Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report Pacific Island Pelagic Fisheries 2015
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Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report Pacific Island Pelagic Fisheries 2015 Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council 1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400 Honolulu, HI 96813 PHONE: (808) 522-8220 FAX: (808) 522-8226 www.wpcouncil.org Cover image: Skipjack and Bigeye Tuna, iStock Photos (http://www.istockphoto.com/) The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council prepared this report using Federal funds under award NA15NMF4410008, from NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, with support from the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission under NOAA award NA14NMF4370120. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA, NMFS, or the U.S. Department of Commerce. ii Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Report Pacific Island Pelagic Fisheries January 31, 2017 Prepared by the Pelagics Plan Team and Council Staff for the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council 1164 Bishop Street, Suite 1400, Honolulu, Hawai`i 96813 iii CONTENTS Section Page Glossary of Terms and List of Acronyms ................................................................................xx Executive Summary .............................................................................................................ES-1 Summary of SAFE Stock Assessment Requirements ..................................................... ES-3 Summary of Fishery Data in the Pacific Island Region .................................................. ES-5 American Samoa ............................................................................................................. ES-6 CNMI .............................................................................................................................. ES-7 Guam ............................................................................................................................... ES-8 Hawai`i ............................................................................................................................ ES-9 Climate Change and Ocean Indicators .......................................................................... ES-11 Essential Fish Habitat ................................................................................................... ES-12 Marine Planning ............................................................................................................ ES-12 1 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................1 1.1 Background to the SAFE Report .............................................................................. 2 1.2 Pelagic MUS List ...................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Brief List of Pelagic Fisheries/Gear Types Managed under the FEP ....................... 5 1.3.1 American Samoa ................................................................................................... 6 1.3.2 Guam ..................................................................................................................... 9 1.3.3 Hawai`i .................................................................................................................. 9 1.3.4 Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands ............................................. 11 1.3.5 Pacific Remote Island Areas ............................................................................... 12 1.4 FMP/FEP Amendments and NMFS Actions Implemented in 2015 ....................... 14 1.5 Total Pelagic Landings in WPR for All Fisheries .................................................. 14 1.6 Council Recommendations ..................................................................................... 15 i 2 Data Modules .....................................................................................................................16 2.1 American Samoa ..................................................................................................... 16 2.1.1 Data Sources ....................................................................................................... 16 2.1.2 Summary of American Samoan Pelagic Fishery ................................................ 17 2.1.3 Plan Team Recommendations ............................................................................. 18 2.1.4 Overview of Participation – All Fisheries .......................................................... 18 2.1.5 Overview of Landings – All Fisheries ................................................................ 20 2.1.6 Weight-per-fish – All Fisheries .......................................................................... 25 2.1.7 American Samoa Longline Participation, Effort, Landings, Bycatch, and CPUE ............................................................................................................................. 27 2.1.8 American Samoa Trolling Bycatch and CPUE ................................................... 39 2.2 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands ................................................... 42 2.2.1 Data Sources ....................................................................................................... 42 2.2.2 Summary of CNMI Pelagic Fisheries ................................................................. 43 2.2.3 Plan Team Recommendations ............................................................................. 44 2.2.4 Overview of Participation and Effort – Non-charter and Charter....................... 45 2.2.5 Overview of Landings – Non Charter and Charter ............................................. 47 2.2.6 Overview of Catch per Unit Effort – All Fisheries ............................................. 55 2.3 Guam ....................................................................................................................... 59 2.3.1 Data Sources ....................................................................................................... 59 2.3.2 Summary of Guam Pelagic Fisheries .................................................................. 59 2.3.3 Plan Team Recommendations ............................................................................. 61 2.3.4 Overview of Participation - Non-Charter and Charter Fisheries ........................ 62 2.3.5 Overview of Total and Reported Commercial Landings – Non-Charter and Charter Fisheries ............................................................................................................. 63 2.3.6 Overview of Effort and CPUE – Non-Charter and Charter Fisheries ................ 71 ii 2.4 Hawai`i .................................................................................................................... 77 2.4.1 Data Sources ....................................................................................................... 77 2.4.2 Summary of Hawai`i Pelagic Fisheries............................................................... 79 2.4.3 Plan Team Recommendations ............................................................................. 81 2.4.4 Overview of Participation – All Fisheries .......................................................... 81 2.4.5 Overview of Landings and Economic Data ........................................................ 82 2.4.6 Hawai`i Deep-set Longline Fishery Effort, Landings. Revenue and CPUE ....... 93 2.4.7 Hawai`i Shallow-set Longline Fishery Effort, Landings. Revenue and CPUE 102 2.4.8 MHI Troll Fishery Effort, Landings, Revenue and CPUE ............................... 110 2.4.9 MHI Handline Fishery Effort, Landings, Revenue and CPUE ......................... 112 2.4.10 Offshore Handline Fishery Effort, Landings, Revenue and CPUE .............. 114 2.5 Recreational .......................................................................................................... 116 2.5.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 116 2.5.2 Recreational Fisheries in the Western Pacific Region ...................................... 116 2.5.3 Recreational Catches ......................................................................................... 119 2.5.4 Charter Vessel Sport-Fishing ............................................................................ 120 2.5.5 Recreational Fishing Data Collection in Hawai`i ............................................. 123 2.5.6 Hawai`i Small Boat Survey 2014 ..................................................................... 127 2.5.7 References ......................................................................................................... 128 2.6 International .......................................................................................................... 129 2.6.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 129 2.6.2 Data Sources ..................................................................................................... 129 2.6.3 Plan Team Recommendations ........................................................................... 130 2.6.4 Summary of Fisheries ....................................................................................... 130 2.6.5 Status of the Stocks ........................................................................................... 141 iii 2.6.6 Information on