Likely impacts of an eastward expansion of the inshore gill-net fishery in the Western Cape, South Africa: implications for management

2003 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 39 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Hutchings ◽  
S. J. Lamberth
Keyword(s):  
West Coast ◽  
Fishing Effort ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
South West ◽  
Gill Net ◽  
South West Coast ◽  
By Catch ◽  
Catch Rates ◽  
The Impact

Current South African government policy aims to create more equitable access to marine resources and there is pressure to increase the inshore gill-net fishing effort. At present, the gill-net fishery in the Western Cape is confined to the cool temperate west coast. In order to ascertain the potential catch if the fishery was to expand along the warm temperate south-west coast, a program of experimental netting was conducted. Estuarine and coastal marine sites were sampled bimonthly, using a range of commercial gill-nets (44–178 mm stretch-mesh). Although the target species, Liza richardsonii, dominated the catches, at least 33 of the by-catch species caught were also targeted by the commercial or recreational line-fish sectors. The number of species captured and the line-fish (by-catch) catch per unit effort (CPUE) were greatest in areas currently closed to the commercial gill-net fishery. Multivariate analysis indicated significant differences in catch rates and composition between exploited west coast and unexploited south-west coast sites. A combination of natural biogeographical trends and the impact of over 100 years of commercial gill-netting on the west coast are the likely causes of these differences. A spatial expansion of the gill-net fishery could have a detrimental impact on overexploited line-fish stocks and lead to increased user conflict.

By-catch frequency and size differentiation in loggerhead turtles as a function of surface longline gear type in the western Mediterranean Sea

2013 ◽  
Vol 93 (5) ◽  
pp. 1423-1427 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Carlos Báez ◽  
David Macías ◽  
Juan Antonio Camiñas ◽  
José María Ortiz de Urbina ◽  
Salvador García-Barcelona ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Sea Turtle ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
Size Selectivity ◽  
Loggerhead Turtles ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
By Catch ◽  
Catch Rates ◽  
The Impact

Fisheries by-catch is considered to be a major threat to loggerhead turtles in the Mediterranean Sea. Technical differences in both gear configurations (e.g. hook and bait type) and fisheries operations carried out by the Spanish Mediterranean surface longline fleet could have an effect on by-catch rates and size selectivity. The aim of the present study was to test the differences in by-catch per unit effort and body size of loggerhead sea turtles caught using different gear types in the Mediterranean surface longline fishery. Our results suggest that differences in the gear type used have an effect on catch rates and size selectivity. Thus, surface longliners targeting albacore (LLALB) using smaller hooks tend to capture smaller loggerheads but have the highest by-catch per unit of effort (BPUE), whereas other longlines, such as surface longliners targeting bluefin tuna (LLJAP) and traditional surface longliners targeting swordfish (LLHB), using larger hooks tend to select the larger animals; moreover, LLHB had the lowest BPUE. Disproportionate rates of fisheries-induced mortality on certain size/age-classes can differentially affect sea turtle populations, as each sea turtle age-class contributes differently to current and future reproduction. Thus, fisheries management should not only be focusing on preserving the large juvenile and mature turtles, but also on reducing the total by-catch. Thus, we recommend encouraging the use of LLHB versus other surface gears. We suggest that it is very important to take into account the gear type (and its particular catch rates) when making inferences about the impact of longline fisheries on sea turtle populations.

scholarly journals MAXIMUM SUSTAINABLE YIELD OF TRAWL FISHERY ALONG THE SOUTH-WEST COAST OF INDIA: BAYESIAN ESTIMATION APPROACH

2020 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
T. V. Sathianandan ◽  
Somy Kuriakose ◽  
K. G. Mini ◽  
P. K. Safeena
Keyword(s):  
Bayesian Estimation ◽  
Marine Fish ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Fishing Effort ◽  
Maximum Sustainable Yield ◽  
Sustainable Yield ◽  
The South ◽  
Trawl Fishery ◽  
South West ◽  
South West Coast

The south-west region of the Indian coast is shared by three maritime states and it contributes nearly 32% to the total marine fish production of the country. Mechanised trawl fishery accounts for 44% of the marine fish harvest in the south-west coast and a number of resources are harvested by trawl nets from this region. An assessment of the trawl fishery to determine sustainable harvest levels for mechanised trawlers in the region was carried out using time series data on annual landings and fishing effort of mechanised trawlers during the period 1990-2015. A Bayesian estimation method for Schaefer model was used for the analysis. Posterior probability densities of parameters of the model, maximum sustainable yield (MSY) and corresponding biomass were obtained through Bayesian estimation for the trawl fishery in south-west coast and the harvest levels were found to be above MSY from 2012 onwards. Forecasts of biomass and fish landings by mechanised trawlers upto 2025 under different levels of fishing effort were also simulated using the model to study the dynamic changes over time. It was found that the numbers of multiday trawlers and single day trawlers operating in this region have to be reduced by 207 and 36 respectively to retain the harvest at sustainable level.

