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Comprehensive bycatch assessment in US fisheries for prioritizing management

Author

Listed:
  • Matthew S. Savoca

    (NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Environmental Research Division
    Stanford University, Hopkins Marine Station)

  • Stephanie Brodie

    (NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Environmental Research Division
    University of California Santa Cruz, Institute of Marine Science)

  • Heather Welch

    (NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Environmental Research Division
    University of California Santa Cruz, Institute of Marine Science)

  • Aimee Hoover

    (NOAA Office of Science and Technology, National Observer Program)

  • Lee R. Benaka

    (NOAA Office of Science and Technology, National Observer Program)

  • Steven J. Bograd

    (NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Environmental Research Division
    University of California Santa Cruz, Institute of Marine Science)

  • Elliott L. Hazen

    (NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Environmental Research Division
    University of California Santa Cruz, Institute of Marine Science)

Abstract

Wild-capture fisheries help provide food security to billions of people, yet bycatch of non-target species threatens ecosystem health and fishery sustainability. Appropriate monitoring and fisheries management can mitigate bycatch but require standardized bycatch data to be robustly recorded and effectively disseminated. Here we integrated and analysed 30,473 species-specific bycatch records from 95 US fisheries in 2010–2015. We examined patterns in fish and invertebrate, marine mammal, seabird and sea turtle bycatch and developed a standardized scoring system, the relative bycatch index, to assess bycatch performance of each fishery. The estimated amount of fish and invertebrate discards totalled 1.93 million tonnes (4.26 billion pounds) over the 6-year period. We found that the national discard rate is 10.5%, considerably lower than past estimates. Results from our relative bycatch index analysis can be used to facilitate management intervention strategies for particular fisheries or gear types, such as shrimp and otter trawls and several pelagic longline and gillnet fisheries, which had the poorest bycatch performance. These findings underscore the need for continued, high-quality, easily accessible bycatch information to better support fisheries management in the United States and globally.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthew S. Savoca & Stephanie Brodie & Heather Welch & Aimee Hoover & Lee R. Benaka & Steven J. Bograd & Elliott L. Hazen, 2020. "Comprehensive bycatch assessment in US fisheries for prioritizing management," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 3(6), pages 472-480, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natsus:v:3:y:2020:i:6:d:10.1038_s41893-020-0506-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41893-020-0506-9
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    Cited by:

    1. Kogan, Konstantin & Perlman, Yael & Shatz, Smadar, 2024. "Fishing policies in a supply chain with an organic waste-based side stream," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 316(2), pages 651-666.

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