diminished. Fishermen use (e.g. Ariz et al., 2005), but not in other studies (e.g. Gilman squid as bait presumably because, after years of experience, et al., 2007). Fishing with longline surface driftnets is an they learned that it increased catch of the target species, important income source for many local Spanish economies in although on many occasions they were forced to fish without the Mediterranean region (de la Serna et al., 2004), and the squid due to its higher cost. assessment of economic profit vs conservation plans should be incorporated into the fishery analysis. Table 1 In this context, we examined two questions: (i) can fish-only Technical characteristics of analysed surface longline gear. Main- bait significantly reduce incidental loggerhead turtle Caretta line = principal line from which branch lines hang. Branch line = - nylon line connecting hooks and the mainline. The mainline can be caretta catch in commercial surface longline fisheries targeting collected by hydraulic reel (or ÔrollerÕ) swordfish in the Western Mediterranean Sea?; and (ii) can fish- only bait affect the economic profit of these fisheries? Boats < 12 m Boats > 12 m We used the results of an observer program onboard length length commercial surface longline fisheries and compared fish-only Gear (n = 9) (n = 36) and squid ⁄ fish baits using the non-parametric chi-square test to Mainline length (km) 14–40 40–72 compare the observed vs estimated sea turtle hooking per set and Mainline diameter (mm) 1.6–2 1.8–2 1000 hooks, and the Wilcoxon test to compare the economic Total number of hooks 500–1600 900–4672 profit (total weight of the target species per fishing operation). Hook type J J Hook length (mm) 80.6–89.5 80.6–89.5 The studied boats fish year round over a large area of the Hook width (mm) 27.5–30.9 27.5–30.9 Western Mediterranean. Extended details on gear and fishery Branch lines, length (m) 21.6–43.2 21.6–43.2 techniques are given in Table 1. The longline length and Hydraulically-operated longline reel No Yes ⁄ No number of hooks varied greatly depending on boat size, Lightsticks Not used ⁄ used used whereas hook length and width were consistent for all vessels. The fishermen cooperating in this study used 18 different combinations of bait selected from eight species: Atlantic saury Table 2 Number of fishing operations, estimated weight (in tonnes) of target Scomberesox saurus (Walbaum, 1792), allis shad Alosa alosa species, and turtle by-catch hooking (number of individuals) (Linnaeus, 1758), blue shark Prionace glauca (Linnaeus, 1758), chub mackerel Scomber japonicus Houttuyn, 1782, round Bait Fishing operations Target (tonnes) Turtle by-catch sardinella Sardinella aurita Valenciennes, 1847, silver scabbardfish Lepidopus caudatus (Euphrasen, 1788), and squid Squid + fish 619 235.7 1759 Fish-only 176 33.4 142 Illex sp., mainly Illex illecebrosus (Lesueur, 1821). Ten of U.S. Copyright Clearance Centre Code Statement: 0175–8659/2010/2601–0126$15.00/0 Captures of swordfish X. gladius Linnaeus and loggerhead sea turtles C. caretta 127 Revelles et al. (2007) suggested that squid is an important www.iotc.org/files/proceedings/2005/wpby/IOTC-2005-WPBy11. part of the loggerhead turtle diet in the Balearic Sea. pdf (accessed on 15 April 2009). Experiments performed at sea by Watson et al. (2005), Rueda Ba´ez, J.C.; Real, R.; Garcı´a-Soto, C.; de la Serna, J.M.; Macias, D.; Camin˜ as, J.A., 2007a: Sea turtle bycatch dependency on distance et al. (2006), and Gilman et al. (2007) indicated that logger- to the coast independent of fishing effort: implications for heads are more likely to feed on squid than on fish when both conservation and fisheries management. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. are used simultaneously as bait. However, Toma´s et al. (2001) 338, 249–256. suggested that loggerheads are opportunistic consumers of fish Ba´ez, J.C.; Real, R.; Camin˜ as, J.A., 2007b: Differential distribution within longline transects of loggerhead and swordfish captured by discarded by bottom trawlers. Gilman et al. (2006) concluded the Spanish Mediterranean surface longline fishery. J. Mar. Biol. that factors other than bait must be also be involved in by- Assoc. U.K. 87, 801–803. catch patterns. In fact, the Spanish fishery targeting albacore Camin˜ as, J.A.; Valeiras, J.; de la Serna, J., 2003: Spanish surface gear Thunnus alalunga (Bonnaterre, 1788) use only fish as bait types and effects on marine turtles in the Western Mediterranean (Camin˜ as et al., 2003) and produce the highest values of Sea. In: Proc. first mediterranean conference on marine turtles. D. Margaritoulis, A. Demetropolous (Eds), Nicosia, Greece, pp. 88– loggerhead by-catch (Camin˜ as et al., 2006). Other factors than 93. economic profit should also be considered, because during an Camin˜ as, J.A.; Ba´ez, J.C.; Valeiras, J.; Real, R., 2006: Differential experiment with a Spanish longline boat (Rueda et al., 2006) loggerhead bycatch and direct mortality in surface longline that used fish and squid bait the swordfish catches averaged according to boat strata and gear type. Sci. Mar. 70, 661–665. Casale, P., 2008: Incidental catch of marine turtles in the Mediterra- only 126.67 kg ⁄ set. nean Sea: captures, mortality, priorities. WWF, Rome, Italy, pp. In conclusion, in many international fisheries the relation- 64 . ship between hooks and bait is considered as the main focus Gilman, E.; Zollet, E.; Beverly, S.; Nakano, S.; Davis, K.; Shiode, D.; with regard to reducing incidental loggerhead turtle catches in Dalzell, P.; Kinan, I., 2006: Reducing sea turtle bycatch in pelagic surface longline fishing. However, this approach failed to find longline fisheries. Fisheries 7, 2–23. Gilman, E.; Kobayashi, D.; Swenarton, T.; Brothers, N.; Dalzell, P.; differences in capture patterns for swordfish and loggerhead Kinan-Kelly, I.S., 2007: Reducing sea turtle interactions in the turtles, thus making it difficult to envision a conservation Hawaii-based longline swordfish fishery. Biol. Conserv. 139, 19– strategy compatible with legitimate economic profitability. 28. Ba´ez et al. (2007a,b) demonstrated that sea turtle bycatch and Lewison, R.L.; Crowder, L.B., 2007: Putting longline bycatch of sea turtles into perspective. Conserv. Biol. 21, 79–86. swordfish captures are differentially dependent on eco-geo- Revelles, M.; Cardona, L.; Agular, A.; Ferna´ndez, G., 2007: The diet graphical factors such as distance to the coast and night ⁄ day PF pelagic loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) off the Balearic fishing activity, thus providing a more promising basis for archipelago (western Mediterranean): relevance of longline baits. maintaining profit while reducing turtle capture. Casale (2008) J. Mar. Biolog. Assoc. U.K. 87, 805–813. recommended using these factors to improve the management Rueda, L.; Sagarminaga, R.; Ba´ez, J.C.; Camin˜ as, J.A.; Eckert, S.A.; Boggs, C., 2006: Testing the Spanish Mediterranean swordfish of longline fisheries in the Western Mediterranean Sea. longlining fleet. Proceeding 26th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation, Island of Creta, Greece. de la Serna, J.M.; Macı´as, D.; Ortiz de Urbina, J.M.; Alot, E.; Rioja, Acknowledgements P., 2004: Ana´lisis de la pesquerı´a espan˜ ola del pez espada (Xiphias gladius) en el Mediterra´neo. ICCAT Coll.