Long-term recovery from fire by a population of honey possums (Tarsipes rostratus) in the extreme south-west of Western Australia

2017 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. D. Bradshaw ◽  
F. J. Bradshaw
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Phytophthora Cinnamomi ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Vertebrate Species ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
South West ◽  
Catch Rates ◽  
The Impact

The impact of two fires, six years apart, on the long-term recovery of a population of honey possums (Tarsipes rostratus) in the extreme south-west of Western Australia was documented over a 23-year period. Recovery was relatively rapid after the first fire, with catch rates reaching 78% of precatch levels within six years, but was much slower following the second fire in April 1999. Regression analysis estimates that full recovery to prefire catch rates and densities would take 25.6 years. The spread of Phytophthora cinnamomi (dieback) throughout the study area has severely impacted Banksia ilicifolia trees, which are the honey possums’ primary food source, and the impact has been greater in the burnt than unburnt areas. Analysis of catch-per-unit-effort and density of individual honey possums over the whole 29-year period of the study shows that numbers have not declined in the long-unburnt southern area of the study site, despite the spread of dieback and loss of banksia trees. The data are discussed in relation to the impact of fire on other vertebrate species that have specific habitat requirements. Given predictions of increasing fire frequencies due to climate change and an increased utilisation of prescribed burning to protect human life and property, it is imperative that management of areas harbouring honey possums be protected from too-frequent fire if this iconic species is to persist.

Pseudopolydora species associated with mollusc shells on the south coast of South Africa, with the description of Ps. dayii, sp nov.

2009 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 681-687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol A. Simon
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
West Coast ◽  
First Record ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
The South ◽  
Western Cape Province ◽  
Additional Material ◽  
South West ◽  
Haliotis Midae ◽  
South West Coast

Two species of the genus Pseudopolydora, Ps. dayii, sp. nov. and Ps. antennata, were associated with gastropods on the south and south-east coasts of South Africa. Pseudopolydora dayii is characterized by prominent post-chaetal notopodial lobes on chaetiger 1 with very long chaetae, a prominent occipital tentacle, having hooded hooks that start on chaetiger 9, branchiae that start on chaetiger 6, stout hooks and lobes placed latero-posteriorly to the hooded hooks in posterior chaetigers. It is a surface-fouler and was found on several species of wild gastropods at four of the five sites sampled and from additional material from the south-west coast and on cultured abalone (Haliotis midae) at a farm on the south-west coast. Three individuals of Ps. antennata were found only with oysters at the easternmost site. This was the first record of this species outside of the Western Cape Province and it is possible that their association with the oysters was fortuitous.

scholarly journals A modelling approach to evaluate the impact of fish spatial behavioural types on fisheries stock assessment

2018 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 489-500 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josep Alós ◽  
Andrea Campos-Candela ◽  
Robert Arlinghaus
Keyword(s):  
Stock Assessment ◽  
Fishing Effort ◽  
Fish Stock ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Stock Assessments ◽  
Theoretical Predictions ◽  
Behavioural Types ◽  
Catch Rates ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Spatial behavioural types (SBTs) arise from between-individual differences in behavioural traits that foster spatial behavioural patterns that are consistent over time and ecological contexts. Fish stocks are regularly assessed using catch per unit effort (CPUE) as input data that may non-linearly co-vary with the underlying abundance (N) of the exploited stock when SBT affect catchability. We hypothesized that SBT promote characteristic changes in catchability within harvesting seasons that affect catch rates and in turn catch-based fish stock assessments. To test this hypothesis, we developed a spatially explicit agent-based simulation where we measured encounters between fish and fishers and estimated the shape of the CPUE–N relationship. We ran the simulation in a prototypical fish–fisher encounter-leads-to-catch-type fishery and systematically studied outcomes in the presence or absence of SBTs. It was revealed that the existence of SBTs leads to CPUE inevitably declining faster than N (a process known as hyperdepletion) when compared with a simulation lacking SBTs. This finding was consistent in a wide range of fishing effort scenarios. The emergent hyperdepletion of catch rates was caused by fast and behavioural-selective exploitation of vulnerable SBT that encompassed the mobile component of the fish stock. The theoretical predictions received support from field data from a coastal recreational fishery. Our work suggests that the consideration of SBT when interpreting trends in CPUE data may notably improve stock assessments by providing a more reliable CPUE–N relationship.

