AFRF: ARCHIVAL TAGGING

ARCHIVAL TAGGING OF NORTH PACIFIC ALBACORE:

OVER 30 YEARS OF COOPERATION WITH THE U.S. ALBACORE FISHERY

The American Fishermen’s Research Foundation (AFRF)

Watch this wmv video of surgical installation of a tag. NOTE: file is 3.6M and not recommended for dialup connections.

1970-1980:

Exploratory fishing in offshore waters
Research into fishery oceanography
Development of standard logbooks

1980-1990:

At-sea observer program to assess driftnet damage
Shore-based tank studies to determine net drop-out rates
Exploratory fishing in South Pacific waters

1990-2000:

Research on remote-sensing products and their delivery
Continued observer coverage to aid enforcement
Data collection on non-target species
Data collection on discards of undersize fish

2000 and beyond:

Economic survey
Research into a limited entry program
Improved logbooks
Onboard length sampling
Albacore archival tagging

AFRF and the NMFS Southwest Fisheries Science Center have cooperated on research since 1971 and research efforts have followed changes in the Pacific fishery. In the 1970s the fishery was expanding and the international fishery catch was increasing catches. At that time AFRF research focused on identifying offshore areas of albacore abundance to expand U.S. participation in the fishery.

From 1977 to 1991, apparent excessive fishing in prior years and increased high seas driftnet fishing caused the fishery to decline. AFRF research then focused on strategies to limit the driftnet fishery and on locating new alternate stocks should the North Pacific stock continue to decline.

The recovery phase from 1993 to 1999 began with the 1992 U.N. moratorium on high seas driftnet fishing. After this effort, albacore stock began to recover in abundance. During this period, increased operating costs (particularly high fuel costs) reduced industry profits and prompted AFRF research into improving improve fishery efficiency and reducing search time.

Since 1999, the fishery has maintained catches at peak levels that were experienced before the decline phase. Also in this time period, agreement was reached for an international group to manage the North Pacific albacore fishery, and domestic fishery management plans to regulate U.S. albacore fisheries began to be developed. The new era of management is leading AFRF toward new research focused on information for the management process and improving stock assessment. An example is the new archival tagging program that provides very detailed data on albacore distribution and migratory behavior.

ALBACORE ARCHIVAL TAGGING PROCESS:

547 archival tags deployed from 2001 to 2006
Eight tagging charters aboard WFOA vessels
26 archival tags and dummy tags recovered
AFRF-NMFS tagging charter planned for summer (66 deployed August 2006)
Tagging Handout

NOTE: This information is adapted from a poster presented at the 2005 American Fisheries Society meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, by Suzanne Kohin, John Childers, and Gary Sakagawa, NOAA Fisheries, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, LaJolla, California.

Example of what's not a tag! Graphic image of parasite thought initially to be a tag