Fish and invertebrate by-catch in the crab pot fishery in the Isle of Man, Irish Sea

2017 ◽  
Vol 98 (8) ◽  
pp. 2099-2111
Author(s):  
Fikret Öndes ◽  
Michel J. Kaiser ◽  
Lee G. Murray
Keyword(s):  
Irish Sea ◽  
Target Species ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
Isle Of Man ◽  
Ecosystem Effects ◽  
By Catch ◽  
Catch Rates ◽  
Taxonomic Groups ◽  
Catch Composition ◽  
Autumn And Winter

Baited trap or pot fisheries are considered to have relatively few wider ecosystem effects on the marine environment, particularly when compared with towed mobile fishing gear. However, this assumption is rarely tested in the field. This study aimed to determine the composition of non-target species that occur in crustacean pots and to assess spatial and temporal differences in catches in the waters around the Isle of Man, Irish Sea. The data were collected using fishery independent surveys and a questionnaire study. Based on fishery independent surveys, a total of five taxonomic groups and 43 species occurred as by-catch. The dominant by-catch species was velvet crab Necora puber. The by-catch per unit effort (BPUE) for all of the non-target species was low particularly in comparison to towed bottom gear fisheries around the Isle of Man. BPUE of species composition varied considerably between different locations around the Isle of Man. The results of both the fishery independent and questionnaire data suggested that the by-catch rates varied with season with peak BPUE occurring in spring which then declined into autumn and winter. By-catch composition did not decrease significantly with an increasing target species catch. Overall, by-catch was low relative to target species catch which may be partially attributable to the use of escape panels in pot fisheries in the Isle of Man.

Meteorological aspects of mud bank formation along south west coast of India

2013 ◽  
Vol 65 ◽  
pp. 45-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asha S. Philip ◽  
C.A. Babu ◽  
P.V. Hareeshkumar
Keyword(s):  
West Coast ◽  
West Coast Of India ◽  
South West ◽  
South West Coast ◽  
Mud Bank

Inter-annual and seasonal dynamics of amino acid, mineral and vitamin composition of silver belly Leiognathus splendens

2014 ◽  
Vol 95 (4) ◽  
pp. 817-828 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kajal Chakraborty ◽  
Deepu Joseph
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Protein Content ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Sensor Data ◽  
The South ◽  
Post Monsoon ◽  
South West ◽  
South West Coast ◽  
Protein Amino Acids

Silver bellies, Leiognathus splendens were studied for their spatial (south-west and south-east coasts of India), annual (2008–2011) and seasonal (pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon) variations of protein, amino acids, vitamins and minerals. The monthly mean Sea Viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor data for the period from January 2008 to December 2011 were taken into account to indicate the distribution of the photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll-a to test the hypothesis that surface productivity might be related to nutritional biochemistry of this species. The four year average total protein content and chlorophyll-a showed good correlation during monsoon on the south-west coast and monsoon/post-monsoon on the south-east coast, suggesting that the protein content is prejudiced by the chlorophyll-a concentration. Amino acid scores observed monsoon maxima along the south-west and south-east coasts. Significant seasonal variations in vitamin content were observed at the study locations with high content of vitamins D3, E, K1 and C on the south-west coast. Na content was maximal during pre-monsoon on the south-west coast, while post-monsoon maxima of Ca and K content were observed. The Fe, Mn and Zn were abundant in the samples collected from the south-west coast. The concentration of Se exhibited maximum values post-monsoon along the south-west and south-east coasts. The present study demonstrated L. splendens as a valuable source of the protein, amino acids, minerals and vitamins, showing that this low-value species is a good source of well balanced proteins with high biological value to be qualified as a preferred healthy food for human consumption.

Comparison of Lipid Profile in Three Species of Myctophids from the South West Coast of Kerala, India

2014 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Libin Baby ◽  
Thazhakot Vasunambisan Sankar ◽  
Rangasamy Anandan
Keyword(s):  
Lipid Profile ◽  
West Coast ◽  
The South ◽  
South West ◽  
South West Coast
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